ScriptOhio
Everybody is somebody else's weirdo.
Smartest "off season" move of the year by ScriptOhio, I switched seats from 30C row 5 to 4B row 2. I never left my seat and stayed dry the entire game.
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Smartest "off season" move of the year by ScriptOhio, I switched seats from 30C row 5 to 4B row 2. I never left my seat and stayed dry the entire game.
OregonBuckeye
Semper Fi Buckeyes
Pretty fucking harsh considering it was his first career playing time. He may not pan out but damn that's a pretty ruthless critique on a freshman QB over an extremely small sample size.
I personally think Martell flashed a little of his playmaking ability. He also hit a nice post route. He didn't set the world on fire but he also didn't crash and burn.
I see no reason Tate can't become what Braxton Miller was on track to be. He probably won't ever be an elite passer, but his athleticism and intangibles combined with adequate passing can make him a great college QB.
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ScriptOhio
Everybody is somebody else's weirdo.
This Ohio State team is the most fun in nearly 20 years
While Tressel and Meyer have had lots of fun outcomes, very rarely have their teams themselves been enjoyable.
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Fair warning: this will not be an article in which I break down film. This will not be an article in which I analyze historic OSU teams with advanced statistics that I don’t really understand. This will not be an article in which I discuss the intricacies of Jim Tressel’s conservative offense, nor the efficiency of Urban Meyer’s zone-read. No, this is going to be an article all about the feels.
I’ve been a Buckeye fan for longer than I can remember, but I one thing that I do distinctly remember is watching Jim Tressel’s introductory press conference from my dorm room in Bradley-Patterson where I was an RA in January 2001. So, if you’re doing the math, the formative years of my fandom came during the John Cooper era, my young adult years were spent rooting for Senator Tressel’s teams, and most of my 30s have been spent watching Urban’s squads.
Admittedly I’m speaking in generalities, and basically overlooking the past 20-plus years of dominant defenses, but the basic milieu of the latter two coaches has been to take teams with distinct talent advantages, and do everything possible to make the games as close (and, in turn, as boring) as possible; robbing the teams of unique personalities and excitement.
Now, don’t get me wrong, I’ve thoroughly enjoyed all of the winning that Tressel and Meyer’s teams have done over the past two decades. That’s been fun; especially the late season successes against Michigan, in bowl games, and the pair of national championships. That’s all been wonderful, especially following the 13 years of Cooper-helmed disappointments (looking at you 1993, 1995, 1996, and 1998).
Cooper’s teams never had the consistency, nor reached the heights, of Tressel and Meyer’s, but man were they fun. Perhaps that is a bit of nostalgia bias, because I certainly recall violently throwing things during the Michigan State game in 1998, but by and large, Cooper had ridiculously talented players, and he let them do what they did best; something that rarely can be said for his two successors.
As I said, Tressel and Meyer’s results have been extremely fun in the new millennium, but the teams really haven’t been. While I will never forget being in Sun Devil Stadium for Ohio State’s first national championship since 1968, to get it, we had to suffer—and I mean that literally—through 10 seasons of a coach who thought that the punt was the most important play in football. A coach who seemingly would have taken the air out of the ball if he could.
Watching a Jim Tressel-coached game was an experiment in tedium. His offensive philosophy was the football equivalent of Chinese Water Torture. Drip. Drip. Drip. Drip.
Yes, it was eventually effective, but man was it painful and it would drive you crazy. When one of The Vest’s teams scored, I more often than not felt relief, not excitement. I watched most of those games intellectually knowing that the Buckeyes should (and likely would) win, but still being overcome by a weekly existential dread that they were somehow going to punt their way to an unnecessary L.
Then, after the Luke Fickell, post-Tattoogate season, Buckeye fans gleefully welcomed the guru of the spread offense to town. We thought that the days of vanilla offenses were over. We expected a new regime focused on offensive innovation and video game-like output.
However, by the time that Urban got to Columbus, his revolutionary offense had evolved into the zone-read. And, while effective, rarely did it allow the absurd collection of talent to thrive. Instead, especially in the four-ish years of J.T. Barrett, it resulted in an endless array of QB runs, mostly of the three-to-five yard variety.
Again, this is not a knock on Barrett, who was a master of Meyer’s offense. It’s just that the offense was frustratingly predictable; not only in terms of playcalling, but in the mis/underuse of some of the best skill position players in the country.
Do you remember how much fun the postseason run was in 2014? I obviously don’t have to tell you what the difference was (but I will anyway), it was a quarterback—though capable— who wasn’t suited for the zone-read. Instead, Cardale Jones was a gunslinger with questionable accuracy who benefited tremendously from a finally unshackled corp of receivers who used their athletic advantages to make plays they’d rarely had the opportunity to make the rest of the year.
With the hiring of Ryan Day to reshape the offense in his image, Ohio State is no longer recruiting run-first quarterbacks à la Barrett or Braxton Miller (or <cough> Tate Martell). And with the shift to throw-first, dual-threat quarterbacks, the offense has seemingly shifted from zone-read to RPOs, which plays perfectly to the skills of new starting QB Dwayne Haskins, and that’s obviously exciting to players and fans alike.
We got a hint that Haskins might be special when every single wide receiver who could have gone to the NFL last spring decided to come back, and thank Woody they did, because yesterday’s game was SO MUCH FUN!
Entire article: https://www.landgrantholyland.com/2...state-team-is-the-most-fun-in-nearly-20-years
While Tressel and Meyer have had lots of fun outcomes, very rarely have their teams themselves been enjoyable.
Fair warning: this will not be an article in which I break down film. This will not be an article in which I analyze historic OSU teams with advanced statistics that I don’t really understand. This will not be an article in which I discuss the intricacies of Jim Tressel’s conservative offense, nor the efficiency of Urban Meyer’s zone-read. No, this is going to be an article all about the feels.
I’ve been a Buckeye fan for longer than I can remember, but I one thing that I do distinctly remember is watching Jim Tressel’s introductory press conference from my dorm room in Bradley-Patterson where I was an RA in January 2001. So, if you’re doing the math, the formative years of my fandom came during the John Cooper era, my young adult years were spent rooting for Senator Tressel’s teams, and most of my 30s have been spent watching Urban’s squads.
Admittedly I’m speaking in generalities, and basically overlooking the past 20-plus years of dominant defenses, but the basic milieu of the latter two coaches has been to take teams with distinct talent advantages, and do everything possible to make the games as close (and, in turn, as boring) as possible; robbing the teams of unique personalities and excitement.
Now, don’t get me wrong, I’ve thoroughly enjoyed all of the winning that Tressel and Meyer’s teams have done over the past two decades. That’s been fun; especially the late season successes against Michigan, in bowl games, and the pair of national championships. That’s all been wonderful, especially following the 13 years of Cooper-helmed disappointments (looking at you 1993, 1995, 1996, and 1998).
Cooper’s teams never had the consistency, nor reached the heights, of Tressel and Meyer’s, but man were they fun. Perhaps that is a bit of nostalgia bias, because I certainly recall violently throwing things during the Michigan State game in 1998, but by and large, Cooper had ridiculously talented players, and he let them do what they did best; something that rarely can be said for his two successors.
As I said, Tressel and Meyer’s results have been extremely fun in the new millennium, but the teams really haven’t been. While I will never forget being in Sun Devil Stadium for Ohio State’s first national championship since 1968, to get it, we had to suffer—and I mean that literally—through 10 seasons of a coach who thought that the punt was the most important play in football. A coach who seemingly would have taken the air out of the ball if he could.
Watching a Jim Tressel-coached game was an experiment in tedium. His offensive philosophy was the football equivalent of Chinese Water Torture. Drip. Drip. Drip. Drip.
Yes, it was eventually effective, but man was it painful and it would drive you crazy. When one of The Vest’s teams scored, I more often than not felt relief, not excitement. I watched most of those games intellectually knowing that the Buckeyes should (and likely would) win, but still being overcome by a weekly existential dread that they were somehow going to punt their way to an unnecessary L.
Then, after the Luke Fickell, post-Tattoogate season, Buckeye fans gleefully welcomed the guru of the spread offense to town. We thought that the days of vanilla offenses were over. We expected a new regime focused on offensive innovation and video game-like output.
However, by the time that Urban got to Columbus, his revolutionary offense had evolved into the zone-read. And, while effective, rarely did it allow the absurd collection of talent to thrive. Instead, especially in the four-ish years of J.T. Barrett, it resulted in an endless array of QB runs, mostly of the three-to-five yard variety.
Again, this is not a knock on Barrett, who was a master of Meyer’s offense. It’s just that the offense was frustratingly predictable; not only in terms of playcalling, but in the mis/underuse of some of the best skill position players in the country.
Do you remember how much fun the postseason run was in 2014? I obviously don’t have to tell you what the difference was (but I will anyway), it was a quarterback—though capable— who wasn’t suited for the zone-read. Instead, Cardale Jones was a gunslinger with questionable accuracy who benefited tremendously from a finally unshackled corp of receivers who used their athletic advantages to make plays they’d rarely had the opportunity to make the rest of the year.
With the hiring of Ryan Day to reshape the offense in his image, Ohio State is no longer recruiting run-first quarterbacks à la Barrett or Braxton Miller (or <cough> Tate Martell). And with the shift to throw-first, dual-threat quarterbacks, the offense has seemingly shifted from zone-read to RPOs, which plays perfectly to the skills of new starting QB Dwayne Haskins, and that’s obviously exciting to players and fans alike.
We got a hint that Haskins might be special when every single wide receiver who could have gone to the NFL last spring decided to come back, and thank Woody they did, because yesterday’s game was SO MUCH FUN!
Entire article: https://www.landgrantholyland.com/2...state-team-is-the-most-fun-in-nearly-20-years
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Buckeyebred97
Legend
I don't necessarily disagree with @LordJeffBuck 's listing of Martell as a "meh" for yesterday's game... however, things like this:
are certain to make his teammates and coaches happy.
It's not an extraordinary downfield block by any stretch... but... he was there to make it, and that says something.
Looking like a future captain if he is around a few years, love his effort to make sure his RB gets that TD
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Know that the conventional wisdom on the defense is that back 7 was responsible for the defensive woes yesterday, but I think a quick look at the film would show that yesterday safety play was the biggest issue with an assist from from some missed assignments on the DL.
The defense was victimized by big plays yesterday. Oregon State had 196 yards of both passing and rushing. However big plays accounted for 49 years passing (1 play for a TD) and 187 yards rushing (3 plays of 29,78 and 80 yards). Without these 4 plays, the defense would have given up 156 total yards.
Taking a look at the 4 plays will show what I mean
The 49 yard pass play is at the 2:40 mark. Werner is blitzing and the secondary looks to be playing zone. Pryor comes down to cover the slot receiver, but he loses his man when his eyes get into the backfield. Safety mistake number 2 is Wint overruns the play so that he can not make a play on the slot receiver who now has crossed over to the opposite side of the field. The result is a TD.
The 29 yard is at the 19.04 mark. This plays is run against the 1st team rushman package with Werner and Harrison as the LB's with what I assumes is the nickel package in the secondary. It's 3rd and 19. Harrison blitzes on the right and Werner appears to have the middle of the field. The DT (Jones and someone else) get really wide on their lanes which is unfortunate because Oregon State has called a draw play. The center locks up Werner and the Oregon State RB breaks it off to his right for the 29 years gain. Looks to me to be more of a DT issue, but it was also a really good play call at the right time. Oregon State scored a TD on the next play.
The 80 yard run is at the 21:10 mark. Oregon State pulls the backside guard and the TE to lead block on the play. Werner has contain and forces the play inside. The DL looks to be running a stunt with Jones swinging in behind Young and I think Landers. Jones arrives a little late to the hole that the backside guard and the TE made, but he still has a chance to make a tackle. He misses however and the back bounces to the outside. Browning is engaged by the RT which I believe would give the Safety on that side, which is Wint, contain responsibility. However, Wint is coming down hard and takes himself out of the play when the RB bounces it outside off Jones. It now becomes a foot race that the RB has a head start on. He wins that race and the result is a TD.
The 78 yard run is at the 24:29 mark. Second team DL is in. Everything looks good and it appears to me that Browning correctly selects his fit. The problem occurs when Haskell gets his hips turned in his fit and the RB hits the hole that develops behind him. Once again Wint is not in position to make a play on the RB (from this footage you can't tell if over ran the play or just can't make a play on the RB). The result is a TD.
A few points
1) The LB may have not played lights out yesterday but I don't think the big problems were their responsibility. In fact the DL created more problems then they did.
2) Safetys were a big issue. However I should caution everyone that it is way to early to give up on Wint or Pryor. DB in their first start then to struggle (Think Denzel Ward at MSU in place of an injured Eli Apple)
3) This defense will be better when Jordan Fuller is healthy.
The defense was victimized by big plays yesterday. Oregon State had 196 yards of both passing and rushing. However big plays accounted for 49 years passing (1 play for a TD) and 187 yards rushing (3 plays of 29,78 and 80 yards). Without these 4 plays, the defense would have given up 156 total yards.
Taking a look at the 4 plays will show what I mean
The 49 yard pass play is at the 2:40 mark. Werner is blitzing and the secondary looks to be playing zone. Pryor comes down to cover the slot receiver, but he loses his man when his eyes get into the backfield. Safety mistake number 2 is Wint overruns the play so that he can not make a play on the slot receiver who now has crossed over to the opposite side of the field. The result is a TD.
The 29 yard is at the 19.04 mark. This plays is run against the 1st team rushman package with Werner and Harrison as the LB's with what I assumes is the nickel package in the secondary. It's 3rd and 19. Harrison blitzes on the right and Werner appears to have the middle of the field. The DT (Jones and someone else) get really wide on their lanes which is unfortunate because Oregon State has called a draw play. The center locks up Werner and the Oregon State RB breaks it off to his right for the 29 years gain. Looks to me to be more of a DT issue, but it was also a really good play call at the right time. Oregon State scored a TD on the next play.
The 80 yard run is at the 21:10 mark. Oregon State pulls the backside guard and the TE to lead block on the play. Werner has contain and forces the play inside. The DL looks to be running a stunt with Jones swinging in behind Young and I think Landers. Jones arrives a little late to the hole that the backside guard and the TE made, but he still has a chance to make a tackle. He misses however and the back bounces to the outside. Browning is engaged by the RT which I believe would give the Safety on that side, which is Wint, contain responsibility. However, Wint is coming down hard and takes himself out of the play when the RB bounces it outside off Jones. It now becomes a foot race that the RB has a head start on. He wins that race and the result is a TD.
The 78 yard run is at the 24:29 mark. Second team DL is in. Everything looks good and it appears to me that Browning correctly selects his fit. The problem occurs when Haskell gets his hips turned in his fit and the RB hits the hole that develops behind him. Once again Wint is not in position to make a play on the RB (from this footage you can't tell if over ran the play or just can't make a play on the RB). The result is a TD.
A few points
1) The LB may have not played lights out yesterday but I don't think the big problems were their responsibility. In fact the DL created more problems then they did.
2) Safetys were a big issue. However I should caution everyone that it is way to early to give up on Wint or Pryor. DB in their first start then to struggle (Think Denzel Ward at MSU in place of an injured Eli Apple)
3) This defense will be better when Jordan Fuller is healthy.
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I gave my .02 series by series in the defensive discussion thread but don't disagree much if any.
safety play was terrible
LB play was underwhelming
DL penetrated too much on some plays but overall the havoc they create masked a bunch of cock ups from the LB's (imo)
I'd feel better about it if this was the first year we were seeing any of it
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Just went through the game thread from the point the weather delay began. My only comments:
The updates on the weather in central Ohio were coming from South Africa.
The offense was pounding away like "Bad Santa".
The defense wasn't good for Lloyd Bridges' substance abuse issues.
Hey, it's early, but I'll work up a new vBet on how many TD passes for Haskins this year.
The updates on the weather in central Ohio were coming from South Africa.
The offense was pounding away like "Bad Santa".
The defense wasn't good for Lloyd Bridges' substance abuse issues.
Hey, it's early, but I'll work up a new vBet on how many TD passes for Haskins this year.
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lowbuck
mark it zero
Unfortunately, I had to watch the game on DVR later in the evening, but made sure I didn't hear anything about it so I could enjoy as if it were live. Here's my takeaways...
1) What a difference a QB makes! JT will always be OSU royalty, but it was obvious his performance as a passer had regressed. Whether that was due to the play calling, QB controversy, coaching or his doing, who knows - but he wasn't as effective in the last couple seasons. When Haskin's made his limited appearance last year the difference, even with limited reps, was striking. I was already looking forward to him leading this offense and he did not disappoint! So far he looks as good of a passer as I've seen in a while at OSU. It's just one game, but if we're getting more of the same the rest of the season we are poised to have a potent, consistent offense!
2) I don't know why the play calling seemed like a night and day improvement. It seemed sensible and balanced throughout. I am LOVING the fact our first instinct is not to run the QB! While there is a time and place (it can cause havoc on a unprepared D), and we probably did it effective as anyone for quite a while, it felt so tired and predictable in the latter seasons, and the opportunity cost was high because of it. I don't know if it was just playing to JT's strengths at the time and they made a decision to dial it back with Haskins, or if Urban was pushing for this and with him on suspension Day called the game he wanted. Again, who knows why... but it was so refreshing to see. As long as we have an efficient offense without it, I really hope we don't regress back to that and keep the QB runs isolated to scrambles and for special situations.
3) Receivers were catching balls this game! JT was kind of snake bit because of this, because the times he did throw the ball accurately, half the time the receivers were dropping them, making his passing game even worse than it should have been. The equation after one game is: Haskins + capable receivers = big trouble for our opposition.
4) Our LB were not always playing disciplined and were out of position. It's one game, so maybe we're working the bugs out, but on a limited sample you could say we took a step back there and defending the run.
5) Our secondary was having issues as well. Hard to say if it's better, worse or the same as last year. I felt like last year our secondary was playing well below the bar that had been set in the past. It will take matching up against some better pass/rec threats to expose where we are.
6) This team was having fun out there and staying revved up even when the game was put away early. I haven't seen a OSU team play with as much passion in a couple seasons, whether they are in a dog fight or trouncing someone... it's usually a little flat out there. I think this means the players have bought into the game plan, the coaches, etc. Mediocre teams that have a motor outplay talented teams without one all the time, so when we have the talent and this type energy combined... watch out!
If this offense can maintain at the level it showed, and our D gets back into form this is going to be an awesome season!
1) What a difference a QB makes! JT will always be OSU royalty, but it was obvious his performance as a passer had regressed. Whether that was due to the play calling, QB controversy, coaching or his doing, who knows - but he wasn't as effective in the last couple seasons. When Haskin's made his limited appearance last year the difference, even with limited reps, was striking. I was already looking forward to him leading this offense and he did not disappoint! So far he looks as good of a passer as I've seen in a while at OSU. It's just one game, but if we're getting more of the same the rest of the season we are poised to have a potent, consistent offense!
2) I don't know why the play calling seemed like a night and day improvement. It seemed sensible and balanced throughout. I am LOVING the fact our first instinct is not to run the QB! While there is a time and place (it can cause havoc on a unprepared D), and we probably did it effective as anyone for quite a while, it felt so tired and predictable in the latter seasons, and the opportunity cost was high because of it. I don't know if it was just playing to JT's strengths at the time and they made a decision to dial it back with Haskins, or if Urban was pushing for this and with him on suspension Day called the game he wanted. Again, who knows why... but it was so refreshing to see. As long as we have an efficient offense without it, I really hope we don't regress back to that and keep the QB runs isolated to scrambles and for special situations.
3) Receivers were catching balls this game! JT was kind of snake bit because of this, because the times he did throw the ball accurately, half the time the receivers were dropping them, making his passing game even worse than it should have been. The equation after one game is: Haskins + capable receivers = big trouble for our opposition.
4) Our LB were not always playing disciplined and were out of position. It's one game, so maybe we're working the bugs out, but on a limited sample you could say we took a step back there and defending the run.
5) Our secondary was having issues as well. Hard to say if it's better, worse or the same as last year. I felt like last year our secondary was playing well below the bar that had been set in the past. It will take matching up against some better pass/rec threats to expose where we are.
6) This team was having fun out there and staying revved up even when the game was put away early. I haven't seen a OSU team play with as much passion in a couple seasons, whether they are in a dog fight or trouncing someone... it's usually a little flat out there. I think this means the players have bought into the game plan, the coaches, etc. Mediocre teams that have a motor outplay talented teams without one all the time, so when we have the talent and this type energy combined... watch out!
If this offense can maintain at the level it showed, and our D gets back into form this is going to be an awesome season!
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Hey, go watch the last TD drive. NPF #77
If you want to cure some of your "meh" feelings about the freshmen
I think I counted him putting his man on the ground 4 of the 7 plays or something like that
You can see he needs to fill out but man oh man when he does
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ScriptOhio
Everybody is somebody else's weirdo.
Ten Things We Learned from Ohio State’s 77-31 Win Over Oregon State
Any time your defense gives up 31 points, it’s a bad look. But any time your offense scores 70 points, that’s enough to take your mind off of the 31, right?
No, probably not.
In fact, after about 56 points, people stop paying attention to offensive points because it’s assumed that every drive will be a score due to the opposing defense being incapable of anything defensive.
That 31 points, however, sticks out like a lighthouse. But it’s not a good lighthouse. Instead of a beacon of light, it’s a film projector that has the defensive lapses playing on a loop against the night sky.
“Hey look, another gap left open.”
It’s at that point that the captain starts looking for rocks to crash upon just to put everyone out of their misery.
So what did we learn from this week’s siren song?
Being the first game of the season, Saturday’s affair with Oregon State taught us plenty. Here are 10 items that stuck out for me.
1. The wide receivers looked very good.
There were three or four catches by K.J. Hill, Terry McLaurin, and Austin Mack that were very difficult to make. And I’m only talking about the velocity with which Dwayne Haskins was throwing the ball. They caught the back half of the ball, and had they not caught those passes, they could have been tipped and picked off by defensive backs 10 or 15 yards down the field. Mack also had some tough catches in coverage, while Hill rarely lets coverage stick with him while he’s running a route. McLaurin turned and ran for 75 yards after a short catch and looked like another 83 who used to do similar things back in 1995. Half of the starting six were utilized pretty heavily, and perhaps next week it will be Binjimen Victor, Johnnie Dixon, and Parris Campbell. Victor’s lack of touches was odd — and I think the only time he had a pass thrown his way he was actually blocking. Still, there was plenty of good here, and we’re still going to assume the deep game is coming.
2. Dwayne Haskins is more comfortable than a 2-year old couch.
Dwayne Haskins made his first career start and looked in total control throughout. He completed 22-of-30 passes and never really had any stretches of inaccuracy. He was just very, very consistent and looked like he belonged. While J.T. Barrett was a fiery leader, it remains to be seen what kind of leader Haskins will become. He is a very calm presence, but as he begins to take more and more ownership of this offense, his voice will likely be heard quite a bit more. He did have a slight hiccup on the drive where threw his interception. Haskins was pressured consistently at the end of that drive and didn’t respond well throwing the ball.
3. Picking your poison with the running backs.
This week it was Mike Weber. Next week it will be J.K. Dobbins. The week after that it will be both of them. Rinse and repeat. As long as both guys get at least 12 or 13 carries, Tony Alford will know who needs to have his carries bumped up to 20 like Weber did on Saturday. And then when it’s time for Dobbins and Weber to take the rest of the day off, the Buckeyes can throw a pair of talented freshmen like Brian Snead and Master Teague out there and let them eat a bit.
4. Quarterbacks can’t afford to hold onto the ball for long against the OSU defensive line.
You know the last thing to go through a quarterback’s mind when Dre’Mont Jones and Nick Bosa are rushing the passer? “I should have never given up basketball.” And while it was Bosa and Jones who each notched a pair of sacks, don’t forget about the role that Chase Young had and the pressure he put on the quarterbacks as well. Oregon State used the Buckeyes’ pressure against them well with screens, but because the defensive line is so fast, Larry Johnson just has them continue their path to the quarterback. Everybody else behind them needs to be ready for the blockers, but Johnson has no interest in slowing his pass rushers down. It will be interesting to see what happens if teams have success when they’re able to throw deep against this defense. How do they balance those successes with the knowledge that the longer the quarterback holds the ball, the more likely he is to be dropped with it in his hands?
5. The offensive line looked cohesive.
We came into this game not knowing if it would be sophomore Thayer Munford or fourth-year junior Josh Alabi at left tackle. Munford had been battling an injury in camp, but he played and played very well. He was certainly not a weak spot. In fact, there were no weak spots on an offensive line that rushed for 375 yards, never giving up a sack and only allowing one tackle for loss. Granted, Oregon State’s defense is an open-book test, but kudos to the offensive line for passing the test with ease.
See the other 5: https://theozone.net/2018/09/ten-things-ohio-state-oregon-state/
Any time your defense gives up 31 points, it’s a bad look. But any time your offense scores 70 points, that’s enough to take your mind off of the 31, right?
No, probably not.
In fact, after about 56 points, people stop paying attention to offensive points because it’s assumed that every drive will be a score due to the opposing defense being incapable of anything defensive.
That 31 points, however, sticks out like a lighthouse. But it’s not a good lighthouse. Instead of a beacon of light, it’s a film projector that has the defensive lapses playing on a loop against the night sky.
“Hey look, another gap left open.”
It’s at that point that the captain starts looking for rocks to crash upon just to put everyone out of their misery.
So what did we learn from this week’s siren song?
Being the first game of the season, Saturday’s affair with Oregon State taught us plenty. Here are 10 items that stuck out for me.
1. The wide receivers looked very good.
There were three or four catches by K.J. Hill, Terry McLaurin, and Austin Mack that were very difficult to make. And I’m only talking about the velocity with which Dwayne Haskins was throwing the ball. They caught the back half of the ball, and had they not caught those passes, they could have been tipped and picked off by defensive backs 10 or 15 yards down the field. Mack also had some tough catches in coverage, while Hill rarely lets coverage stick with him while he’s running a route. McLaurin turned and ran for 75 yards after a short catch and looked like another 83 who used to do similar things back in 1995. Half of the starting six were utilized pretty heavily, and perhaps next week it will be Binjimen Victor, Johnnie Dixon, and Parris Campbell. Victor’s lack of touches was odd — and I think the only time he had a pass thrown his way he was actually blocking. Still, there was plenty of good here, and we’re still going to assume the deep game is coming.
2. Dwayne Haskins is more comfortable than a 2-year old couch.
Dwayne Haskins made his first career start and looked in total control throughout. He completed 22-of-30 passes and never really had any stretches of inaccuracy. He was just very, very consistent and looked like he belonged. While J.T. Barrett was a fiery leader, it remains to be seen what kind of leader Haskins will become. He is a very calm presence, but as he begins to take more and more ownership of this offense, his voice will likely be heard quite a bit more. He did have a slight hiccup on the drive where threw his interception. Haskins was pressured consistently at the end of that drive and didn’t respond well throwing the ball.
3. Picking your poison with the running backs.
This week it was Mike Weber. Next week it will be J.K. Dobbins. The week after that it will be both of them. Rinse and repeat. As long as both guys get at least 12 or 13 carries, Tony Alford will know who needs to have his carries bumped up to 20 like Weber did on Saturday. And then when it’s time for Dobbins and Weber to take the rest of the day off, the Buckeyes can throw a pair of talented freshmen like Brian Snead and Master Teague out there and let them eat a bit.
4. Quarterbacks can’t afford to hold onto the ball for long against the OSU defensive line.
You know the last thing to go through a quarterback’s mind when Dre’Mont Jones and Nick Bosa are rushing the passer? “I should have never given up basketball.” And while it was Bosa and Jones who each notched a pair of sacks, don’t forget about the role that Chase Young had and the pressure he put on the quarterbacks as well. Oregon State used the Buckeyes’ pressure against them well with screens, but because the defensive line is so fast, Larry Johnson just has them continue their path to the quarterback. Everybody else behind them needs to be ready for the blockers, but Johnson has no interest in slowing his pass rushers down. It will be interesting to see what happens if teams have success when they’re able to throw deep against this defense. How do they balance those successes with the knowledge that the longer the quarterback holds the ball, the more likely he is to be dropped with it in his hands?
5. The offensive line looked cohesive.
We came into this game not knowing if it would be sophomore Thayer Munford or fourth-year junior Josh Alabi at left tackle. Munford had been battling an injury in camp, but he played and played very well. He was certainly not a weak spot. In fact, there were no weak spots on an offensive line that rushed for 375 yards, never giving up a sack and only allowing one tackle for loss. Granted, Oregon State’s defense is an open-book test, but kudos to the offensive line for passing the test with ease.
See the other 5: https://theozone.net/2018/09/ten-things-ohio-state-oregon-state/
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ScriptOhio
Everybody is somebody else's weirdo.
Advanced Stats Analysis: Is the offense this good and the defense this bad?
Oregon State is probably one of the worst P5 teams, but we can still learn a lot from the numbers.
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We need to significantly caveat all of the stats that follow. First, Oregon State is likely the worst team on Ohio State’s schedule, and probably one of the worst Power Five teams in the country. It’s possible that Oregon State’s new head coach, Jonathan Smith, has breathed some life into the Beavers offense, and that they’ll be better than the 91st S&P+ offense that they’re projected to be. But we can’t count on that just yet.
Second, teams usually improve the most between weeks one and two, and everyone always overreacts to week one results. That can work both ways — we might be overrating the offense and underrating the defense. The 2016 opener against Bowling Green is a good comparison: the Buckeyes scored 77 points, while J.T. Barrett threw for 349 yards (11.1 yards per attempt), posting an 89.3 QBR and six touchdowns while the offense hit a school record 776 yards. You probably don’t need a reminder, but the passing game was decidedly not fixed despite that output, and the season ended in a shutout loss to Clemson in the playoff.
Even with that comparison, there were encouraging signs that the passing offense really will be different with Dwayne Haskins at the helm. And the defense was mostly solid apart from a handful of big breakdowns.
Stats definitions
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continied
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Moving forward
In my Cotton Bowl advanced stats review and heading in to the offseason, I had five big questions for the 2018 season:
1. Can Ohio State’s secondary rebuild after losing another first-round draft pick at corner and a senior safety? There was a big dropoff between Ward and everyone else this year.
2. Does Ohio State have enough depth at defensive end? This may be somewhat answered by how they can close out the recruiting class, but outside of the top 3 of Bosa, Young, and Cooper (all former five-star recruits), there’s pretty much no one. Does Ohio State move a slimmer tackle outside or try to bulk up an outside linebacker? Or will a freshman get immediate playing time?
3. Will Haskins, Burrow, or Martell grab hold of the starting job in the spring or will the competition continue into fall camp? How will the offensive playcalling change to suit the new quarterback?
4. What will the offensive line look like next season and can the Buckeyes be dominant enough up front to call non-read running play to running backs and still be effective?
5. Is there a dominant, go-to receiver on the roster?
After this first game:
Oregon State is probably one of the worst P5 teams, but we can still learn a lot from the numbers.
We need to significantly caveat all of the stats that follow. First, Oregon State is likely the worst team on Ohio State’s schedule, and probably one of the worst Power Five teams in the country. It’s possible that Oregon State’s new head coach, Jonathan Smith, has breathed some life into the Beavers offense, and that they’ll be better than the 91st S&P+ offense that they’re projected to be. But we can’t count on that just yet.
Second, teams usually improve the most between weeks one and two, and everyone always overreacts to week one results. That can work both ways — we might be overrating the offense and underrating the defense. The 2016 opener against Bowling Green is a good comparison: the Buckeyes scored 77 points, while J.T. Barrett threw for 349 yards (11.1 yards per attempt), posting an 89.3 QBR and six touchdowns while the offense hit a school record 776 yards. You probably don’t need a reminder, but the passing game was decidedly not fixed despite that output, and the season ended in a shutout loss to Clemson in the playoff.
Even with that comparison, there were encouraging signs that the passing offense really will be different with Dwayne Haskins at the helm. And the defense was mostly solid apart from a handful of big breakdowns.
Stats definitions
- In the tables below, scoring opportunity efficiency looks at the average points scored per scoring opportunity — a.k.a. drives with a first down past the opponents’ 40-yard line.
- Drive efficiency looks at the percentage of drives that were scoring opportunities.
- Rushing opportunity rate is the percentage of runs that gained five or more yards.
- Rushing stuff rate is the percentage of runs that were for no gain or a loss.
- Explosive plays are those that gain 15 or more yards.
- Success rate: A common Football Outsiders tool used to measure efficiency by determining whether every play of a given game was successful or not. 50 percent of necessary yardage on first down, 70 percent on second down, and 100 percent on third and fourth down.
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continied
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Moving forward
In my Cotton Bowl advanced stats review and heading in to the offseason, I had five big questions for the 2018 season:
1. Can Ohio State’s secondary rebuild after losing another first-round draft pick at corner and a senior safety? There was a big dropoff between Ward and everyone else this year.
2. Does Ohio State have enough depth at defensive end? This may be somewhat answered by how they can close out the recruiting class, but outside of the top 3 of Bosa, Young, and Cooper (all former five-star recruits), there’s pretty much no one. Does Ohio State move a slimmer tackle outside or try to bulk up an outside linebacker? Or will a freshman get immediate playing time?
3. Will Haskins, Burrow, or Martell grab hold of the starting job in the spring or will the competition continue into fall camp? How will the offensive playcalling change to suit the new quarterback?
4. What will the offensive line look like next season and can the Buckeyes be dominant enough up front to call non-read running play to running backs and still be effective?
5. Is there a dominant, go-to receiver on the roster?
After this first game:
- I’m still concerned about question one, particularly at safety, but also at corner. Fuller coming back should help, but we still have more questions than answers in the secondary.
- Jashon Cornell, Tyreke Smith, and Tyler Friday make me feel just fine about depth at defensive end, especially when the top-end talent is so high.
- No concerns about Haskins — in fact, my expectations for the passing game have probably gotten higher. But, the passing offense will really be tested against TCU and Penn State, not Oregon State or Rutgers.
- I was concerned heading in about the left side of the offensive line, but the offensive line didn’t allow any sacks. That said, the Beavers defensive line had one of the worst pass rushes in the country last season. So, the jury is still out on this one for now.
- This doesn’t really concern me anymore. The Buckeyes’ receivers rotation is deep and full of talented players to the point that improved quarterback play should be enough to elevate the passing game to championship-contending status. I’d really doubt if the receivers hold the offense back this season. The only time I’d want a go-to receiver is on a must-convert passing down, but there’s time to figure that out.
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