COLUMBUS, Ohio -- After blowing away opponents in the first four games, Ohio States plummet has included offensive woes, an upset by unranked Penn State and a narrow escape against three-touchdown underdog Northwestern at home last week.Coach Urban Meyer has taken to calling the team a project and a work in progress, as if to reset expectations that soared in the first month of the season, when quarterback J.T. Barrett was breaking school passing records and new ball-hawking stars were emerging on defense.The No. 6 Buckeyes (7-1, 4-1 Big Ten) will need to improve to get through the rest of their schedule unscathed -- especially Saturday night against No. 9 Nebraska (7-1, 4-1) and the annual season-ending tussle with No. 2 Michigan.The offensive line has struggled to protect Barrett at times, and receivers arent consistently getting open downfield. Game-changing deep balls are few and far between. The defense is allowing big gains.But Meyer and team leaders insist the Buckeyes havent gotten off track, that the stumbles are natural growing pains for a squad that returned just six starters from last year.I guess Im not normally like this, but I see a lot of positives from our team because I know what were playing and I know these young guys, and they are getting better because I see it from maybe a different angle (and) viewpoint than a lot of other people, Meyer said Monday.I like the fact that you get in a street fight and you win it, he said, referring to the Northwestern game, which was in doubt until the Buckeyes mounted a clock-eating drive to finish it off, 24-20. And thats a good sign the futures very bright here. Youve got a bunch of young cats going and swinging hard and practicing hard.Barrett has contended all along that theres nothing wrong with his unit.I dont think (weve) regressed by any means, said Barrett, who threw for 223 yards against Northwestern but didnt complete a pass over 19 yards until the fourth quarter.We like scoring fast and things like that, but theres not a problem with a 10-play drive, either, that ends on a touchdown, Barrett said. So as long as were scoring I really dont have a problem. ... We always want to progress and get better, but I think its at a good spot.Middle linebacker Raekwon McMillan offered some perspective: He noted how difficult it is for a team of mostly inexperienced players to go on the road and win in night games, as the Buckeyes did at Oklahoma and Wisconsin this year. The loss to Penn State at Happy Valley also was a raucous night game that ended in overtime.Wed love to be 3-0 in those situations, but to come out 2-1 is impressive for such a young team, McMillan said.Meyer is urging his players to enjoy the wins, no matter how they come and against whom.I know Im not doing that to myself. Ive tried to express that to the team as well, Barrett said. We work all year for 12 guaranteed games, and when you win a ballgame you dont want to overlook that.---More AP college football: www.collegefootball.ap.orgFollow Mitch Stacy at http://twitter.com/mitchstacyEric Thames Jersey . -- Nate Robinson has played for seven teams, so beating one of them is no longer a rare occurrence. Greg Vaughn Jersey .Y. -- Canadas Kaillie Humphries and Heather Moyse have another World Cup gold medal after winning the two-women bobsled race on Saturday in Lake Placid, N. https://www.cheapbrewers.com/849y-brent-suter-jersey-brewers.html . 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The 15th-ranked Canadian men lost the opening two games of their European tour: 19-15 to No. 17 Georgia and 21-20 to No. JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- The Cincinnati Bengals were so sharp against Jacksonville that Andy Dalton and several teammates were done long before halftime.Dalton led the Bengals to two touchdowns in three possessions, earning him a little extra rest in a 26-21 loss to the Jaguars in the preseason Sunday night.It was a good outing for us, Dalton said. Two touchdowns in the first half of a preseason game is pretty good, and we got them both ways. ... Its a good feeling to do it both ways.The Bengals (2-1) felt good on both sides of the ball, too. Dalton found Giovani Bernard for a 19-yard score on a third-down play, and then Jeremy Hill capped a 9-minute drive with a 1-yard scramble to the pylon. Defensively, the Bengals held Jacksonville to just 90 yards in the first half. Jacksonvilles first three drives: turnover, three-and-out and three-and-out.Cincys only concern in the regular-season dress rehearsal was the health of three Pro Bowlers.Receiver A.J. Green left in the first quarter with a bruised right knee, but the team said it was nothing serious and he should be fine for the opener. Cornerback Adam Jones strained a calf in preseason warmups and did not play. And special teams ace Cedric Peerman broke his left forearm and could be sidelined for the season.Safety Tashaun Gipson (bruised knee) was Jacksonvilles only injured starter.The Jaguars (0-3) had bigger problems -- the offense and defense both failed to show -- that raised questions about whats supposed to the franchises most talented team in nearly a decade.ROOKIE WATCHBengals: WR Alex Erickson scored for the third straight game, stating his case to make the team.dddddddddddd Erickson caught a 21-yard TD pass from AJ McCarron early in the third quarter. It was his second TD catch of the preseason. He also returned a punt for a touchdown.Jaguars: DE Yannick Ngakoue got the start ahead of Dante Fowler Jr., but only because the Jaguars wanted to see Ngakoue get some snaps with the first-team defense. Ngakoue finished with two tackles.POSITION BATTLESBengals: Second-round pick WR Tyler Boyd, vying to start opposite Green, had a 9-yard reception.Jaguars: Fourth-year RB Joe Banyard ran 11 times for 54 yards, including a 7-yard TD run in the third quarter, and had his most extensive work of the preseason. Banyard and Corey Grant are competing to be the fourth-string back.INJURY UPDATEBengals: LB Vontaze Burfict and TE Tyler Eifert were among a dozen players ruled out before the game.Jaguars: Eight players were ruled out beforehand, including DT Roy Miller, rookie DT Sheldon Day and FS Peyton Thompson.QUOTABLEBengals: I do feel faster this year because I feel healthier. -- Hill.Jaguars: Well, we played pretty bad. I dont think we did a whole lot of things. We played bad at every position and usually that is what happens when you play bad: you do not score a lot of points. -- quarterback Blake Bortles.---AP NFL website: www.pro32.ap.org and AP NFL Twitter feed: http://twitter.com/AP-NFL ' ' '