Gene Ross
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Can Jeremiah Smith be the determining factor in the Rose Bowl?
Gene Ross via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
Photo by Jason Mowry/Getty Images
The freshman wide receiver has a chance to lead the Buckeyes into the semifinals.
Jeremiah Smith has had the greatest freshman season of any wide receiver in Ohio State’s storied program history — and by a wide margin, at that.
Prior to the five-star phenom, the Buckeyes’ prior freshman record holder was Cris Carter. The future NFL Hall of Famer tallied 41 receptions for 648 yards and eight touchdowns in his first year in Columbus. That mark withstood 40 years of Ohio State football before it was completely shattered by Smith, who has amassed 1,037 yards on 61 catches with 12 touchdowns with still at least one game left to play.
Carter put an exclamation point on that 1984 campaign with a dominant performance in the Rose Bowl against USC. The then-freshman set a then-Rose Bowl record with nine catches for 172 yards and a TD. It was a game the Buckeyes would go on to lose 20-17 to the Trojans, who at the time were a member of the Pac-10. Carter would go on to become a First Team All American in 1986 and a two-time First Team All-Big Ten before being selected in the fourth round of the 1987 NFL Draft, and the rest was history.
Fast forward four decades later, and a new Ohio State freshman receiving record-holder will now have a chance to add an early chapter to their legacy with a dominant performance in the Rose Bowl against a West Coast powerhouse — albeit this time against a conference foe with much more on the line.
Smith has already gotten a chance to match up against Oregon, and while the Buckeyes came up short in a 32-31 loss at Autzen Stadium in early October, the electric pass-catcher was certainly not the reason.
Smith actually had one of his better games of the year against the Ducks, posting a season-high nine receptions for 100 yards and a touchdown. The freshman could have had one additional catch that would’ve set Ohio State up for potential game-winning field goal, but Smith was incorrectly called for offensive pass interference after outmuscling his defender.
Now, Smith will get the ultimate chance to avenge the early-season loss, and his performance in Pasadena could prove to be the difference in Ohio State advancing to the College Football Playoff semifinals, or the Buckeyes’ season coming to an unfortunate end.
We have seen what can happen when Ohio State gears its offense towards Smith and its treasure trove of elite wide receiver talent. After all the talk of Ryan Day and Chip Kelly’s head-scratchingly awful game plan against Michigan, the Buckeyes came out and threw the ball around the yard against Tennessee, with Will Howard completing 24-of-29 passes for 311 yards and two touchdowns. Smith was the biggest beneficiary of the air attack, catching a team-high six passes for 103 yards and two scores.
Howard was great the last time Ohio State played Oregon as well, throwing for a season-high 326 yards with two touchdowns and no picks. Smith and Emeka Egbuka combined for 19 catches in that game, while TreVeyon Henderson ran the ball 10 times for 87 yards. The offense was not the problem in that matchup, as the Buckeyes’ defense allowed almost 500 yards in the one-point loss.
Jim Knowles has made massive changes to the unit since that game, but Ohio State’s offensive line is also a lot different this time around. Another wrench in the plan for the Buckeyes in this second meeting with Oregon is the health of the Ducks’ defensive line.
Ohio State will be without both Seth McLaughlin and Josh Simmons up front, the former of which was playing in that October loss and the latter who suffered a season-ending injury in the first half of that game. Oregon will have a healthy Jordan Burch, who was out during that prior matchup and is second on the team with 8.5 sacks despite missing four games.
As a result, it's likely that Ohio State won’t be able to run the ball as effectively, with Henderson and Quinshon Judkins combining to average 5.23 yards per carry in that prior meeting. Howard also won’t have as much time to sit in the pocket and wait out those long-developing passing plays downfield.
This new-look offensive line did not allow a sack against Tennessee, but the Oregon defensive line presents a different challenge. If the run game isn’t working and Howard doesn’t have a ton of time to throw, Smith may need to do even more to help the offense move the ball.
We know how dangerous the freshman is with the ball in his hands. A guy who stands at 6-foot-2, 215 pounds should not be able to move as quick and as smoothly as he does, and Ohio State would be smart to work Smith both across the middle and outside on quick-hitters and let him pick up those yards after the catch. If they can get their elite wide receiver the ball anywhere from 10-12 times in this game, the Buckeyes’ chances of winning would increase dramatically.
Smith has yet to find a cornerback who can guard him 1-on-1. Oregon has some great defensive backs in Jabbar Muhammad and Nikko Reed, among others, but even the Ducks will likely look to bracket him in coverage. That will open up even more space for Egubka and Carnell Tate, both of whom are more than capable of carving up a defense on their own.
If Oregon really focuses on taking Smith out of this game after the performance he had against the Volunteers, Howard will have to look to his other playmakers to make them pay.
Ohio State will obviously hope to get a better performance from its defense against the Ducks than it got back in October, when Oregon had far too many wide open receivers and Dillon Gabriel faced little to no pressure all game long. However, the Buckeyes know they will still have to put up a lot of points to compete with one of the best teams in college football, who aren’t going to be held in check quite as easily as Tennessee was even with an improved showing from Knowles’ group.
Jeremiah Smith, whether on his own or by virtue of drawing the focus, may be the key for Ohio State to get its revenge in the Rose Bowl.
Continue reading...
Gene Ross via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
Photo by Jason Mowry/Getty Images
The freshman wide receiver has a chance to lead the Buckeyes into the semifinals.
Jeremiah Smith has had the greatest freshman season of any wide receiver in Ohio State’s storied program history — and by a wide margin, at that.
Prior to the five-star phenom, the Buckeyes’ prior freshman record holder was Cris Carter. The future NFL Hall of Famer tallied 41 receptions for 648 yards and eight touchdowns in his first year in Columbus. That mark withstood 40 years of Ohio State football before it was completely shattered by Smith, who has amassed 1,037 yards on 61 catches with 12 touchdowns with still at least one game left to play.
Carter put an exclamation point on that 1984 campaign with a dominant performance in the Rose Bowl against USC. The then-freshman set a then-Rose Bowl record with nine catches for 172 yards and a TD. It was a game the Buckeyes would go on to lose 20-17 to the Trojans, who at the time were a member of the Pac-10. Carter would go on to become a First Team All American in 1986 and a two-time First Team All-Big Ten before being selected in the fourth round of the 1987 NFL Draft, and the rest was history.
Fast forward four decades later, and a new Ohio State freshman receiving record-holder will now have a chance to add an early chapter to their legacy with a dominant performance in the Rose Bowl against a West Coast powerhouse — albeit this time against a conference foe with much more on the line.
Smith has already gotten a chance to match up against Oregon, and while the Buckeyes came up short in a 32-31 loss at Autzen Stadium in early October, the electric pass-catcher was certainly not the reason.
Smith actually had one of his better games of the year against the Ducks, posting a season-high nine receptions for 100 yards and a touchdown. The freshman could have had one additional catch that would’ve set Ohio State up for potential game-winning field goal, but Smith was incorrectly called for offensive pass interference after outmuscling his defender.
Now, Smith will get the ultimate chance to avenge the early-season loss, and his performance in Pasadena could prove to be the difference in Ohio State advancing to the College Football Playoff semifinals, or the Buckeyes’ season coming to an unfortunate end.
We have seen what can happen when Ohio State gears its offense towards Smith and its treasure trove of elite wide receiver talent. After all the talk of Ryan Day and Chip Kelly’s head-scratchingly awful game plan against Michigan, the Buckeyes came out and threw the ball around the yard against Tennessee, with Will Howard completing 24-of-29 passes for 311 yards and two touchdowns. Smith was the biggest beneficiary of the air attack, catching a team-high six passes for 103 yards and two scores.
Howard was great the last time Ohio State played Oregon as well, throwing for a season-high 326 yards with two touchdowns and no picks. Smith and Emeka Egbuka combined for 19 catches in that game, while TreVeyon Henderson ran the ball 10 times for 87 yards. The offense was not the problem in that matchup, as the Buckeyes’ defense allowed almost 500 yards in the one-point loss.
Jim Knowles has made massive changes to the unit since that game, but Ohio State’s offensive line is also a lot different this time around. Another wrench in the plan for the Buckeyes in this second meeting with Oregon is the health of the Ducks’ defensive line.
Ohio State will be without both Seth McLaughlin and Josh Simmons up front, the former of which was playing in that October loss and the latter who suffered a season-ending injury in the first half of that game. Oregon will have a healthy Jordan Burch, who was out during that prior matchup and is second on the team with 8.5 sacks despite missing four games.
As a result, it's likely that Ohio State won’t be able to run the ball as effectively, with Henderson and Quinshon Judkins combining to average 5.23 yards per carry in that prior meeting. Howard also won’t have as much time to sit in the pocket and wait out those long-developing passing plays downfield.
This new-look offensive line did not allow a sack against Tennessee, but the Oregon defensive line presents a different challenge. If the run game isn’t working and Howard doesn’t have a ton of time to throw, Smith may need to do even more to help the offense move the ball.
We know how dangerous the freshman is with the ball in his hands. A guy who stands at 6-foot-2, 215 pounds should not be able to move as quick and as smoothly as he does, and Ohio State would be smart to work Smith both across the middle and outside on quick-hitters and let him pick up those yards after the catch. If they can get their elite wide receiver the ball anywhere from 10-12 times in this game, the Buckeyes’ chances of winning would increase dramatically.
Smith has yet to find a cornerback who can guard him 1-on-1. Oregon has some great defensive backs in Jabbar Muhammad and Nikko Reed, among others, but even the Ducks will likely look to bracket him in coverage. That will open up even more space for Egubka and Carnell Tate, both of whom are more than capable of carving up a defense on their own.
If Oregon really focuses on taking Smith out of this game after the performance he had against the Volunteers, Howard will have to look to his other playmakers to make them pay.
Ohio State will obviously hope to get a better performance from its defense against the Ducks than it got back in October, when Oregon had far too many wide open receivers and Dillon Gabriel faced little to no pressure all game long. However, the Buckeyes know they will still have to put up a lot of points to compete with one of the best teams in college football, who aren’t going to be held in check quite as easily as Tennessee was even with an improved showing from Knowles’ group.
Jeremiah Smith, whether on his own or by virtue of drawing the focus, may be the key for Ohio State to get its revenge in the Rose Bowl.
Continue reading...