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QB/WR Braxton Miller (B1G POY, National Champion, OSU HOF)

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RugbyBuck;1989322; said:
Agree with BB. If we'd scored on the second drive, we would have seen plenty of Braxton. We didn't, needless to say, and the blocked punt and TD didn't help things. We then had to keep JB in to get him going and to keep his head right as things continued to go poorly. Eventually, it was just too much of a clusterfcuk to, in good conscience, throw Braxton in or take Joe out.
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I keep seeing people write about how leaving Joe in the game was good to help "keep his head up" but what about Braxton Millers confidence? He performs pretty well the first game and then basically is being shown no confidence in his play in the 2nd game by not getting in. Even with the game being a clusterfuck, we still should have been able to see what Braxton can do in the same type of situation. Who knows what we would have seen if he would have got to play. Its just my opinion but for a player as dynamic as Braxton, you at least need to get him a few snaps to see how he performs. Bauserman was having issues with the pass rush so why not put a player out there who is more agile and adept at avoiding it?
 
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I'm just going to throw this out there: I'm not quite sure why Braxton isn't out there for a special package for certain occasions (goal line, 3rd/4th short). Adds the running threat and he's not going to have through difficult reads. With him in, wildcat/option/bootlegs become very good options.
 
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I think when we saw tOSU in the spread offense, Tooleedoo was not defending it well. BM is good at the spread offense. Would have been nice to see him at least get it in. But I am completely satisfied with a W nonetheless.
 
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RugbyBuck;1989322; said:
Agree with BB. If we'd scored on the second drive, we would have seen plenty of Braxton. We didn't, needless to say, and the blocked punt and TD didn't help things. We then had to keep JB in to get him going and to keep his head right as things continued to go poorly. Eventually, it was just too much of a clusterfcuk to, in good conscience, throw Braxton in or take Joe out.
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I wasn't really saying anything about how the QB situation was handled. :wink2:

I was just pointing out that in last 5 pages of having it discussed, folks were weighing in on both sides of the issue, and I didn't see anybody use the 'Trust the coaches' phrase. It was used prior to that, I was just screwing around.

I was somewhat surprised that Braxton was never sent in. But in a 1-score game, a single 'freshman mistake' could have cost the game (as a fumble almost did).

There are advantages to having Braxton play a few series, even if he's only running a limited number of plays. But if he's still only able to handle a certain number of plays by the next game, having them on film can let the opposing defense have a package ready for each formation that they see tOSU use with Braxton in the game.

I'm hoping the coaches have considered that, and are having him learn a few more plays each week that will catch the defense off guard, or have a 'check with the sideline' to switch to an audible if the Buckeyes' formation faces a defensive look that would likely stuff the original play. I'm thinking that would be done with the alternative play already being identified as the audible for the specific original play, so it's just a matter of signaling 'switch it', and having Braxton indicate the switch, rather than having the audible sent in and called out from 'scratch'.

Even a QB with a limited number of plays can keep the defense off balance if there are a handful of new plays each week, and if there are modified plays out of the formations that have previously been used.

I'm all for having Braxton get experience this year that pays off down the line. But I'd rather not have that experience gained at the expense of extra losses this year. It's a fine line to balance both goals. And Luke Fickell knows that how well he handles that will be a major factor in whether he gets to be the head coach in 2012.
 
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TheStoicPaisano;1989150; said:
Then give the ball to a running back. If you're bringing in a cold QB for a 'handful of plays', you're asking him to play with one tied behind his back because he'll have no chance to get his rhythm down. With no reason to respect the passing game, the opponent will simply walk more guys into the box.

I know I sound like a broken record but QB play is so heavily dependent on developing a rhythm and timing, and packages/platoons don't let that progression occur. It's why there are so few successful platoons.

I believe Miller is one of the more complete freshman quarterbacks in the last decade. But one series means no passing rhythm which means half of his skill set is taken away...what can anybody hope to learn from that?
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Getting into the game and taking some snaps, even if it is just to run, would not be bad for Braxton. Get him out there and give him one read or something.. even if it's just a dump-off to a RB in the flats. An option, even. I'm simply not going to buy the argument that he shouldn't be seeing the field. He's too good of an athlete to help the Buckeyes more on the sidelines.

And our offense had no rhythm last Saturday anyways. He wouldn't have disrupted anything. If our offense is firing on all cylinders with Joe, I'd prefer to not disrupt that. Unfortunately, it could use a shot in the arm. Maybe Braxton could give that for a handful of snaps per game. Not an entire series.. maybe not even back-to-back plays. I feel like you're taking what I'm saying to mean he should play entire series'. Nope. Just a handful of plays to keep the defense guessing, and maybe get us some momentum.
 
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NateG;1989296; said:
He had a drop that was on Freigel's hands early in that first series. He did get out of pressure on 2 occasions. One of those Urban about jizzed in his pants when Miller spun out and ran for 15 yards.

Just playing Devil's advocate.
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Yes, I know, Nate. I think we heard more of Urban's comments internationally than you guys while we waited for US commercials to finish. Meyer was matter-of-fact: "that's my quarterback." But, Meyer isn't with this team in practice and he hasn't see much of Miller.

My point was that Akron was not very good. At that level, they clearly weren't really putting him under real pressure.

Just for the record. If I was coach for a day, I would be starting Miller and giving him most of the playing time. But then, being coach for a one-year contract might just give one a different point of view.
 
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