Ohio State Stock Market Report: Michigan

Whether it's by one point or forty, the end result is the same. A win is a win. And in a rivalry game, the biggest rivalry of them all, on the road, I'll take a win any way I can get it. Period.

11-2. That's the record of Ohio State against Michigan since 2001. That's what we call the debt of John Cooper paid in full, with a tip.

Here's another tip: learn to stop Braxton Miller and Carlos Hyde. Still, it was a road game, where OSU has struggled, and much like the Black Keys sing, it almost overtook them to the point where they were blind, and the body was weak:

Well the road
It overtook me
To the point
Where I was blind
My body was weak
But not as much
As my mind, oh my mind

I just can't get
Can't get my feel
Of those hills
Oh but still
No matter where I am
In this land
I feel alone, when I'm not at home

Oh, oh, oh, oh, Ohio, hio
Oh, oh, oh, oh, Ohio, hio
Oh, oh, oh, oh, Ohio, hio
Oh, oh, oh, oh, Ohio, hio

Your SMR that doesn't give a damn for the whole state of Michigan follows AND OH MY LORD AUBURN JUST BEAT 'BAMA AS I AM WRITING THIS ON A FIELD GOAL RETURN WHAT IS THIS I DON'T EVEN WAR DAMN EAGLE!!!!

Blue Chip Stocks:

Braxton Miller, QB: Yeah, you can knock Miller for only going 6/15 passing, but man, he's just entertaining as hell to watch run. Even when he's off when he's throwing the ball, he still came up with two HUGE throws for scores. And it seemed whenever the offense was going to stall and nosedive, Miller made a play.

Carlos Hyde, RB: The thunder in the thunder and lightning attack was a grown ass man in Ann Arbor on Saturday. Hyde has evolved into one of OSU's best backs in recent memory, and I would put this season up there with anything Beanie Wells did. I'm not talking entire career, but this is a single season tour de force, and his 226 yards rushing was as impressive a game as I've seen.

Solid Investments:

Jeff Heuerman, TE: On a day when passing yards were at a premium, Heuerman made the most of his opportunities, to include a beautiful 22 yard pass for a TD that putt he Buckeyes up by two touchdowns.

Devin Smith, WR: When Devin Smith got separation from the Michigan defensive back that was covering him on the third and long play in the first quarter and Miller uncorked it, I thought it was overthrown...just like in 2011. But somehow, Smith caught up to it, grabbed the ball, and scored. It was a huge play that kept the game from getting out of hand.

Pat Elflein, G: After the ejections of Dontre Wilson and Marcus Hall, OSU seemed to be on the verge of unraveling. With a key component of the offensive line out, there was a real opportunity for Michigan to take advantage of the situation and try and stop OSU's running game. But Elfein was money, and the OSU ground game kept humming along.

Junk Bonds:

Dontre Wilson, middleweight: That was a bad, bad penalty, and it cost OSU a big part of their offensive gameplan. I get that emotions are running high and trash talk can get heated, but you can't let your emotions get the better of you. It was a stupid penalty that hurt the team.

Marcus Hall, sign language specialist: Again, just like Wilson, Hall hurt his team. But his sin was more unforgivable in that Hall is a senior, and he should've been helping get guys off the field, not mixing it up. Like former Buckeye and NFL Hall of Famer Cris Cater would say...C'MON, MAN!

Everyone on defense. Everyone: Speaking of unforgivable, what was that defensive shitshow? A team that couldn't run or pass for the better part of a month ran and threw their way up and down the field. OSU seemed to figure Michigan out for awhile when they pressured Devin Gardner, but inexplicably laid off again and let Gardner and the Michigan offense run wild. I can't think of any one player on defense that made an impact, and guys like Ryan Shazier and Joey Bosa were invisible for almost the entire 60 minutes.

Buy/Sell:

Buy: 24-0. Teams don't win by 50 points every week, and sometimes they have to gut it out when they're not at their best. To lay an egg on defense while being unable to consistently throw the ball, yet still win...well, it might be ugly, but damn it, it's a win. Add to that it's a road game, it's your biggest rival, and this is, after their disappointing season, their Super Bowl. And Ohio State won, just like they have 23 other times in a row. Yes, this streak will end, but not today.

Sell: OSU getting left out of the national championship game if they beat MSU. If OSU beats MSU, they'll be in. You'll hear a ton of noise between now and then, but a one loss team isn't going to jump an undefeated one. But that said, OSU must take care of their business in Indianapolis next week. A one loss OSU team has no shot, but if they win next week, they're in.

Buy: Coop's debt paid off: With today's win, Ohio State is is 11-2 since 2001, one win better than the Cooper years. And this game, in many ways, was a fitting way to exorcise those demons. Because under Cooper, a superior OSU team walking in to the Big House would've walked out on the short end, but not this time, not today. OSU hung on, maintained their perfect season, and now has a chance to exorcise one more demon--losing to MSU in '98 that cost the Buckeyes a perfect season. Sleep well tonight, Coop.

So OSU moves on to the Big Ten championship game, and will presumably be #2 in the polls come Sunday evening. Win and advance, and The Chase continues.