Matt Tamanini
Guest
Moment of the Game: Smith’s latest wow moment swings Iowa game in OSU’s favor
Matt Tamanini 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
This young man is the Buckeye version of a Human Highlight Reel
/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25660481/2176986883.jpg "Iowa v Ohio State")
Photo by Jason Mowry/Getty Images
Every game of college football is different, that’s why we love this ridiculous, flawed, chaotic sport. A team can go from winning an all-time classic following heart-stopping back-to-back 75-yard plays to trailing Vanderbilt at the half in consecutive weeks.
The unpredictability seems especially true this season when it comes to this Ohio State team as they can seemingly win games in any multitude of ways. We’ve seen games in which Quinshon Judkins had a legitimate argument as the best offensive player, TreVeyon Henderson, Emeka Egbuka, and Will Howard as well. We’ve also seen the defense shut teams down to the point where that unit was even more important than the offense.
However, when it comes to picking the most important, impactful, and memorable plays of the game for this weekly column, why do I routinely find myself coming back to a single Buckeye? Why have I ended up writing about plays from this one particular player in three of Ohio State’s five games?
Well, I guess it is just another example of why Jeremiah Smith is the best wide receiver in Ohio State history. Against Akron in Week 1, it was his first career touchdown. Last week it was his back-to-back one-handed catches that put some distance between the Buckeyes and Michigan State Spartans. This week it is yet another one-handed snag for a touchdown as J.J. has proven that he is capable of creating an eye-popping highlight at any moment.
His latest unbelievable highlight was a pivotal play in getting the Buckeyes to 5-0 thanks to a 35-7 win over the Iowa Hawkeyes.
However, this catch is the moment of the game not just because of the otherworldly skill and concentration that the true freshman displays, but because of how the game swung on that touchdown.
At the time, Ohio State was up just 7-0 with 9:39 left in the third quarter. The first half was marred by three Buckeye turnovers; one via fumble, one via interception, and one on downs. However just over five minutes into the quarter, it went from being a close game between two Big Ten heavyweights to being an unmitigated blowout and Smith’s touchdown was the fulcrum.
On first and goal, quarterback Will Howard threw a jump-ball fade to the southwest corner of the end zone where he had Smith one-on-one with Iowa defensive back Deshaun Lee. We have heard it discussed since the summer that if Jeremiah Smith is in single coverage, he is wide open. As the ball was in the air, Lee clearly had ahold of the wide receiver’s jersey, but Smith used his left hand to push the smaller DB away from home while securing the ball with his right hand for his sixth touchdown of the season.
With the score now 14-0 in favor of the Scarlet and Gray, the Buckeye offense and defense put the pedal to the metal the rest of the way with Will Howard adding a rushing touchdown and throwing two more to Emeka Egbuka (who had the TD that put OSU up 7-0) before giving way to Devin Brown and the second-team offense.
The snowball had already started rolling downhill as the Buckeyes took the ball coming out of halftime and took it 86 yards on nine plays capped by Smith’s one-handed catch, but the play seemed to serve as a reminder of just how explosive this team can be. Just watching on the TV, it felt like it rejuvenated the team’s (and fan’s) excitement.
With a team as loaded as these Buckeyes, it only takes one person, one play to start an avalanche of scoring, and that’s what happened today. Over the first four drives of the second half, the Buckeyes scored four touchdowns in just over 14 minutes of possession. They went from being in a sloppy dogfight with a tough-nosed Hawkeye squad to blowing out a really good team that still has a chance to make the 12-team College Football Playoff.
So, again, Jeremiah Smith was responsible for the moment of the game, but it led to a nearly perfect entire second-half performance. Now, bring on the Ducks!
Continue reading...
Matt Tamanini 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
This young man is the Buckeye version of a Human Highlight Reel
Every game of college football is different, that’s why we love this ridiculous, flawed, chaotic sport. A team can go from winning an all-time classic following heart-stopping back-to-back 75-yard plays to trailing Vanderbilt at the half in consecutive weeks.
The unpredictability seems especially true this season when it comes to this Ohio State team as they can seemingly win games in any multitude of ways. We’ve seen games in which Quinshon Judkins had a legitimate argument as the best offensive player, TreVeyon Henderson, Emeka Egbuka, and Will Howard as well. We’ve also seen the defense shut teams down to the point where that unit was even more important than the offense.
However, when it comes to picking the most important, impactful, and memorable plays of the game for this weekly column, why do I routinely find myself coming back to a single Buckeye? Why have I ended up writing about plays from this one particular player in three of Ohio State’s five games?
Well, I guess it is just another example of why Jeremiah Smith is the best wide receiver in Ohio State history. Against Akron in Week 1, it was his first career touchdown. Last week it was his back-to-back one-handed catches that put some distance between the Buckeyes and Michigan State Spartans. This week it is yet another one-handed snag for a touchdown as J.J. has proven that he is capable of creating an eye-popping highlight at any moment.
His latest unbelievable highlight was a pivotal play in getting the Buckeyes to 5-0 thanks to a 35-7 win over the Iowa Hawkeyes.
However, this catch is the moment of the game not just because of the otherworldly skill and concentration that the true freshman displays, but because of how the game swung on that touchdown.
At the time, Ohio State was up just 7-0 with 9:39 left in the third quarter. The first half was marred by three Buckeye turnovers; one via fumble, one via interception, and one on downs. However just over five minutes into the quarter, it went from being a close game between two Big Ten heavyweights to being an unmitigated blowout and Smith’s touchdown was the fulcrum.
On first and goal, quarterback Will Howard threw a jump-ball fade to the southwest corner of the end zone where he had Smith one-on-one with Iowa defensive back Deshaun Lee. We have heard it discussed since the summer that if Jeremiah Smith is in single coverage, he is wide open. As the ball was in the air, Lee clearly had ahold of the wide receiver’s jersey, but Smith used his left hand to push the smaller DB away from home while securing the ball with his right hand for his sixth touchdown of the season.
With the score now 14-0 in favor of the Scarlet and Gray, the Buckeye offense and defense put the pedal to the metal the rest of the way with Will Howard adding a rushing touchdown and throwing two more to Emeka Egbuka (who had the TD that put OSU up 7-0) before giving way to Devin Brown and the second-team offense.
The snowball had already started rolling downhill as the Buckeyes took the ball coming out of halftime and took it 86 yards on nine plays capped by Smith’s one-handed catch, but the play seemed to serve as a reminder of just how explosive this team can be. Just watching on the TV, it felt like it rejuvenated the team’s (and fan’s) excitement.
With a team as loaded as these Buckeyes, it only takes one person, one play to start an avalanche of scoring, and that’s what happened today. Over the first four drives of the second half, the Buckeyes scored four touchdowns in just over 14 minutes of possession. They went from being in a sloppy dogfight with a tough-nosed Hawkeye squad to blowing out a really good team that still has a chance to make the 12-team College Football Playoff.
So, again, Jeremiah Smith was responsible for the moment of the game, but it led to a nearly perfect entire second-half performance. Now, bring on the Ducks!
Continue reading...