Thoughts on OSU vs. Penn State | Week 9 (2014)

Ohio State vs. Penn State

1st Quarter

Buckeyes come out wearing their alternative "all-white uniforms".  No doubt this is in response to PSU's infamous "White Out" where the entire fans (except for the few Buckeye fans present) were wearing all-white.

What a play Vonn Bell made on the opening drive.  While I disagreed with the ruling-on-the-field (and the subsequent video-review), I still thought Bell made a nice effort breaking on the ball (which is what you want to see from your secondary).  (Sidenote: It just kills me how the guys in the booth still get calls wrong. I understand how officials on the field aren't going to catch everything and they are going to make mistakes once & awhile, but there should be zero excuses for getting calls wrong in the booth when they can slow the play down, review it, and look at different angles/views).

So far the PSU crowd has been amazing.  THIS is what a college gameday crowd is supposed to look/sound like.  I do think the PSU crowds are more "intimidating" than Buckeye home game crowds.

Wow... Elliott runs so hard.  Again, really impressed with his style/game.  I feel for PSU (especially knowing the end of the game score) and knowing that OSU gained 7 pts off of an interception that should not have been.

Why Jalin Marshall fields that punt at the 4 yard line, I'll never know.  Heck, I wasn't a punt-returner and even I knew since grade school 'You put your heels on the edge of the 10 yard line, and don't back up'.  If it goes over your head, then you let it go.  Gotta let that one bounce into the endzone.

Wow... Nick Vannett with a VERY nice seal block to stop the defender and allow J.T. Barrett to pickup the 3rd down conversion.

2nd Quarter:

Elliott with another strong/hard run.

Unbelievable.  The false starts are killing this drive.  Again... the PSU crowd is ruckus and causing some big problems with the snap count.

Barrett... you can't take a sack there on 3rd and 16 from the 23.  Know where you're at on the field.  You have an easy 3 pts.  DON'T TAKE A SACK!  Luckily, Sean Nuerenberger drilled a 49 yard field goal to add the 3 on, irregardless.  Speaking of the FG, it looks like the officiating crew and the PSU coaching staff missed another one.

Didn't it used to be a penalty if the kick returner signaled a fair catch and then tried to advance the football?!  Whatever happened to that rule?  I'm pretty sure it was a rule at one point.  I can't stand when returners signal fair catch and then try to catch the ball and advance it up field.  That fair catch is in place knucklehead so you don't get BLASTED on 9 out of 10 punt returns.  To Jalin Marshall's credit, he didn't signal fair catch tho, I suppose; rather, it was more of a 'get away from the football' signal to his own teammates.

Another delay of game penalty.  Yes the crowd noise is a big factor, but the coaching staff has to get the play in sooner.  They're taking way too long and not giving the players enough time to audible the call(s).

Barrett takes a lick on the option (to Elliott), but man am I impressed with Barrett's decision making.  Once again he's making all the right decisions (i.e., pitching and keeping it).

Holy schnikes! Armani Reeves just DESTROYED Penn State's WR Geno Lewis.  Oh lawrdy.

Ohio State now with a 17-0 lead heading into halftime.  ZERO excuses for OSU to lose this game.  ZERO.

3rd Quarter

Wow... Barrett's INT on the opening drive (Pick 6) of the 2nd Half was pretty bad.  The PSU defense lulled Barrett into making a freshman mistake.  You gotta see those interior DT's dropping back into coverage.  The sad part is, there really wasn't that much pressure off the sides.  Barrett could have stayed in the pocket & simply hung in there.  The Pick 6 is a longstanding tradition in the Ohio State-Penn State series, and unfortunately the Buckeyes were on the wrong side of this one.

Darron Lee with a nice blitz/sack.  I really think we need to use him more in blitzes; he seems to be very effective when he does.

If Michael Thomas is going to be that big, bad WR that we keep saying OSU is so desperately missing, then he's going to have to make a play there on that long pass-play and find some way to come down with the completion there.

3rd & 1 here and J.T. Barrett is out of the game.  The announcers are speculating he hit his arm on someone's helmet the previous play.  Cardale Jones comes into the game (which I kinda actually like since it's 3rd & short and he's so big), and he doesn't pickup the 1st down.  You're 6'5 250 lbs.  You gotta make a play there, Cardale.  Fall forward, big man.  Did you come to play school?

Frustrating.  Devin Smith has his man beat, and Barrett underthrows the pass, so Smith has to stop and turn back.  After watching the replays, the ball appears to go thru the defenders hands and then right thru Smith's hands!  Devin... you gotta make the catch!  I understand it's a hard catch because the defender is in the way, but buddy... step up and make a play!  We throw down-field to you once a a game, and I was just thinking to myself Where's our deep ball play to Smith?! and here it is... and you let the pass go right thru your hands.  That's not going to help with your case of getting back onto the field.

SMH.  Neuernberger has a chance to put the Buckeyes up 20-7, but instead he misses to the right and now the Buckeyes have just wasted a nice drive.  The defense has played lights out, really, to this point.  Penn State's only points of the game have come from a Pick 6.  The defense has been stout and doing their job (tho, to be fair, Penn State's offensive line is a joke, and I would have hoped/expected going into this game that our defense would handle them easily).

You gotta love defensive back coach Kerry Coombs emotion.  The dude is ALWAYS the first one jumping up & down on the sideline anytime the Buckeyes make a play; doesn't matter if it's his personnel group or someone else's.  Offense or Defense.  Coombs is guaranteed to be the 1st one jumping up & down.

Wow... my boy Tyvis Powell with a GREAT INT to stop a driving PSU offense.  That play was MUCH needed, as the Nittany Lions were driving and looking to score.  Now the Buckeyes need to switch the field position game again.  Let's move the ball, Boys!

4th Quarter

Buckeyes are up 17-7.  Again... no excuse for a loss here.  Have to finish the game strong.  Game announcer Todd Blackledge acknowledging the dominance by Ohio State's defenses.  Amen.  They truly have played awesome tonight.

Oh Barrett... just threw his 2nd INT of the game.  Smh.  I see how he doesn't see PSU's middle LB there.  Not so much Barrett's fault, rather, just goes to show that you HAVE. TO. BE. AWARE. of your SURROUNDINGS.  Hopefully this INT won't come back to haunt the Buckeyes.

Eli Apple has to turnaround and locate the football there.  JT's INT has now put the Buckeyes in a 17-14 pt game (2 turnovers, 14 points off turnovers for PSU).  Smh...  What a catch by PSU's Blacknall.

Holly Rowe (side line announcer) just reported Barrett mentioned some pain in his left knee to the coaching staff.  Ut-oh.

Devin Smith with a nice down of a punt at the 1 yard line.

Very first play, OSU comes out in an all-out blitz, and PSU was ready for it as they ran the perfect play (a quick screen) to pickup a 1st down and get out of their own shadows.

Terrible Pass Intereference call here on PSU's drive. Armani Reeves makes a nice play on the ball, and the officials throw a flag and call it on Vonn Bell.  Bell wasn't even anywhere near the play/action.  The only Buckeye that looked near the play was Reeves, and it looked like a clean pass-breakup to me.  I think the officials gifted one to PSU there on 3rd down to give them an automatic 1st down.

Penn State is forced to punt.  The Buckeyes have the ball now at mid-field with just over 5 minutes left to go in the game.  Have to move the chains here and run this clock out.

Hate the decision to run the read-option (even tho it has been successful almost all game/season).  If Barrett's knee truly is dinged up, then just turn around and hand the ball off to Elliott.  Stop messing around with the read-option.  Now you just put yourself in 2nd & 11.  Smh...

Here we go... PSU's ball at the 9 yard line... less than 3 minutes to go.  The Silver Bullet defense needs to come up big here one more time...

Impressive stat... Avg Drive Start = Buckeyes own 37; PSU own 22.  That's a pretty nice difference.

Buckeye defense continuing the 'bend, but don't break' defensive mentality.  Giving up the short underneath passes, but not letting anything over the top.  I'm fine with this, but why aren't we covering/protecting the sidelines?!?!  Seems like PSU is getting whatever they want on the sides.

OH MAN!!!  COME ON ELI!  Apple has to come up with an INT there on Hackenberg's duck pass there.

Vonn Bell has to make the tackle there on 2nd & 10.  He makes the tackle on that flare pass, it's then PSU 3rd & 10/11.  But by missing the tackle, it's now 1st & 10 for PSU at the 45.  (Also would have kept the clock running.)  Smh.

Like clockwork... Joey Bosa comes up with a sack with less than 50 seconds left in the game, forcing PSU to burn their 2nd TO, and putting the Nittany Lions in 2nd & 17.  HUGE!  The Buckeyes have to come up with the stop here now.

Unreal.  The Officials flag Curtis Grant with a 15 yard personal foul penalty.  Are you freaking kidding me?!?!  Also... why is Grant in there and not McMillan?!?!  McMillan is the better pass defender.  You know PSU is going to air it out here.

Wow.  Unreal.  Franklin blows a costly timeout here.  I have no idea what happened, but somehow PSU had to use their 3rd and final timeout.  That is VERY costly.

OMG!  REEVES!  CATCH THE BALL!  You have a gifted INT and the game is OVER!  CATCH.THE.BALL!  

LOL.  PSU spikes the ball when the previous play was ruled out of bounds. [PSU does not deserve to win this game; to many bonehead decisions/calls/plays.]

Wow.  Vonn Bell with perhaps the play of the game.  No one talked about it, but Bell came form his safety position and underneath to jump and break up the pass attempt PSU threw in the endzone there right before they settled for their FG on 4th down.  Without Bell making that play, I think the PSU receiver might have had some separation to make the catch.  HUGE play by Bell that went quietly unnoticed.

17-17.  End of regulation.

Overtime

Buckeyes win the coin toss.  Elect to defend 1st.  I'm feeling pretty confident with the decision.  What a cluster f--- tho that coin toss was, lol.  So much confusion.

Holding on PSU.  OSU has Penn State in 1st & 20.  No excuse here now to give up a TD.  Hold them to a FG!  (Note: I do agree... that looked like an acting job by Washington more than it was an actual 'Hold', but I'll take it nonetheless.  Steve Miller can't get beat there on the outside and give up that many yards).  YOU CAN'T GIVE UP a 19 yard pass on the very next play!!!!

Wow did Lee and Apple bite hard on the WR screen fake.  Great call/execution by the PSU coaches there.

OSU's turn now with the ball.  1st play = read-option w/ Elliott up the middle for 3 yards.  2nd play = read-option, and Barrett makes a PHENOMENAL read (so good he faked out the camera guy) and rushes around the end to the 5 yard line.  #LoveIt.  3rd play = read-option, Barrett again shows great decision and keeps it to run up the middle for the TD.  (Wow... the Personal Foul on Penn State there at the end of the play is HUGE.  Enforced on the 2nd OT; puts OSU to start out at the 12.5 yard line, instead of the 25 yard line)

OSU starts off again with the read-option (why not... PSU hasn't been able to stop it all night).  Play #2 = Pass play with Barrett having all-day to throw, and AGAIN Barrett exercises good judgment by tucking the ball and running for more yards.  3rd & 2 now and Barrett on a QB draw for a TD.  Wow.  Let's Go!

Penn State ball now... 1st play = sweep to the left for nothing. 2nd play = pass to the left for 4 yards. 3rd down = deep pass to the endzone, incomplete.  4th down... here we go... likely the play of the game... 4th & 6... time to STEP UP...

And what do you know.  Who comes up with the biggest play of the Buckeye season so far? (One more time from a different view.)  Joey. freaking. Bosa.  Ironically, "That wasn't what [Bosa] was supposed to do - [he] was supposed to hit the guard and wrap out, but [the guard] blocked down so the hole opened".  It literally can't be said enough... Bosa is an NFL-ready guy out there playing against amateurs.  Bosa just steam-rolled PSU's RB right into Hackenberg.  The game literally couldn't have ended in a more perfect way.  Urban Meyer said it best, "For how good of a player Joey Bosa is, you expect him to make a play to go win the game, and that's what he did."

Interesting Notes:

• Urban Meyer is now 7-0 in his career in overtime games, 3-0 at Ohio State.
• Total (Net) Yards Passing / Rushing
• Passing:
• Ohio State: 74 yds
• Penn State: 224 yds
• Rushing:
• Ohio State: 219 yds
• Penn State: 16 yds
• J.T. Barrett only threw for 74 passing yards (this is very alarming to me; granted the PSU defense was staunch all night, but this is unacceptable)
• Tackle Leaders:
• Josh Perry: 18 tackles (2 tackles for loss)
• Tyvis Powell: 7 tackles (1 INT)
• Joey Bosa: 6 tackles (2.5 sacks)
• Darron Lee: 5 tackles (1.5 sacks)
• Curtis Grant: 4 tackles
• The Buckeyes were penalized 8 times for 70 yards.  Gotta cut that down in half.  No way you're going to beat championship caliber teams by giving up 70 yards of free-yardage.
• Wide receiver Michael Thomas ( 1 rec 3 yds) and H-back Dontre Wilson (6 touches, 34 all-purpose yards) were largely non-factors.
• For the 1st time since the Va Tech loss, Ohio State's offensive line played against a team with talent on the defensive side of the ball.  Penn State pressured Barrett all night.  The O-Line gave up 3 sacks, but there was constant pressure all night.
• OSU Punter Cameron Johnston averaged 45.0 yards per punt and pinned Penn State inside their own 15 yard line on 4 different occasions (including 3 inside the 10).
• The Buckeyes had an AWFUL 4th Quarter (giving up 119 yards and only mustering 26 yards themselves).  While the Offense wasn't that great in the 2nd and 3rd Quarters, the Defense was (giving up only 12 yds in the 2nd Quarter and 11 yds in the 3rd Quarter)
• It's sad to know the Buckeyes blew a 17 pts lead, but it's worthy to note the Buckeyes faced their toughest environment so far (traveling to Happy Valley at night) and handled a hostile environment & weathered the storm the Nittany Lions presented.
• The Nittany Lions presented a much-needed reality check for the Buckeyes before the impending bout with the mighty Michigan State Spartans.
• Something to think about... without question, OSU's biggest challenges this season have been Va Teck (the lone loss) and now Penn State.  Interesting of note is, Va Tech played William & Mary before us (essentially a bye) and Penn State was coming off a bye.  Looking forward, MSU is on bye this week, and then face us in their first game back.  Hmmm....

Bonus Material:

Penn State taking it a little too far..

Evidently, PSU fans thought it would be a good idea to awake the sleeping giant... literally.  Several Buckeye players tweeted "Air horns outside our rooms at 4am" and "They disturbed my slumber last night".

Also... what are you doing there #26 sophomore LB for Penn State, Brandon Bell.  Is that an eye gouge you're going for there on our QB, J.T. Barrett?

Muck Fichigan...

Michigan is AWFUL.  We cannot lose to those bums.  I watched the Michigan State vs. Michigan game, and here's Devin Gardner's stat line... He attempted 24 passes (I did not count shovel-passes or screens, because let's face it, those aren't passes; rather they're extended hand-offs).  Of the 24 legitimate passes he attempted (i.e., passes greater than 3 or more yards past the line of scrimmage), 10 of them were to his boy Devin Funchess and 14 of them were to someone other than Funchess.  So that right there tells you Funchess is accounting for almost half of Gardner's down-field targets (i.e., guard/stop Devin Funchess, and you're likely to stop/beat Michigan).  Of the 10 targets to Funchess, only 4 of them were completed passes (granted, one of the incompletions was a defensive P.I. call); and of the 14 targets to someone not named Funchess, only 4 of those passes were completed.  That means your boy Gardner's passing percentage was a measly 33.3%.  #Atrocious.

Michigan has exactly 3 NFL players on their team. WR Devin Funchess, DE Frank Clark, and LB Jake Ryan (maybe, OT true-freshman Mason Cole, but the jury is still out on him as it's too early to say one way or the other).  Other than that, Michigan is a bunch of scrubs playing together trying to play something called "football".  Funchess (Jr), Flark (Sr), and Ryan (Sr) will not be back on the team next year.  Michigan is in some serious trouble next season, as who will be their playmakers when they already don't have any on this horrendous team.

Also, I think it was Chris Spielman who said it (maybe it was the other announcer), but the fact that the Michigan coaching staff keeps sticking with Devin Gardner says that they honestly believe Gardner gives them the best chance to win.  If that is the case, man... how awful must Shane Morris be?  Gardner has literally stunk up this entire season, and the fact that a coaching staff that is literally on their last leg hasn't looked to 'switch it up' tells you all you need to know about Morris... That kid is simply not ready.  Michigan is a complete, utter mess right now (And this guy is loving EVERY second of it.).

Thoughts on OSU vs. Rutgers | Week 8 (2014)

After the 2nd & final bye week of the season, we're back with another exciting issue of 'Scarlet Buckeye's Thoughts'.  This week, Ohio State ushered in the 2nd of the Big Ten newbies, Rutgers.  Rutgers brought in a 5-1 record, and was riding the tidal wave of momentum from their 26-24 victory over That Team Up North (Michigan).

The Buckeyes got out to another blazing start, forcing a three-and-out right off the bat after electing to give Rutgers the ball after the coin toss.  Then, on our very 1st drive, the Buckeyes marched down the field, capping the drive with a nice strike from J.T. Barrett to Nick Vannett (the Buckeyes have now scored a touchdown on its opening drive in 4 straight games).  This was pleasantly surprising, as it appears our offense is FINALLY deciding to get our Tight Ends involved in the passing game.  I've been screaming it for weeks, and it LOOKS like we're finally getting it.

Before you knew it, the Buckeyes were up 14-0, and 35-7 by halftime.  The key to the early half success - like the key to most well-oiled machines - was the running game and turnovers.  The Buckeyes outgained Rutgers by almost 100 yards and had forced 3 turnovers.

As each week passes and we step further-and-further away from the Virginia Tech game, it is becoming pointedly obvious that this team is NOT the same team that fell victim to the Hokies.  Each passing week, this team appears to be executing better & better; and as a program, this is wonderfully exciting -- as any program's aspirations should be to be the best well-oiled machine at the end of the season, not necessarily the best at the beginning.  [Sure it would be nice to piece it all together and be one great team from beginning to end, but if I can't have that choice, then my next best choice is to be a team that improves from week-to-week and is competing (or at least looks able to compete) with the best of the teams at the end of the season.  And that's exactly what this Ohio State team looks to be on pace of doing.]

The 2nd Half was more of the same - Ohio State domination.  The Buckeyes amassed 203 yarsd in the 3rd Quarter and 135 in the 4th (holding the Scarlet Knights to 122 amd 67 yds).

Minor concerns:

• J.T. Barrett was our rushing leader, running for 107 yards on 7 carries.  I say "concern" because I'd rather Ezekiel Elliott lead the team in carries and rushes, but "minor" because J.T. only had 7 carries (which is what I want).  This is certainly a good problem to have.  I would be MORE concerned if Barrett was leading the way on 18+ attempts.
• Elliott.  He only (and I say "only") amassed 69 yards on 12 carriers (still good enough for a 5.75 yrd average).  In a perfect world, I'd love to see that average up there around 9 yards per carry, but who are we trying to kid... 5+ is still pretty damn impressive.  I would say I'm concerned about the "12 carries", but I'm going to chalk the lack of carries up to the simple fact that this game was never in question, and had the game been closer, Herman & Meyer would have called more carries for Elliott (or at least so I hope).
• Doran Grant (along with Darron Lee) led the way in tackles (each netting 7).  This "concerns" me a little, because I don't like the idea of our corner leading the way in tackles (especially not our 'top' corner).  I'm chalking this one up to the fact that Rutgers fell behind so early & so big, so they were forced to throw more passing attempts than what would normally be considered a 'normal amount'.  Another concern (and this one, IMO, is a much *bigger* concern) is, after looking 'bad/rough' the past couple weeks, Grant once again was beat pretty badly by Rutgers' Carroo, as he let Carro slip behind him for a 39-yard gain.  This was terribly frustrating, as the Buckeye Defense has kinda been notorious this season for giving up the 'big play', and I felt like this was another step in that direction.  HOWEVER, the GOOD news is... after this play, Grant didn't sulk & mope about the play, but he immediately bounced back, and on the very next play (1st and 10), Grant hit the truck-stick button and laid the wood to Rutgers' Justin Goodwin for a modest 4 yard gain on the play.  Then, on the very next play, Grant came off the corner on a blitz and stuck Goodwin again, this time for a 1 yard gain (setting up 3rd & 5).  Grant wasn't done however, as again on the very next play, he forced an incompletion thanks to some tight coverage.  Essentially, after that one bad play, I caught Grant several times after laying the smackdown on his opponents and playing with raw passion.  THIS was the Grant I was accustomed to seeing last season, and the Grant that has been missing from this season.  Here's to hoping this might have been a 'turn of the corner' type moment, as we're certainly going to need Grant's defensive prowess later this season (note: Michigan's Devin Funchess comes to mind).

Some positives:

• Darron Lee and Raeckwon McMillan look to be the real deal.  Lee I felt like was getting targeted early on in the game, but the guy plays on a whole nother gear-level that I feel like most offenses can't handle.  And McMillan... WOW!  This kid gets it.  In fact, he's the exact opposite of Curtis Grant (a guy who just simply *doesn't* get it).  It felt like McMillan was making every single tackle, and if he wasn't, he was there right in the midst of the play.  I was surprised to see that McMillan wasn't the leader in tackles this week.  The future definitely looks bright with these young two talents.
• Joey Bosa was once again Joey Bosa.  I've said it before and I'll say it again... this kid is already ready for the NFL.  We haven't had an animal on defense like this since James Laurinaitis (no pun intended).
• The Weapons.  Man o' man does this team have the weapons.  Look at the breakdown... our top 4 leading receivers accounted for 22%, 21%, 16%, and 15% of the receiving yards (not even 75% of the receiving yards combined).  This just goes to show that Herman & co. are getting lots of players involved, and there's lots of balance.  The same can practically be said for the rushing game as well.
• Back to 'minor concern' again... As I've stated previously, while the plethora of talent is exciting & proves that the future is bright, I would like to focus, however, on getting the ball to handful of playmakers.  I'm concerned that Dontre Wilson only had 21 yards rushing, and did not have a single receiving yard.  It's nice knowing that we have the depth of Curtis Samuel, Corey Smith, and Evan Spencer... but I would rather see those touches go to Dontre Wilson, Michael Thomas, Devin Smith, and Jalin Marshall.  Same can be said for Tight End.  While it's nice we have two stud TE's (Heuerman & Vannett), I would prefer to see the their touches go to one instead of split among the two (unless we're running a double tight formation)
• J.T. Barrett.  Wow.  What can I say.  Another outstanding performance. 585 total yards and 5 touchdowns (which makes it 4 straight games that Barrett has had a hand in at least 4 TDs) in only his sixth career start.  Watching this young talent grow has been such a pleasure.  It's laughable to think how much he's grown in just 8 simple short weeks, and then to stop and think about the lack of development (heck... the reverse development) Brady Hoke & co. have done with Devin Gardner and Shane Morris.  I don't want to get too carried away, because I'm honestly not sure how much of it is Barrett and how much of it is Herman/Meyer and/or 'the schedule' (but the maturity he's demonstrated appears beyond his years, as he's consistently running thru his progressions & finding the open man and making all the right reads in the read-option run), but boy has Barrett made Ohio State fans quickly forget about Braxton Miller (side-note: It really irks me beyond my irk-levels when the camera cuts to Braxton Miller on the sideline, and never once have I seen him 'plugged into the game' or 'mentoring/tuitoring' J.T. Barrett.  I know, I know... he's not the social-type, whatever... But it's like he's completely checked-out/not-present in these games.  How many times does ESPN and these other media outlets cut to other guys standing on the sideline (Winston when he was out/suspended) and they're plugged in.  I'm just not seeing it with Miller, and I'm not trying to dog/downplay him, but it's just frustrating to me that we have this great, talented asset and he seems to be unplugged from the game!)
• J.T.'s case for the Heisman...

• The Defense appears to improving with each week.  In the 1st half (which is really the only half that actually mattered, since the game was out of reach by halftime), the defense surrendered just seven (7) points, while repeatedly handing the offense solid field position (tho, the Rutgers punter helped a good amount as well)
• After looking like a high school offensive line against Virginia Tech (giving up 7 sacks), the O-Line looks to be clicking again and showing shades of last season's great O-Line.  A statistic that perhaps maybe most people might not have realized... Rutgers entered this game leading the nation with 24 sacks; and our O-Line gave up exactly zero sacks, while managing to open wide holes for the Buckeyes to run thru.

This Rutgers team was a team that Michigan struggled against profusely and ultimately lost to.  OSU chopped them up & spit them out like they were chop liver.  Ohio State and Michigan appear to be such opposite franchises at the moment, it's not even funny (or is it?).

Bonus material:

The Ohio State University Marching Band Rocks Out, Smashing Guitar in Halftime Show

Oh... and Ohio State landed their 3rd commitment for the Class of 2016... Kierre Hawkins.

Thoughts on OSU vs Maryland | Week 6 (2014)

Well... I'm going to try to keep this one short and sweet.  The good news is... OSU continued the progress/domination they built up/started from the Cincinnati game, and kept that pace rolling right on into & thru Maryland.  I think this team is finally starting to find it's identity, and I think the coaches are started to see/realize it too.

With all the upsets that took place this past weekend, this could have easily been one of them.  From Maryland's perspective, this was billed as the biggest game in Maryland's history.  The Terps even sold out their stadium for the 1st time since 2008; tho, I wonder how many of those tickets were actually 'OSU fans'.  So, yeah... Maryland was hyped (or at least should have been) and this had the makings for a nice upset; especially with Maryland rolling into the match at 4-1 (1-0 in Big Ten play).

But getting back to my original point... I think OSU (as a football program) is really rolling right now.  The offense is clicking.  The coaching staff (especially on the offensive side of the ball) is placing the team in winning positions (e.g., controlling the tempo of the game, settling in on a handful of 'guys' rather than worrying about getting 'everyone touches', and drawing up plays that fit perfectly with the personnel they have -- kinda the opposite of Michigan, really).

QB - J.T. Barrett is really progressing along nicely.  I thought his passes looked crisp, but I was wary a bit of his decision making (I thought he tried threading a couple passes in there that were ill-advised attempts, but to Barrett's credit, he completed them; I just feel like with a more athletic/faster team, Barrett probably has 2-3 INT's that game).  Regardless... he did look good.  I think he's executing flawless decisions in the option game.  I love how the coaches are using him more like Braxton (i.e., running for 71 yards).  One thing is for sure... the team isn't really missing that big of a beat (i.e., from Miller to Barrett).  Sure Barrett isn't the athlete that Miller is, but he's 'good enough' and not that far behind (if at all) in the passing game & decision-making.

RB - Another dominating performance by Ezekiel Elliott (139 rushing yards).  Man, this kid is getting to be fun to watch.  Yeah he's no Carlos Hyde (not even close), but boy have I been impressed with Elliott's effort & performances the past two games.  He's diving, he's lead-blocking, he's hustling, he's asking-for/wants the football in his hands, he's leading, he's out there doing just about EVERYTHING.  There's no doubt in my mind that Elliott is the heart of this offense.  You give him the ball and you get him going, and *WHAM* this team becomes hard to stop.

Moreover, I was happy to see Elliott receive the bulk of the carries (24) and Barrett receiving a nice load himself (16).  I think I would rather see Barrett, however, have closer to 10 carries and Rod Smith / Curtis Samuel getting the remainder.  I was surprised Samuel didn't see any carries at all (not sure he even saw any snaps) [EDIT: Looks like Samuel didn't even dress].

WR - I've been saying it for the past 2 years, and I'm finally glad to see it coming to fruition out on the field... MICHAEL THOMAS IS A BEST and is the best/most-talented receiver in Columbus!  The guy just looks like an NFL receiver.  He has the body, build, speed, and hands; he's a clear mis-match for your average DB.  He's making circus catches, he's blocking (and not just trying to block defenders - i.e., getting in the way of defenders - but he's actually BLOCKING defenders from making plays), and his route-running is one of the best on the team (maybe 2nd to Devin Smith's).  I'm telling you... this kid (Thomas) has a bright future.

Corey Smith looked good... I wish Dontre Wilson had more catches (targets)... Again, Devin Smith is a beast on the deep ball; I love how the staff is drawing up at least 1 deep-ball play for him per game (and it's seems to be working every time)... Jalin Marshall looks like he has the potential to be a stud, but again I think the probably is there's simply too much talent (Thomas, Wilson) that are better than Marshall... I'd like to see Elliott get more involved in the receiving game (he only had 1 catch)... And I'd like to see us settle on 1 TE from here on out, unless we're running a double-tight formation; Heuerman or Vannett needs to make that next step.

OL - The OL looked great.  I think this group (Decker, Price, Boren, Elflein, Baldwin) is really starting to settle-in and gel (which is exciting).  I'm a firm believe in any success (whether it's in the passing game or in the running game) begins upfront, and if you're hog-mollies are giving your QB time to sit back in the pocket and survey the field or opening up gaps for your RB to run thru, then you're off to a good start (and that's what these guys are doing).  If I had one complaint, it's that I think we rotate our guys a little too much for my liking.

Side note: Ohio State's offensive line coach, Ed Warinner, has to be one of the best in the country.  Last year's OL was remarkable (and coincidentally enough, 4 of the 5 are now playing i the NFL) and this group is now starting to look like they're well on their way to being a solid O-line too.  ... Which makes the loss to Va Tech so frustrating!  It's mind-numbing how awful the offense looked against Va Tech, and now how great it's looked against Cincinnati and Maryland (I don't think Va Tech is that much better than Cincinnati and/or Maryland).  The coaching staff was just simply out-schemed and out-coached that game, and they even acknowledged it themselves.

VERY GOOD READ on the differences of the Offense from Va Tech till now (i.e., thru Cincy & Maryland) >> COMPARED TO SHAKY SHOWING AGAINST VIRGINIA TECH, OHIO STATE'S ROLLING OFFENSE IS UNRECOGNIZABLE NOW

DL - Nothing new here, really.  Bosa again looking like JJ Watt [3 solo tackles, 2 ast, 1 sack, 2.5 tackles for loss (16 yrds)].  The guy is an absolute BEAST out there.  There's not a doubt in my mind that if OSU had Bosa, Bennett, Washington, and Spence it would be the best defensive line in the country.  Such a shame.

Side note: I thought Steve Miller looked much improved this week, but still has a long way to go.  The 'vacant' DE spot is not playing up to the level of competition that we need from that spot.  I was encouraged to see Jalyn Holmes receiving increased snaps.

LB - I'm calling it now... Raekwon McMillan will be the listed starter next week over Curtis Grant.  It's time.  McMillan (I think) played more snaps than Grant did this past week.  He had the big INT and a fumble recovery.  You can see he's starting to look more & more comfortable out there.  It's time.  I'm sure Curtis Grant is a decent kid, but son... you have no idea what you're doing in the passing game, and ya gots ta go.  It's time.  McMillan has demonstrated he has enough skills to get us by.

Darron Lee is the team's best LB tho.  This guy has a missile attached to his saddle, I swear.  He's flying everywhere.  I loved the blitz he had to open the game up.  They clearly must have picked something up from the tapes.  Beautiful.

Perry is racking up the stats (i.e., # of tackles), but to me, he's 'just a guy'. He's very quiet and doesn't make any BIG plays.  The best way to describe him for now is... he's serviceable.  But I think in a couple years, once McMillan is a Jr, this team will have a nice LB core and will be back to the days of Hawk, Carpenter, Laurinaitis, etc.

DB - Smh... This secondary is going to cost us at least one more game.  Yeah they played better, but they're still not where they should be.  I'm so tired of seeing us play bump-n-run coverage, but without the bump.  Yeah the announcer said it, you know what... it's so true.  Our cover packages are (1) play 10 yards off the receiver and give them everything underneath or (2) play tight coverage but give the receiver a free release and then just try to run with them on pure speed alone.  So stupid.

I've been a big proponent of Doran Grant (last year I even made the assertion that Grant was going to be a better player and had a better year than Roby), but you know what... I'm starting to think I was wrong about that.  Idk... maybe it's not the kids... maybe it's Coombs and the coaching staff.  Because you know what... Eli Apple looked all-world too when he came in, but these guys are just looking worse than ever!  There's been zero development in talent and it's pretty much been the same ol', same ol'.  OSU will be fine because of the pathetic Big Ten, but I'm telling you now... be prepared for at least one more regular season loss, because this group just simply can't cover squat.  The one 'shining' point has been Vonn Bell.  Even my boy Tyvis Powell I thought had a poor game this weekend (saw him way out of position too many times).


One thing that I wanted to touch on last week but I think I forgot, was... Has anyone else noticed how OSU running a 'cadence' this season as opposed to the 'clap' that Miller ran last season?  Idk if it's just me, but give me the 'clap' again.  Last week there was an absurd amount of false starts, and while the offense was better this week, I still feel like the rhythm is missing a bit.  When we're on the road in a boisterous environment (granted Maryland isn't that loud), a 'cadence' is simply too difficult to hear (in my opinion).  Go with the 'clap'/motion and I think we'll see the number of false starts drop.