Buckeye Blogger NetworkIt’s your regularly scheduled look around the world of college sports- a bit more in depth than the tidbits we’ve got after practice. Following Tuesday’s notes, be sure to check the latest on “reform” from the NCAA and thoughts on Penn State’s constant appeals processes.
Buckeye 411
Always. Forever.
Not So Fast… Any speculation about Roby playing offense and defense was shut down by the coaches today. He made a spectacular play on an overthrow today, though- he’s going to be special. However, Corey Brown said that Roby wasn’t the fastest guy on the team, and called him out saying that he (Corey) wasn’t able to run during testing but that he could beat Roby in a race.
To get Buckeye Nation ready for the first Spring Game in Urban Meyer’s tenure at Ohio State, the Buckeye Bloggers Network wanted to take an in-depth look at each position following spring practice. Be sure to check out all of the coverage!
Thank you to all the writers who are participating in this, and a HUGE thank you to Grant from Buckeye House Call for creating our graphics!
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The easy comment on the offensive line, be it at Ohio State or nationwide, is that the season will hinge on their performance.
Again, that’s the standard answer, but I have to believe that this year it bodes more true than ever in Columbus. There are playmakers elsewhere on Offense, and the Defense (while thin in places) has the potential to be terrifying for opposing offensive coordinators.
But the Buckeye Offensive Line is a mystery at this point; which was evidenced merely looking at Coach Meyer’s emphases on the recruiting trail beginning last season. It’s not enough that they are replacing both tackles and their four year starter at center. It’s not enough that they are now “loaded” with talent amassed by James “Meh, one guard a year is all we need” Bollman, who annually defined the word “reach” with the recruiting offers he seemed to facilitate.
Nope, in addition to those obvious concerns comes this- the team’s offensive identity is taking a major shift. Gone are the days of “Dave, Dave, Draw, Punt”; we now have an offensive scheme that requires linemen to a) be in top cardiovascular shape and b) pass block as effectively as run block. In other words, there’s some coachin’ to do.
So, if you’re like me (my condolences), you’re incredibly interested in seeing how the anchor of the team’s successes will look on Saturday. Will Braxton’s runs in the fall be designed or out of necessity? Will long runs be due to Jordan and Carlos and Rod and Brionte’s talent, or due to the gaping holes that are waiting for them? Will my summer be spent in quiet confidence or wondering instead how what the record for most “three and outs” by a Buckeye team might be?
Saturday gives us our first clue. Onward.
What will be most different this year than last?
We’ve talked about the tempo and scheme being gently called “the polar opposite of Tresselball”, let’s take a look at the new faces in the new places. First, the team lineups: Read More
Moving Forward
Before Buckeye Nation turned it’s eyes to shootyhoops on Saturday, the 2012 football team took to the field for it’s first full-pad practice of the spring. Here’s some of the things we’ve learned after three days under Coach Meyer:
This week, on The Walking Dead...
Be sure you get involved in the BBN Bracket Challenge, and the Women’s Pick-em Competition (password: sammy!)… even if the lady Buckeyes got hosed.
Buckeye 411
It’s been a few week’s since we’ve been able to run one of these posts. Hopefully the wait wasn’t too much for you, loyal reader.
That was a much better result than last week’s game, I’m sure everyone will agree. That said, though, there’s still a long way to go before this team is anywhere near as good as we’re used to. Let’s see how entertained we were this week.
Storm Klein's sack helped the defense look like the usual Silver Bullets defense.
Big Plays. We saw a few big plays, including four players who made plays of longer than 15 yards. The longest of the day was a 32 yard pass to Devin Smith for a touchdown.
Start Fast. Well, the first drive was a quick three and out, but the Offense did move the ball effectively for a touchdown on the 2nd drive. The team was also able to take a 17-0 lead before Colorado was even able to score.
Defense being the defense. The defense certainly looked presentable. They did a good job of limiting Colorado all day long. The unit is still showing some weaknesses, particularly in zone coverage, but they’re doing good work so far.
Rush the BRAXTON. You wanted 50+ running yards from Miller, you got 83 yards on 17 attempts. I think that gets the job done! They even focused on the running game for the first drive, so they took this idea to heart.
Start Strong. How about entering the second quarter with a 10-0 lead? Is that strong enough?
Receivers at Ohio Stadium. Devin Smith caught 3, T.Y. Williams caught one, and Chris Fields caught one. The receivers were on display today in a bigger way – though they clearly still have a long way to go.
Stop the Big Play. Colorado’s biggest play of the day was a 27 yard run by Rodney Stewart. Several CU receivers picked up more than 15 yards on any given pass – many over the middle of the field. Colorado had success, but in general the big play was not available.
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Since I had the opportunity to attend the game in the Horseshoe today, I wasn’t able to do my usual recap. Because of that, I instead took a series of notes and jotted down some thoughts from the game to share. Hopefully I can provide some insight that wasn’t obvious from the television broadcast.
Also, I want to thank Joe D for covering me so ably on the recap this week. Without him, I might not have even been able to make the game!
Pregame
Braxton Miller attempts the Stiff Arm of Justice.
Well, that game was more than a little interesting. It’ll be hard to gauge this team over the next week, and I’m certain many are going to be expecting bad things in Coral Gables. Let’s see what the staff wanted to see again, and how much of it actually came to be.
Chris Fields gave the Buckeyes a boost when they needed it most.
- More of the same. I certainly don’t think we can qualify the entire game as “more of the same” as Akron. That first drive was a thing of beauty, but the rest of the game was a fight the whole way.
- New wrinkles. Nothing particularly new here, nope.
- Ebner Touchdown. Would it be too much to ask? For this game, apparently so.
- No False Starts. Shugarts took care of this one, and not in the good way.
- Continued QB play like the we saw this past Saturday. Miller never saw the field, and Bauserman didn’t have quite the same day he did against Akron. Though 16/30 for 189 yards and a touchdown isn’t bad.
- More speed from our team. We had our moments – such as Chris Fields’ punt return – but for the most part, I don’t think we saw a lot of speed anywhere.
- Big Plays. Outside of Fields’ return, the longest play was of 36 yards – one of which was Hyde’s first touchdown run.
- A three to four touchdown win. So much for that.
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