Dein erstes Forum » 37 matches. "This record is incredible,

COLUMBUS, Ohio -- Besides having national playoff implications, this years Ohio State vs. Michigan game is full of questions, story lines and intriguing matchups.Can Ohio State quarterback J.T. Barrett solve Michigans best-in-the-nation defense?Will Michigan superstar Jabrill Peppers be able to shut down Curtis Samuel, Ohio States do-it-all hybrid back?Will injured quarterback Wilton Speight be healthy enough to play for Michigan? If not, can backup John OKorn rebound from a lackluster performance last week to hurt Ohios States ball-hawking defense?If Ohio State triumphs, does it belong in the College Football Playoff even without a conference championship on its resume?Most of those answers will become clear Saturday afternoon after No. 2 Ohio (10-1, 7-1 Big Ten) State and No. 3 Michigan (10-1, 7-1) tangle in Ohio Stadium in the 2016 version of the storied rivalry. The Game hardly needs any more hype, but it returns to the national spotlight for the first time in a decade because the winner is likely to end up in the playoff, with the loser shut out.Yeah, were playing for it all, pretty much, Ohio State center Pat Elflein said. The stakes are always pretty high for this game. Everyone knows you can save a season by beating this team, no matter what your record is, but definitely the stakes are higher.Michigan tight end Jake Butt, who graduated from the same suburban Columbus high school as Elflein, said he cant wait to get on the field at Ohio Stadium.No. 2 vs. No 3, really everything on the line, Butt said. For both teams its an absolute must-win game, so its going to be a great atmosphere. Everybody is going to be tuning in to watch this.Some other things to watch as Michigan visits the Horseshoe on Saturday.LETS GET PHYSICALPeppers said he has watched other teams, including Penn State, Wisconsin and Northwestern, give the Buckeyes problems by getting extra physical. He and the Wolverines plan to test their rival in the same way.Were going to see how they respond with physicality, Peppers said. We come with bad intentions. Its never our intention to hurt anyone, but when we hit you, we want you to feel it.Peppers, who plays a position that is a hybrid between linebacker and defensive back, believes Michigan is in a much better position to win The Game than it was a year ago when Ohio State won in a rout.We got a lot of smart, savvy guys who have been through the 5-7 seasons and winning seasons, he said. We got a lot of experience on our side. We got much better athletes this year, too.CONTAINING BARRETTMichigan defensive end Chris Wormley said the experience playing against other teams that run a spread offense should help them to corral Barrett, whos passed for 2,304 yards and 24 touchdowns, and added 722 yards and seven scores on the ground. Last year against Michigan, Barrett ran for 139 yards and three touchdowns in Ohio States 42-13 win.The last couple years we played him he put some numbers up against us, Wormley said. Weve seen a lot of similar offenses this season, the spread, different option plays they have, quarterback runs and things like that, so weve been preparing all year. Obviously they have different athletes and things like that. Its going to be a game where were going to have to shut down a few players, and I feel were ready for that task.LAST HOME GAME FOR J.T.?Barrett demurred when he was asked this week if the Michigan game might be his last at Ohio Stadium. In other words, would he leave for the NFL after this season?Nah, I havent really begun to think about that, really, he said. Im just taking each week, trying to focus on the moment. But yeah, my mind, I havent got there.RIVALRY 101Ohio State wide receiver Terry McLaurin, a sophomore from Indianapolis, said out-of-state players are schooled on the Ohio State-Michigan rivalry pretty quickly.When you come here, thats one of the first things you learn, McLaurin said. We dont really say their names, and we know the significance and the history of the rivalry. You kind of learn pretty quickly what all this rivalrys about -- probably the biggest rivalry in all of sports. Coming in as a freshman, you learn very quickly what this game means to this university and to the team.He said it also didnt take much time for him and other out-of-staters to develop a distaste for the team up north.To be honest, we dont like em, he said. Its kind of personal for everybody. Its personal for the people who have played in the game, and its personal for the people who are currently about to play in the game. Thats just kind of how its always been.BIG TEN JUMBLEBecause of the tie-breaker system, Ohio State may not advance to the Big Ten Championship game if they beat Michigan. Penn State will win the East Division if Ohio State wins and the Nittany Lions take care of business at home against Michigan State. If Michigan beats Ohio State, the Wolverines will claim the divisional crown.If Ohio State beats Michigan, the playoff committee will have to decide whether to place them in the top four without having won their conference. That could be a good scenario for the Buckeyes, who get an extra week off and wont risk an upset in the conference championship game that would eliminate them from the playoff.---More AP college football at www.collegefootball.ap.org and https://twitter.com/AP-Top25---Follow Mitch Stacy at http://twitter.com/mitchstacy Nike Zoom Schweiz Online . Colin Wilson had two goals and an assist, and Mike Fisher scored a goal and helped set up two others in the Predators 6-4 victory over the Red Wings on Monday night. Günstig Nike Zoom . Jim Rutherford, President and General Manager of the Carolina Hurricanes, announced Wednesday that the team would assign Swedish forward Elias Lindholm to his nations team for the upcoming tournament. http://www.nikezoomschweiz.ch/ Nike Zoom Schweiz Store . Thousands of Southern California fans enveloped the Trojans to celebrate an improbable win secured by an interim coach, an inconsistent kicker and a thin defence that wouldnt break. Nike Zoom Kaufen Schweiz . Goals from Jerome Boateng, Franck Ribery and Thomas Mueller extended Bayerns unbeaten run to a record 37 matches. "This record is incredible," Bayern coach Pep Guardiola said.BALTIMORE, Maryland - Josh Johnson, the Blue Jays 67" right-hander, gave up seven runs in six innings in Sundays loss to the Orioles. No cute play on numbers could lessen the ugliness of Johnsons latest outing in the 7-4 defeat, which cost Toronto another series against a divisional opponent and dropped the club to 7-13 in 20 games since an 11-game win streak captivated the city. "Well they hit him around pretty good," said manager John Gibbons. Did they ever. Baltimore went single, single, fly ball out, RBI single, two-RBI double, fly ball out, RBI single, strikeout in the first inning. Four runs, five hits and Toronto was in an early hole. Johnson, whose size alone should command a presence, once again pitched small. His fastball too often caught too much of the plate. The Orioles lineup, which has belted 132 home runs on the season, by far the most in baseball, made him pay on two occasions. Chris Davis hit a two-run shot in the third (that two-RBI double in the first, also Davis) and Adam Jones hit a solo dinger in the fifth. Johnson remains stuck on one win; the Blue Jays have won only three of his 12 starts. Its been a difficult season, obviously, which Johnson admitted to TSN.ca. "More frustrating, I guess," he said. "Its not for a lack of effort or anything like that or being hurt or feeling anything in there that youre unsure about. Its just frustration, feeling good and not being able to get outs and get as deep into a game as you want to. Its just frustrating. You want to throw the ball better for this team." Baseball is a game of failure. The best hitters make out seven times out of 10. Its a good season for a pitcher if he wins 15 of his 33 starts. R.A. Dickey has written and talked about "managing regret." Johnson has struggled to do so at times, forgetting that hes good and giving hitters too much credit. "I think whenever you struggle you can get away from that," said Johnson. "You can kind of be like, okay, this guy is hitting this pitch or whatever. Thats whenever you start getting those mental voices in your head that are talking. Sometimes it is and sometimes it isnt but I think a little bit it was early on, or a couple of starts ago." There are the phone calls and the text messages. Loved ones and friends with an encouraging word, even some with advice but Johnson has closed ranks when it comes to baseball talk. He keeps close to teammates, particularly Mark Buehrle, and he works closely with pitching coach Pete Walker. "Even when you have a track record like him and guys that have been around the game a lot and pitched a lot of innings they still go through a period where maybe they second guess thheir stuff a little bit or dont give themselves enough credit," said Walker.dddddddddddd "I think he went through a little bit of a period during the season when that was the case." Bullpen coach Pat Hentgen recalled his toughest season in the big leagues, in 1995, when he went 10-14 with a 5.17 ERA out of the players strike. Calling it a serving of "humble pie" after All-Star seasons in 1993 and 1994 (Johnson also is a two-time All-Star, with Florida in 2009 and 2010,) Hentgen says he refocused in the offseason and bounced back with a 20-win campaign in 1996. He won the Cy Young Award. Hentgen can relate to Johnsons crisis of confidence. Just one problem: there isnt an offseason right around the corner to correct the mind. In its stead, Hentgen offers some advice. "I think first off, after spending seven years in the National League, you come over here and you dont realize the knowledge that youve acquired during that span," said Hentgen. "I think right now he doesnt know the hitters as well as he did in the National League and that has an effect. Thats one. Two, I would think that he just needs to get ahead more and get out of the middle. It sounds easy but its not. If it was easy a lot of guys would do it. Josh has got great mechanics, hes got great fastball command, theres no reason why he shouldnt be able to get strike one on hitters and even get strike two and then go to work." Despite the inconsistency on the mound, Johnson has been steadfast in his assertion that he is not looking ahead to his impending free agency. Ask him today and you get the same response you did in spring training. "Just the here and now," he said. "This team, this is who Im with and you cant sit there and say all right, what if I do this, what happens if this, and nothing happens and youre worrying about all that for nothing. All I worry about is going out there, working hard everyday to make sure Im ready for the next start and throwing the ball well." Its unlikely Johnson has much, if any, trade value at the moment. It makes more sense for general manager Alex Anthopoulos to keep Johnson and make him a qualifying offer. Johnson could accept and return on a one-year deal at a dollar amount reasonably similar to this seasons $13.75-million price tag. Maybe he bounces back in 2014 and the move pays off. Johnson could also reject the qualifying offer, leaving him to test the free agent waters but assuring the Blue Jays a compensatory draft pick. Those are matters for another day. As it stands, if the Blue Jays are to contend or tease contention this season, Johnson must be better. Much better. And until he proves otherwise, thats a pretty big "if." ' ' '