WOW- we talk about things being classic and “one for the ages” but this game really filled the bill. With no offense OSU figured out how to win a game in double overtime. It was crazy. Two missed field goals, no offense except a running quarterback and the inability to hold a goal line stand. And yet they won. So let look at the game through the lens of Herbie’s Hints.
- Don’t Give Up
I was ready to give up on them in the third quarter. They just couldn’t find a rhythm, couldn’t keep momentum, all the receivers seemed to be missing in action, there just didn’t seem a way to win. My Dad always said you never ever ever give up.
- A True Champion Comes from Behind
Behind, in their own “house”, no game plan that seemed to work, a kicker who couldn’t find the goal post, and yet this is exactly what they did: come from behind. A win is a win it doesn’t really matter in the end if you led from the beginning or won at the end.
- Find a Way
On a day with a record number of fans in attendance, more than ever in history and more than ever will be in history, the vaulted Red and Grey could not find an offense. They also couldn’t find a defense to stop the Maize and Blue from scoring in the horseshoe. And their senior kicker couldn’t find the goal posts. Yet they found a way to win.
- Winning Doesn’t Have to be Pretty
Their only offense was a quarterback who ran the ball. Goal line stands that used to be the stuff of folk lore for OSU, were nowhere to be found. Running backs couldn’t run and receivers couldn’t catch the ball with any frequency. Relatively simple 3 point conversions were not simple on this day. And yet they played to a tie. When they couldn’t stop Michigan from scoring, they played again until a 5’11 sometimes receiver and sometimes running back went dancing through the end zone. It wasn’t pretty. It was a win.
- Be Respectful
Urban Meyer gave credit to players on his team and his rival. OSU security quickly escorted Coach Harbaugh off the field. A fan or support person or someone took that special moment and had to waive a Palestinian scarf behind J.T. Barrett as he was interviewed moments after the end of the game. REALLY! Can’t a college game just be a college game? Can’t we have a break from the world for an afternoon? Why allow your politics to take away from this moment? ABC cut away as if to try to keep this moment about the game. Be respectful. REALLY.
