With two games remaining in the softest stretch of Ohio State's schedule, the Buckeyes again find themselves at a crossroads. Perhaps a more appropriate description of the team at this time is that they're still standing at the same crossroads they were standing at after the USC game. While games against Toledo, Illinois and Indiana seemed to show some small measure of welcome progress, more recent games against Wisconsin and Purdue have shown roughly equal amounts of regression. Given the peculiar mercurial nature of this team, it's more difficult to know what to expect than it would be if this team had any consistency. But it doesn't, thus, most predictions beyond "the offense will underwhelm again" feel like they're going out on a limb.

I don't think we've seen the ceiling of this year's offense, and it'd be nice to see something approaching it in the next two games. I think too much of the struggles are being put on Pryor, as it has been two weeks running now that repeated pass protection breakdowns have led directly to turnovers. JB Shugarts and Mike Adams have to find some consistency. It (probably) won't kill us against Minnesota or New Mexico State, but Iowa, Penn State, and Michigan all boast a fierce set of pass rushers in their own right.

There is something in particular I'd like to see from the offense tomorrow, if the tackles struggle early in pass pro. Screens. Draws featuring someone other than Terrelle Pryor. Various plays intended specifically to keep the Gopher DEs on their heels. I've noticed a shocking paucity of both in games where Ohio State's struggles in pass protections have been laid bare. Last week, I can't recall any off the top of my head. What's a little perplexing to me is that these plays should be relatively easy ones for Pryor to make, no? We shall see, hopefully, on Saturday.

Another thing: under no circumstance should Ohio State abandon the run the way it did West Lafayette. Seven carries for Brandon Saine will probably give me nightmares for many seasons to come. I understand that a chunk of his yards came on early run, but.... seven carries from an Ohio State running back is just wrong. It ain't natural. Getting Saine in the ball in pretty much any way possible would go a long way toward establishing something on offense.

Other things I want to see on offense:

- Jordan Hall, provided Saine gets something going. Maybe even Berry, if the game ever gets out of doubt (unlikely)?

- A touchdown pass that isn't just a receiver making a play would be tremendous.

- Can we see a bit more of that rushing attack that worked so well against Illinois? Or did it only work because it was against Illinois?

Defensively, re-establishing the pass rush will be huge. One sack against Purdue, who had given up nine on the year coming into the game, was shocking, to say the least. This will partly depend on how much of an emphasis Adam Weber puts on getting the ball out quickly; last week, Ohio State was getting some pressure, but Joey Elliot was too busy miracling his way into first downs on 3rd and long to care. It was incredibly frustrating to watch, but fortunately, that's a difficult feat to recreate, especially when your quarterback is inconsistent. Adam Weber, as I mentioned yesterday, seems to have regressed in his third year at QB, and that bodes well for the Buckeyes.

Tomorrow's game will end up being about regaining confidence. Both units have to get their proverbial grooves back (or, in the offense's case, finally find it against a half-way decent team athletically). For the sake of the team, I hope it's a lopsided win in which all our doubts are proven to be foolish, but that's clearly not realistic. Instead, what I expect is Ohio State doing what Ohio State does; establishing the run, emphasizing "intelligent" rather than profligate passing, winning the special teams battle, and eventually winning by a tad more than a touchdown.

Five predictions that will make me look foolish come Monday :

- Terrelle Pryor gets out of an early funk but still only leads a relatively quite day for the offense, which features a bevy of trademark Tressel fieldgoals

- The pass rush is reinvigorated by a combination of Minnesota's porous offensive line and Adam Weber holding onto the ball too long, notching four sacks.

- Ohio State sticks to its guns, getting Brandon Saine over the 100-yard mark for just the second time this year. (I'm going to keep predicting this until it finally happens)

- The defense in general continue its ball-hawkin' ways, forcing at least three turnovers.

- Final Score: Ohio State 24, Minnesota 16