2009 tOSU Offense Discussion

[Bucks21]

You are being a little ticky tacky on the "underthrown" "overthrown" comments. Every quarterback misses, Pryor is allowed to miss. Hell, from my count he only "missed" maybe 3 passes, which is excellent improvement for him. He didn't throw any up for grabs, another huge improvement. One thing that I noticed that you did not mention is the fact that when Pryor did run it was very devastating to the defense. He had a couple of 10+ yard scampers that resulted in a first down. IMHO those are the kinds of plays that take the wind out of the sails of an opposing defense.

You mention the fact that the offensive line didn't give up any sacks, that's true. Some of that can be attributed to Pryor buying time.

This is a team sport, I thought that the team played great as a whole. The defense set the tempo. The offense took what Penn St. gave them. Pryor led the offense efficiently and without any mistakes. What I liked the most is the fact that we took the fight to them, something that I have not seen out of the Bucks in a while. I think this is the blue print for a title run next season. :)

This is my favorite part of your post. I think people tend to forget that football is about the team. The defense was devastating, they made play after play after play. Ray was huge on special teams, and Barclay came through with a clutch field goal early. The o-line stepped up and the offensive played as a unit. Just one example was Dane making great blocks on the outside , on both of those now passes to Posey.

This is such a young team, especially on offense, plus the defense is just so stacked, I can't help but smile because this was the best overall game that they have played this year and they are only going to get better.

 

[lvbuckeye]

This is such a young team, especially on offense, plus the defense is just so stacked, I can't help but smile because this was the best overall game that they have played this year and they are only going to get better.

i think it's the best game they have played since '07.

 

[Steve19]

i think it's the best game they have played since '07.

I agree.

 

[jimotis4heisman]

i think it's the best game they have played since '07.

then again the "big game" performance has been, well questionable for ohio state. that being said im not sure on that penn state team... their "signature win" is? eastern illinois? theyve played two arguably decent teams and lost a combined 48-17.

(wins over temple, syracuse, akron, e. ill, ill, minnesota, nw, michigan arent exactly impressive).

once again i look around the big ten and am left to wonder and shake my head. we shall see what iowa has, yet im solely convinced (since few seem to agree) that the woody-bo era of the big two and little eight has returned. yet im not so sure its may not be ohio state sitting on top of a conference stuffed full of mediocrity. (as evidenced on the national stage the past few years eg lsu, uf, usc 08 [and the vastly lesser extent that they just couldnt finish great ball games usc09 and texasx2, yet still weigh on the overall perception]). then toss in a few "unexpected" losses dubbed upsets (purdue) and a loss to a good ill team and the losses to bcs bound psu (08 and 05). so that leaves us with what one win over texas(06) who turned out wasnt all that it was sliced up to be, a win over a crappy overrated und team. the 06 um team who we beat.

and thats pretty much it for big games and good teams over the past few years...


which leads me back to this
Big Ten Football Standings - Big Ten Network
and i end up scratching my head. the pundits certainly maybe right that the big ten just wasnt what it once was. however i think it maybe cyclical (to some extent the population drain no doubt has and will continue to takes it toll).

 

[martinss01]

then again the "big game" performance has been, well questionable for ohio state. that being said im not sure on that penn state team... their "signature win" is? eastern illinois? theyve played two arguably decent teams and lost a combined 48-17.

(wins over temple, syracuse, akron, e. ill, ill, minnesota, nw, michigan arent exactly impressive).

so 09 psu doesn't count as a big game then?

once again i look around the big ten and am left to wonder and shake my head. we shall see what iowa has, yet im solely convinced (since few seem to agree) that the woody-bo era of the big two and little eight has returned. yet im not so sure its may not be ohio state sitting on top of a conference stuffed full of mediocrity.

in my oh so humble of opinions is the big 10 as a whole is mediocre this year. not because of a lack of talent or ability but because when you look around the big 10 what you see consistently from team to team is youth. the big 10 is shockingly young almost across the board. however, don't expect the big 10 to be the push over it was last year in bowl games or earlier in the season when they go bowling. they may be young but they are also getting better every week. also not having 2 teams in the bcs will be very helpful for the big 10 this year. i think the big 10 is currently on the bottom of its upswing. the next 2 years the big 10 is going to be a very tough conference.

(as evidenced on the national stage the past few years eg lsu, uf, usc 08 [and the vastly lesser extent that they just couldnt finish great ball games usc09 and texasx2, yet still weigh on the overall perception]). then toss in a few "unexpected" losses dubbed upsets (purdue) and a loss to a good ill team and the losses to bcs bound psu (08 and 05). so that leaves us with what one win over texas(06) who turned out wasnt all that it was sliced up to be, a win over a crappy overrated und team. the 06 um team who we beat.

ok, ill take the bait.

lets say we beat 06 florida and win the nc. ya know, the same 06 florida who half the country didn't think was worthy to play for the nc? the same florida who would have then been a 2 loss team? you honestly think they would have been considered a "big" win at that point?

lets say we beat 07 lsu. ya know, the same 07 lsu that had lost 2 games already on the season. the same lsu who needed what? 5? 6? top 5 teams to loose in the last 2 weeks of the season to make it to #2 in the nation? the same lsu who had to jump how many spots to leapfrog georgia? we win and they suddenly become a 3 loss team (and not even the best team in the sec). you honestly think they would have been considered a "big" win at that point?

05 and 08 psu with 2 losses those years and they don't even make the top 10 let alone play in a bcs bowl. which would make those "wins" just as big as this years. ooooooo wait! not a big win this year so not a big win then either right?

usc 08 & 09. 08 with back to back losses to tOSU and oregon state? they struggle to fight their way back into the top 10 with a perceived weak pac 10 schedule. good luck! 09??? are you serious? where do you think a 6-3 usc would be ranked currently?

texas? just another pretender in 08 if we beat them. once again we dodged the best team in their conference.

you argue we have faltered in big games. not only do i not believe that, but i would argue that the ONLY thing that makes those big games is the fact that we lost. if we won they would have ALL been considered so so wins against pretender teams who (outside of usc) wasn't even the best team in their conference.

and thats pretty much it for big games and good teams over the past few years...

7 - 1

 

[lvbuckeye]

then again the "big game" performance has been, well questionable for ohio state. that being said im not sure on that penn state team... their "signature win" is? eastern illinois? theyve played two arguably decent teams and lost a combined 48-17.

(wins over temple, syracuse, akron, e. ill, ill, minnesota, nw, michigan arent exactly impressive).

once again i look around the big ten and am left to wonder and shake my head. we shall see what iowa has, yet im solely convinced (since few seem to agree) that the woody-bo era of the big two and little eight has returned. yet im not so sure its may not be ohio state sitting on top of a conference stuffed full of mediocrity. (as evidenced on the national stage the past few years eg lsu, uf, usc 08 [and the vastly lesser extent that they just couldnt finish great ball games usc09 and texasx2, yet still weigh on the overall perception]). then toss in a few "unexpected" losses dubbed upsets (purdue) and a loss to a good ill team and the losses to bcs bound psu (08 and 05). so that leaves us with what one win over texas(06) who turned out wasnt all that it was sliced up to be, a win over a crappy overrated und team. the 06 um team who we beat.

and thats pretty much it for big games and good teams over the past few years...


which leads me back to this
Big Ten Football Standings - Big Ten Network
and i end up scratching my head. the pundits certainly maybe right that the big ten just wasnt what it once was. however i think it maybe cyclical (to some extent the population drain no doubt has and will continue to takes it toll).

not really talking about "big game" performance, though this most certainly was a big game. i'm talking about this is the best they've looked on O, D, and ST since '07. the O looked good. the D was lights out. the ST changed the complexion of the game. they've had other games where they put up better numbers, but i haven't seen a better game from a total team aspect for a couple years.

 

[NateG]

not really talking about "big game" performance, though this most certainly was a big game. i'm talking about this is the best they've looked on O, D, and ST since '07. the O looked good. the D was lights out. the ST changed the complexion of the game. they've had other games where they put up better numbers, but i haven't seen a better game from a total team aspect for a couple years.

Yes, this was a total team win. Couldn't say that their was a letdown in any facet of the game. O, D, Punt Returns, Punts, KO's, FG made, KO coverage. I just wonder how many players will grade out as a winning performance.

 

[BrutusBobcat]

NCAA rankings:

Rushing offense: 23rd
Scoring offense: 35th
Turnover margin: 13th
Sacks allowed: 44th
Total offense: 62nd
Passing offense: 98th (ouch)

Big Ten rankings:

Rushing offense: 3rd
Scoring offense: 2nd
Turnover margin: 1st
Sacks allowed: 4th
Total offense: 7th
Passing offense: 10th (ouch)

 

[korchiki]

The reason a lot of people, including me, are giddy over an 8/17 game was the progress that he showed. He started showing it the in the Minnesota game, where he stepped into his throws with pressure coming into his face, and he continued much of that progress last week against NMSU.

Today the thing that he showed me, that I haven't seen out of TP was patience in the passing game. He converted 2 key third down rollouts on the game-icing drive because he was patient enough to let the play develop and dump off good passes that put his player in position to get the first down, or touchdown in Saine's case. This is something that I'm not sure I would've seen the pre-Purdue Terrelle Pryor do.

Is he a finished product? Absolutely not. In fact, far from it. He has to complete that pass to Sanz, and he missed other passes as well, but the progress that he's shown the last three weeks, including this week against a stingy defense in a hostile environment is reason for great optimism for OSU fans. This game will be his in the future. The only question is when, and we may have started to see an answer on Saturday.

I agree. My point was just to reiterate that we need to keep being patient with him. He is still going to have his ups and downs but showed flashes of his potential.

 

[OregonBuckeye]

once again i look around the big ten and am left to wonder and shake my head. we shall see what iowa has, yet im solely convinced (since few seem to agree) that the woody-bo era of the big two and little eight has returned. yet im not so sure its may not be ohio state sitting on top of a conference stuffed full of mediocrity. (as evidenced on the national stage the past few years eg lsu, uf, usc 08 [and the vastly lesser extent that they just couldnt finish great ball games usc09 and texasx2, yet still weigh on the overall perception]). then toss in a few "unexpected" losses dubbed upsets (purdue) and a loss to a good ill team and the losses to bcs bound psu (08 and 05). so that leaves us with what one win over texas(06) who turned out wasnt all that it was sliced up to be, a win over a crappy overrated und team. the 06 um team who we beat.

and thats pretty much it for big games and good teams over the past few years...


which leads me back to this
Big Ten Football Standings - Big Ten Network
and i end up scratching my head. the pundits certainly maybe right that the big ten just wasnt what it once was. however i think it maybe cyclical (to some extent the population drain no doubt has and will continue to takes it toll).

That's one way to spin it. What conference has impressed you? You could say the same about any conference, IMO. SEC has Alabama and Florida and a bunch of mediocrity. Pac-10 has maybe Oregon and a bunch of mediocrity. Big-12, Texas. Big-East, Cincy. ACC, no one. Big-10, maybe tOSU and maybe Iowa with a healthy Stanzi.

Big-10 is the 3rd best conference behind the SEC and Pac-10, IMO. Big-10 is on an upswing. Illinois is sinking but that's about it.

To get this back on track, for as bad as the offense has seemed at times this year it's still 2nd in the Big-10 in scoring and has 3 500+ total yard games.

 

[Buckskin86]

Football: Wildcat adds wrinkle to Ohio State offense
Tuesday, November 17, 2009
By Tim May
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH

Some might find it hard to believe that Jim Tressel would endorse any offensive concept with the word wild in it. But due in part to necessity and in part to keeping up with the times, behold, the Wildcat, OSU version.

Michigan's defensive coaches will be paying attention to it this week headed into The Game. That was yet another reason why two weeks ago the Buckeyes added the Wildcat, in which the quarterback usually dashes out to one side of the formation while a running back takes a direct snap with the option to run, hand off or throw.

"When it was first introduced, I was like, 'The Wildcat? Maybe we should call it the Buck Wild,' " senior left tackle Jim Cordle said.

Or maybe, the "Wild Copy Cat."

Tressel explained yesterday that the coaches watched quarterback Terrelle Pryor deal with a lot of aches and pains, primarily a sprained ankle, coming out of the win over New Mexico State. They knew they needed to take some of the strain off him in the running game going into the November stretch run.

Football: Wildcat adds wrinkle to Ohio State offense | BuckeyeXtra

 

[xcrunner]

The Wild Copy Cat?

'Cause Tressel never put Ginn at QB or anything :/

 

[Buckskin86]

Buckeyes' backfield near full strength, wildcat could be unleashed against Wolverines: Ohio State Insider
By Doug Lesmerises, The Plain Dealer
November 18, 2009

Columbus -- Quarterback Terrelle Pryor's injured left ankle forced Ohio State to add a wrinkle to the running attack the previous two weeks with their version of the wildcat, sending Pryor in motion and directly snapping the ball to a running back.

With Pryor and running backs Dan Herron, Brandon Saine and Jordan Hall expected to be near full-strength against Michigan on Saturday, maybe things will get a little more wild against the Wolverines.

"We look at it as if we've got four different runners, and at the moment we worked it, the running backs were healthier than Terrelle," Ohio State coach Jim Tressel said. "The good news is I'd like to think we'll go into Saturday and all four will be healthy."

The Buckeyes used it mostly as a decoy change-of-pace two weeks ago, something for Penn State to think about during two Wildcat snaps that didn't do much. But against Iowa, the Buckeyes blocked it more effectively and Herron ran for an 11-yard touchdown out of the formation.

Asked about the look earlier in the year, Tressel said the Buckeyes basically ran the wildcat all the time -- with Pryor. He's the kind of dangerous runner who can also throw that teams try to put in that situation. But after Pryor hurt his ankle against New Mexico State, the Buckeyes were looking for ways to take some pressure off of him.

"I wasn't too surprised," Ohio State receiver Dane Sanzenbacher said. "You see so many teams doing it that I figured at some point we would get a few plays in there. I don't think it changes too much. It's just a different look."

The real wrinkle would come if the Buckeyes would throw out of the wildcat. They already tried a reverse this year when receiver DeVier Posey's intended target was supposed to be Pryor, but the quarterback was covered. The players said both Herron and Saine could throw the ball if the coaches let them. And Pryor would be waiting.

"He's happy for us to throw it to him," Tressel said. "He thinks he's a great route runner. I said, 'Well, you've got to have somebody who can throw it.' So I think he's reminiscing about when Todd [Boeckman] was throwing to him. Todd's not here, so any little thing we can have to add preparation time for people to add pressure to our opposing defenses we think is good."

Buckeyes' backfield near full strength, wildcat could be unleashed against Wolverines: Ohio State Insider | Ohio State Buckeyes - cleveland.com - - cleveland.com

 

[Poe McKnoe]

I think they will show the wildcat this weekend and I hope they run a sweep or a fake sweep out of it. It's another dimension that's there so why not do it. Ray Small or Lamaar Thomas could handle the sweep.

Unless Ronnie Brown or Ricky Williams are available...

 

[TJnTN]

I'm still concerned with the offense but Pryor is definitely starting to really mature. He seems to be managing the game much better versus trying to bust the big play on every down. His accuracy was a bit off and besides the INT (which was thrown a little high but probably could have been caught) he's at least taking care of the ball and making good decisions. Seems like it takes a quarter or two for the OLine to get in a groove but they are blocking much better....especially compared to last season. We are running the ball really well now so...is the problem in the passing game?

Teams have been picking apart the scUM secondary all year and they were loading up the box against us.....we should have been able to take advantage of this a little bit more. I realize Pryor had the two overthrows that would have been TD's but you still feel like something just isn't clicking with the passing game. I just can't tell if it's Pryor not seeing things down field, WR's not getting open, if it's playcalling, or just the coaching staff being too safe. Probably a little bit of all of the above.

We don't seem to be throwing the ball to the middle of the field much. Is there any reason we don't throw the slant pattern anymore? I can't honestly remember the last time we threw one.

We don't leave ourselves a lot of room for mistakes....guess that's kind of what you get with Tresselball but still, just feels like the offense is definitely still not there. Then again....we are winning and this isn't me complaining so much as an observation.