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The debut of the Urban Meyer offense everyone was hoping to see took a little longer than most would have liked.
After trailing the Miami University 3-0 after one quarter, Ohio State cruised to a 56-10 victory today at Ohio Stadium.
The offense struggled in the first quarter, out gained 172 yards to 48 by the Redhawks, but thanks to the tough running of Carlos Hyde and a highlight catch by wide receiver Devin Smith, the Buckeyes found their rhythm in the second quarter.
Several things caught my eye from the game today, both good and bad. I will start with the good, though:
Just... wow.
In a 46 point win, it may seem difficult to pick out bad things, but even Meyer described the first quarter as “ugly.” So, here are three things I would like to see OSU address:
Overall, though, Meyer’s debut was a good one. After a shaky start, Buckeye fans were able to see the Urban Meyer offense they were hoping for. Next week will be a bigger test, though, as Central Florida is a much better team than Miami.
We’ve got you covered all week here at The Buckeye Battle Cry.
There are numerous times in the life of a blogger that you just wish you had the opportunity to cover a football game like the local media in Columbus. Let’s face it, for the most part, those of us who are online entities just do not have the chances that the O-Zone does. They have some of the best writers covering Ohio State sports and do a good job of delivering the facts, and have a legacy of doing so.
If you were paying attention to twitter at all on Saturday, with the help of Brandon Castel and Tony Gerdeman, we got our information through RT’s and a heaping spoon of sarcasm. I have to be honest and admit right up front that I love the OZone and what they do. I frequent their message board and read a lot of their stuff and wouldn’t be honest if I said I didn’t wish I was in their shoes.
What happened Saturday to the local media was very interesting, and seemed to be a slap in their collective faces. It seems, and I am not sure why it happened, only the Big Ten Network and ESPN have been given permission to cover the team during this preseason- at least in comparison to other years. I for one wasn’t very happy about it and can only imagine how the Ozone felt about it. If you’d like to get a good idea of how Gerd felt about it you can read it here.
Online sites seem to almost always be on the outside looking in when it comes to getting first hand information as it is delivered. We do have people writing that have contacts in the recruiting realm, and that can sometimes be a huge plus since other times everyone else is receiving the same info at the same time and from the local guys. We do our best to put it in a great little package and most of the time at the same level as the fans.
I myself will probably never be a writer who works for a site like the Ozone or a local media outlet. I just do not have what it takes to get there. So I will continue to look in from out here and admire the job that those guys do that provides us with a ton of information on a daily basis. I will also continue to side with them and support them when something like this happens. They deserve it and they’ve definitely earned my respect. Read More
Two Time Captain John Simon
… John Simon, Zach Boren, Etienne Sabino, Garrett Goebel, and Jordan Hall
After a 2011 season of “rotating captains” and other nonsense, coupled with a spring and fall camp that focused on competition and excellence, it’s great to see that the Buckeyes have chosen five of their team who have emerged as leaders for this coming season.
The official press release:
COLUMBUS, Ohio – Five senior leaders have been chosen by their peers on the Ohio State University football team to be team captains in 2012. Coach Urban Meyer announced the captains at a team meeting Sunday night.
“Announcing who are team captains is one of the great honors I get to do as head coach,” Meyer said. “We had a number of guys get votes. This is a really good group of seniors who I am very proud to have leading this team.”
Representing four different states, they are:
§ Defensive lineman John Simon, from Youngstown, Ohio, and Cardinal Mooney High School;
§ Fullback Zach Boren, from Pickerington, Ohio, and Pickerington Central High School;
§ Linebacker Etienne Sabino, from North Miami Beach, Fla., and Dr. Krop High School;
§ Defensive linemen Garrett Goebel, from Villa Park, Ill., and Montini High School; and
§ Running back Jordan Hall, from Jeannette, Pa., and Jeannette High School.
The five have combined for 185 games played and 74 starts, with four having played in 39 career games apiece, respectively, and a fifth – Jordan Hall – a veteran of 29 games. Boren leads the group with 27 starts with Simon at 26 and Goebel (13), Sabino and Hall (five each) following.
Some thoughts from each:
Boren: “It is a dream come true and a huge honor to be named a captain at The Ohio State University. I am appreciative and thankful, and I look forward to being a leader on this team this season.”
Goebel: “I’m excited. It is an honor that your teammates think that highly of you to name you a captain. I’m going to put everything I have into this responsibility.”
Hall: “This is a dream come true. I was hoping to be named a captain but I was also a little surprised when it happened. I can’t thank my teammates enough for selecting me for this honor.”
Sabino: “I’m really excited. This is such an honor…to get voted by your teammates to be their captain. I am just really honored to be named a captain.”
Simon: “Being named captain means a lot. I appreciate the votes of the players. This is one of the biggest honors a player can receive and I’ll be proud to lead this team along with four other great guys. We’ll have a really good season if we all lead well.”
Simon becomes just the seventh two-time captain in school history and the first since James Laurinaitis was named captain in 2007 and again in 2008.
Ohio State is ranked 18th in the initial Associated Press Top 25 poll, marking the 24th consecutive season and the longest current streak in the country, to be ranked in the AP preseason poll. The team opens its 2012 season Sept. 1 vs. Miami (Ohio).
B1G Media Days and Coach Meyer speaking next to the trophy he plans to own for a good while
The Big Ten has not been all glitz and glamour like the SEC was, but then again the B1G is about blue-collar workers taking care of our favorite sport bar none.
Even with this blue-collar attitude setting the stage, yesterday was an interesting one at the luncheon kick-off to say the least.
Of course, there is a veritable throng of people covering the events in great detail that you can check out, but here are a few of the highlights for me personally.
First and foremost, there were reporters who asked Coach Meyer questions about the Penn State situation that made no sense for this event and Coach handled them beautifully.
Secondly, you can tell just from watching some of the video coming out of Chicago that Coach Meyer cannot wait for his players to put the pads on.
Finally with respect to Coach Meyer, I get the feeling that he is very excited for the future of the program but he wants to focus on the now. When asked about his thoughts on the sanctions against his team Meyer had this to say. Read More
Bumped back a day to cover today’s press access- one more day means even more news, notes, and inanity.
Would look great in the man cave- and Father's Day is coming up...
Buckeye 411
There was no NCAA violation. If you could bold and underline that for me, please.
Done and done, coach.
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:
For once, SBP could serve as a public service announcement, particularly for the folks in the Zanesville area.
No afternoon presser today, so here’s all the non-exotic animal related news… unless you count John Simon as his own overly evolved species of critter.
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.
