Ohio State Is Showing a Historic Lack of Mercy
Four games into the season, the Buckeyes have pummeled their opponents by a combined 191 points
By ANDREW BEATON
Coming off an upset win over then-No. 17 Michigan State, Indiana has a 3-1 record and Hoosiers fans are understandably excited about a rare opportunity to cheer for a strong football team. But that feeling likely won’t last long. Because on Saturday, Indiana travels to Ohio State, where it figures to become the latest team to be savagely beaten by the Buckeyes.
Four games into the season, No. 2 Ohio State has pummeled its opponents by a whopping 191 combined points. When teams accumulate such a blistering string of beatdowns, the rampage usually involves the traditional sacrifice of a lower-division team or two. What makes the Buckeyes’ run of routs so impressive is that their opponents have all come from college football’s top division. By this measure, theirs is the third-best point differential to start a season since 1980, according to Stats LLC.
The Buckeyes opened the year with a 67-point blowout of Bowling Green. By comparison, their next three wins—by 45, 21 and 58 points—were positively civilized. But that 21-point win may be the most terrifying since it came on the road against an Oklahoma team that entered the season ranked No. 3.
Most of the other teams that have started out on fire played nobody that good. The 1989 Houston Cougars beat their first four opponents by 212 points but didn’t face a ranked team. Neither did Oklahoma in 2007 (199 points).
To no one’s surprise, almost all the teams in the top-10 of this list turned out to be quite good. None lost more than three games, and three lost only once. And the 1995 Nebraska team, that walloped its first four foes by a 174-point margin, the ninth-largest total, went on to a national title.
But for the Hoosiers, there may be a sliver of hope that they can not merely escape a slaughter, but actually beat the Buckeyes. The historically ruthless 1989 Houston and 2007 Oklahoma teams both went on to lose their fifth games of the season.
http://www.wsj.com/articles/ohio-state-is-showing-a-historic-lack-of-mercy-1475792805?emailToken=JRr8cfx8Zn2fhtE1aMw71FwvK7IUAvOEA1LMaWvKPVfNsnOQqKehxr4pgMG2qiarTE15otcKqmsyXzbAxTM2A5LOyuQvyQo=
Go Bucks.........continue your merciless ways!
Four games into the season, the Buckeyes have pummeled their opponents by a combined 191 points
By ANDREW BEATON
Coming off an upset win over then-No. 17 Michigan State, Indiana has a 3-1 record and Hoosiers fans are understandably excited about a rare opportunity to cheer for a strong football team. But that feeling likely won’t last long. Because on Saturday, Indiana travels to Ohio State, where it figures to become the latest team to be savagely beaten by the Buckeyes.
Four games into the season, No. 2 Ohio State has pummeled its opponents by a whopping 191 combined points. When teams accumulate such a blistering string of beatdowns, the rampage usually involves the traditional sacrifice of a lower-division team or two. What makes the Buckeyes’ run of routs so impressive is that their opponents have all come from college football’s top division. By this measure, theirs is the third-best point differential to start a season since 1980, according to Stats LLC.
The Buckeyes opened the year with a 67-point blowout of Bowling Green. By comparison, their next three wins—by 45, 21 and 58 points—were positively civilized. But that 21-point win may be the most terrifying since it came on the road against an Oklahoma team that entered the season ranked No. 3.
Most of the other teams that have started out on fire played nobody that good. The 1989 Houston Cougars beat their first four opponents by 212 points but didn’t face a ranked team. Neither did Oklahoma in 2007 (199 points).
To no one’s surprise, almost all the teams in the top-10 of this list turned out to be quite good. None lost more than three games, and three lost only once. And the 1995 Nebraska team, that walloped its first four foes by a 174-point margin, the ninth-largest total, went on to a national title.
But for the Hoosiers, there may be a sliver of hope that they can not merely escape a slaughter, but actually beat the Buckeyes. The historically ruthless 1989 Houston and 2007 Oklahoma teams both went on to lose their fifth games of the season.
http://www.wsj.com/articles/ohio-state-is-showing-a-historic-lack-of-mercy-1475792805?emailToken=JRr8cfx8Zn2fhtE1aMw71FwvK7IUAvOEA1LMaWvKPVfNsnOQqKehxr4pgMG2qiarTE15otcKqmsyXzbAxTM2A5LOyuQvyQo=
Go Bucks.........continue your merciless ways!
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