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TBBC FANS INTERACT: OHIO STATE VERSUS MARYLAND
WVaBuckeye via our good friends at Buckeye Battle Cry
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
I am really enjoying the interaction that is taking place between me and the twitter peeps who agree to be a part of this weekly article. I find that I am paying more attention to what they are saying on game-days just so I have a feel for what they’ll be saying come Wednesday. The funny thing about that is that once they sit down to write I am sure that their conscious takes over and they clean it up a bit.
Those out there who think putting back-to-back-to-back sentences together to form a thought and be a blogger is easy? Need to definitely try it like this weeks five and the previous ten that have participated. My hats off to them because they have realized the effort it takes to do it. Huge shout-out to this weeks group @HarryFromCbus @CWGBuckeyes35 @syko4sports @bzimmerman9 @AnaBuckeye
Everybody has been great so far and we might of found a few more stars this week!
What was the true key to the offenses success, Cardales efficiency, JT’s new redzone management, or Ezekiel’s hard work? If not any of those then what was it this week?
@CWGBuckeyes35 – Actually I think its because they finally started to throw it down the field. One of the big things lacking this season was a vertical passing game. If you take the Hawaii game, NIU, and Western Michigan, the longest pass that Ohio St completed in those 3 games was 25 yards. Yes, thats it. 25 yards. Ohio St finally started to toss it downfield vs Maryland and the offense finally clicked.
I also love using JT in the red zone. I like doing that, but I don’t like running him every play. Jones likes to throw the ball 100MPH every throw and you can’t do that in the red zone. Coming into the Maryland game, Jones was 2-10 passing, 0 TDs and 2 INTs in the red zone this year. That’s terrible no matter how you slice it. Elliot is always going to be Elliot. He’ll get his yards cause of what a great RB he is. In the end I love finally throwing downfield, I think that is what was missing.
I kept hearing that we are missing D. Smith, and we are, but we have WRs to replace him. Marshall, Thomas, and Miller are lightning, send them out there, throw it deep. Then you bust Elliot up the middle and there’s no one that’s going to stop us. One more thing, I hate running Elliot sideline to sideline, he is NOT a East to West runner, no where close. Keep him in the middle and around the TEs. And another big one, no turnovers.
I don’t think we turned the ball over a single time in this game. Not sure if the 4th down play at the end of the game counts, but no fumbles or INTs in this game that I remember. You simply can’t keep turning the ball over and expect to win big or even keep winning period.
@HarryFromCbus – I truly believe the key to the Buckeyes’ success vs Maryland was Ezekiel’s hard work. Without #15, the Buckeyes would be a mediocre to above average team. I am really nervous about this new QB split between Cardale & JT. This may work against Maryland or even Penn State, but will it work against a better opponent, like Michigan State? Also, could this cause a divide eventually in the locker room? But back to the original question, it’s mainly because of Ezekiel that this offense is getting by.
Too bad if you don't like rotating quarterbacks for the #Buckeyes. You will just have to grin & "Barrett"….
— Harry Yeprem Jr. (@HarryFromCBus) October 10, 2015
@syko4sports – I think all 3 of those conditions added to the key for their offensive success, but let’s not forget NO TURNOVERS. I feel we have had success between the 20’s for the most part but there was always a fumble here, interception there that stalled our success.
I love me some Cardale but he just looks lost and confused back there. No idea why……
— Red Bull (@syko4sports) October 10, 2015
Putting JT for the red zone offense to me was more a mental complacency for OSU. I felt Coach needed to make sure he got playing time for both guys, and when JT sits on the bench he gets no reps, and no reps means a very “tight” QB. This way, JT gets playing action ( much needed) and this also takes SOME of the pressure off of Cardale and allows him to have more confidence in his game knowing the “compliancy” of JT and consistency of the offense is in good hands.
Give this formula a couple of weeks and you will see more and more of JT in “situations” and the team will then be more consistent. As far as Ezekiel….hard work is a GIVEN and no longer a surprise to anyone. Once we start stretching the defense, especially in a nickel or dime package due to the long ball success of Cardale, 200 yards games will be a GIVEN for us.
@bzimmerman9 – There were a few different factors at play on why the offense was able to succeed. First, I think the play calling on Saturday did a good job of getting the main playmakers the ball in space. I felt like for the first time, they made an effort to center their offensive game plan around Thomas, Elliott, and Miller. In the previous games, it felt like they just wanted to get as many people touches as possible. I think Samuel, Marshall, and Wilson are very good players but they just aren’t at the same level as the other three right now.
I think today is going to be the Michael Thomas show.
— B Zimmerman (@bzimmerman9) October 10, 2015
Secondly, I think Jones and Barrett both looked comfortable for the first time all year. It seemed like each QB knew their role and flourished because they weren’t pressing too much to impress Buckeye Nation and the coaching staff. With Cardale running the offense, it felt like the coaching staff was always afraid of him turning the ball over in the red zone. As soon as they got to the red zone, the offense would go very simplistic. With Barrett, I think they know he won’t turn the ball over and they aren’t afraid to run the 2014 offense in the red zone. Ultimately, we know both QB’s are great and this gives them both an opportunity to shine without looking over each other’s shoulders.
With all of that said, this offense would be in a world of trouble without Elliott back there. I have not enjoyed watching a running back more than Zeke. Even when he does not have the ball in his hands, I still find myself watching him. As Zeke goes, this offense will go.
@AnaBuckeye – The combination of all 3 was the key to their success. Having Cardale work it down the field and then letting JT finish it off forces the opposition to make adjustments they may normally not make. Ezekiel’s agility and speed is the bonus that helps finish it off
The Silver Bullets have been caught with their pants down so to speak the last two weeks not being prepared for a running QB. What’s causing their ill’s and can it be corrected?
@CWGBuckeyes35 – Running QBs has always been Ohio St’s downfall on defense. Their defense is aggressive and you can’t play like that against a running QB. Time and time again our DEs and LBs would run up the field to get the big sack and Hills (Maryland’s QB) just ran straight into a giant void in the middle of the field.
Ohio St’s defense is always looking for the big play, the big hit, the big sack. Don’t get me wrong, I love that. However, against a running QB, it leads to big plays. Look at Michigan the last 2 years. Michigan was terrible on offense, but against Ohio St they racked up huge yards and points cause they had a running QB.
Everyone except Ohio Sts defense knew the QB would run
— Michael the Fan (@CWGBuckeyes35) October 10, 2015
The real sad part is everyone and their brother knew Hills was going to keep running but Ohio St did nothing to adjust to it. There is a very simple solution to that. Have a LB spy the QB. Yes, it is that simple. Instead of sending a LB on a blitz or delayed blitz, have him sit there in the middle and spy the QB. Where the QB goes, the LB goes. That would’ve prevented a number of the big runs Hills had vs Ohio St. On the 4th and 8 play early in the 4th qtr, I was screaming at the TV “He’s going to run it!, He’s going to run it!” What happened?? Our DEs and LBs ran right by the QB and there he went.
We have the LBs who can easily spy the QB, Lee and Perry. The one big run by the Indiana QB was just simply a bad angle by Powell. If he takes the right angle that would’ve been a 4 yard gain.
@HarryFromCbus – I am dumbfounded as to how and why the “Silver Bullets” are being gashed by mediocre QBs running on them. Sudfield, Diamont & Hills pretty much ran at will. Could it be complacency? Could it just be a matter of taking these lesser opponents lightly? That’s my guess. I think the upcoming night game/blackout and yes, even the new black uniforms will fire the guys up.
@syko4sports – Well, what happened Saturday against Maryland was more of the plays “breaking down” from Maryland and a large, quick QB making play. In all of the cases you have seen these last 2 weeks, should remind you of the loss to Clemson in the Orange Bowl. Sammy Watkins OWNED us in bubble screens because our players did not WRAP and have discipline with the one on one match ups. Simple as that.
Those types of plays only work when Defenses break down in man coverages and the guys that is specially assigned to that player, misses the tackle, then all there is ahead of him is green grass and end zones. With these last 2 weeks, other than the long pass Saturday which was busted safety coverage, was that the interior defense ( linebackers) bit on slants, bailed their zones and missed tackles. That is 100% discipline. Most of this to me was on Raquan McMillan but let’s not forget he is a sophomore and you are going to get some of that as a younger MLB.
Might be able to take some of the film on Saturday, and slide these linebackers over a bit, or set a MIC for whoever seems to be having success ( I.E their QB Saturday) and go from there. Definitely need to BLITZ more, but I think more form the inside, not the outside. I would let Joey Bosa get off of the line, and let him roam as a LB perhaps. His speed and size is being missed now because he is being double teamed. Sliding him across the line, not really to me the answer. Might cause some confusion for a bit but a good QB cab recognize that and adjust the pay call. Which is exactly what Perry Hills did Saturday and ran opposite the strong side. It’s a chess game.
@bzimmerman9 – I think it is easily correctable but I don’t think they will have to worry about it until the playoffs or bowl game. The rest of the season they face primarily pocket passers and their rushing numbers are pretty bad:
NAME ATT YDS
Hackenburg 32 (-34)
Laviano 28 (-22)
Leidner 49 122
Lunt 9 (-61)
Cook 19 68
Rudock 31 84
Total 168 157
It’s not exactly a murderers row of running QB’s. I think they knew they could give up some yards on the ground and not have to worry too much about creating a specifically designed defense for Maryland. For the most part, the defense played very good. The only scoring drives against the defense came at the beginning and end of each half. If they needed to focus on stopping the QB run, they showed last year that they can develop a scheme to stop a mobile QB when they held Mariota to 39 yards on 10 rushes. It will be corrected but mainly due to the QBs they will be facing. Now if Hackenburg runs for 100+ yards, I will become pretty concerned but that isn’t happening. Maybe -100…
@AnaBuckeye – truly think it’s over confidence. The tools are there but the line needs to put in the work
Reputation alone won’t win the game. No one in the B1G is afraid of the “silver bullets”. The line needs to step up and show them why they should fear our defense. Can it be corrected? Absolutely…. Use all the talent and make a statement early.
Grade the over-all performance Saturday (A, B, C, D, F feel free to use + or – as well) explain your grade and what you believe they need to do to improve for Penn State.
@CWGBuckeyes35 – Overall, I’ll go with B. But I’ll split it up. Offense A-: I love finally throwing it downfield. There was a couple things I didn’t like. The amazing catch by Miller early in the game, shouldn’t have been. If Jones throws that ball even a little bit better thats an easy walk in TD. Jones still needs to work on those throws.
Penalties, still killed a drive and led to Maryland making a game of it. Up 21-7 and driving at the end of the 1st half, a holding penalty killed the drive and Maryland got the ball and scored to make it 21-14 at halftime. However, they did do a better job this week with the penalties. Elliot again went over 100 yards, the dude is just a stud thoroughbred. We had 3 WRs go over 75 yards receiving this game, keep it up.
Defense D: What a truly awful performance by Ohio St’s defense. They gave up 28 points to a team that in their last 2 games combined scored a total of 6. Maryland’s QB, Hills, had more rushing yards than Ohio St did. Yes, thats right, Maryland’s QB had more rushing yards than Ohio St did as a team. When you give up that many yards rushing to a QB, something is wrong, very wrong. Bell got completely toasted on Maryland’s first drive, giving up a wide open TD. Maryland had 105 total yards vs Michigan. Again, 105 total yards for the game vs Michigan.
They had 77 on their 1st drive against Ohio St. The problems can be corrected as I mentioned in the previous question. Against a running QB you need to keep contain. You need a LB spy on the QB. Hopefully its not easier said than done. Ohio St has been terrible against the run this year. No idea why. Western Michigan gashed Ohio St for big rushing yards. Ohio St is 10th in the big 10 against the run on defense. 10th! That’s got to change and improve dramatically.
@HarryFromCbus – I am going to go with a B- for the game vs Maryland. I was very close to going with a B, but watching the Buckeyes struggle in the first half against a squad that just blew it’s head coach out of the water won’t allow me to do it. I really think this team just needs to get it’s head screwed on straight and get some “fire in the belly” for the Penn State game. I think the atmosphere the night game at The Shoe will provide should do it.
@syko4sports – I would give them a B and the only reason why is they gave up way too much yardage from a QB that did not do anything special to award that kind of game. I feel they should have made some adjustments defensively to SHUT THAT DOWN and yet they continued to let him pull a “Sammy” Watkins on us. We shut that down, and we win this game going away which we should have.
@bzimmerman9 – Offensively, I would give them a B+. This was the best the offense has looked in weeks but the offensive line really concerns me. It seems like the offensive line has really struggled to start the game lately. If they can come out and dominate early against PSU, Zeke will be able to get going and the offense will hum right along. If they struggle out the gate again, the PSU defense will be able to pin their ears back and blitz Jones a lot.
Defensively, I will give them a B-. I truly believe this defense is going to be very dominant by the end of the year but right now they are just too lackadaisical. As much as I like the guy, I feel like Perry has been struggling a lot on defense. A lot of this could be the inexperience of McMillan though. Maybe a few of those times I saw Perry out of place he was just covering for the first year starter but right now to my untrained eye Perry is the one struggling. I feel like once he gets things together, the defense will be able to shut down the run better. I fully expect the defense to play good on Saturday against Penn State. This will probably be their toughest test to date on stopping the run.
Overall, I would give them a B for their performance against Maryland. At no point did I ever feel like they were going to lose the game but they let them hang around into the third quarter. The offense played very well and the defense did great outside of the first and last possession of each half. I would not be surprised to see the Buckeyes we have been waiting for all year to show up on Saturday.
@AnaBuckeye – There were improvements on offense as well as defense. Continuing to use the 2 QB system with Ezekiel and Braxtons’ speed will be something a defense isnt prepared for. Buckeyes also need to take advantage of PSUs weak pass coverage. Put pressure on the QB and force the turnover. Bosa saw improvement last week and I think he’s in form to lead the line to get this done.
Penn State Prediction?
@CWGBuckeyes35 – Now against Penn St, the defense doesn’t have to worry about the problems that have bothered them the last 2 games. Hackenberg is a statue and his OL is not that good. Penn St was killed by Temple and barely beat Army and Buffalo. That being said they aren’t going to come into Columbus and lay down either. Penn St has a good defense as well. They need to have the same game plan they did vs Maryland on offense. On defense they can be their aggressive selves and it’ll be ok. Hackenberg is no runner. Can’t wait to see the black jerseys too! For my way to early prediction, Penn St’s defense keeps them in the game but gets tired in the 2nd half. I’ll go Ohio State 38 Penn St 17
@HarryFromCbus – I think the “Silver Bullets” come out fired up on the big stage Saturday Night & shut down Hackenberg. Sorry Joel Klatt, no upset here. Buckeyes win BIG, 45-17.
@syko4sports – DEFENSE: Basic principal here is BLITZ and BLITZ a lot. This QB is very “skiddish” in the pocket and if you come hard at him, he makes very bad decisions and poor throws and this has not changed since we faced him his Freshman year. Again, I think this is the game we could move Joey Bosa around and perhaps take him out of his stance and let him roam from the outside. I see the defense scoring a touchdown on their own Saturday night
OFFENSE: Stick with what we did against Maryland. No need to change, stay away from turnovers and score in the RED ZONE. This to me is the game our receivers could have over 300 yards collectively.
OSU 45, Penn State 17
@bzimmerman9 – Defensively, Ohio State needs to come out motivated to stop the run against Penn State. If they can establish dominance by stopping the run, this will force Hackenburg to beat the Buckeyes. If that is the case, I love the Buckeyes chances with Bosa, Lewis, Hubbard, and Washington spending a majority of the night in the back field. This is will all be on the shoulders on Tommy Schutt to clog up the middle against the team he originally committed to.
Offensively, as I stated before they just need to get the ball to their playmakers and let them make things happen. Elliott, Thomas, and Miller should get a majority of touches with a chance to make things happen. When PSU begins to focus on those three, use Marshall down the seam on a long pass. Additionally, I love Samuel as an H-back but I think they should begin using him more as a change of pace back for Elliott as the season goes on and Miller becomes more comfortable. The schedule is about to become brutal and a fresh Zeke will be needed to run wild.
I feel like this is the game they put everything together. Ohio State 49 Penn State 13
@AnaBuckeye – OSU over PSU 42-10 Cardale needs to make this his best game yet! Bosa needs make an early statement to set the tone. Solid defense and play off of the crowd! Let the #BlackKnight make the final statement. Buckeyes want it more
The post TBBC FANS INTERACT: OHIO STATE VERSUS MARYLAND appeared first on The Buckeye Battle Cry: Ohio State News and Commentary.
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WVaBuckeye via our good friends at Buckeye Battle Cry
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
I am really enjoying the interaction that is taking place between me and the twitter peeps who agree to be a part of this weekly article. I find that I am paying more attention to what they are saying on game-days just so I have a feel for what they’ll be saying come Wednesday. The funny thing about that is that once they sit down to write I am sure that their conscious takes over and they clean it up a bit.
Those out there who think putting back-to-back-to-back sentences together to form a thought and be a blogger is easy? Need to definitely try it like this weeks five and the previous ten that have participated. My hats off to them because they have realized the effort it takes to do it. Huge shout-out to this weeks group @HarryFromCbus @CWGBuckeyes35 @syko4sports @bzimmerman9 @AnaBuckeye
Everybody has been great so far and we might of found a few more stars this week!
What was the true key to the offenses success, Cardales efficiency, JT’s new redzone management, or Ezekiel’s hard work? If not any of those then what was it this week?
@CWGBuckeyes35 – Actually I think its because they finally started to throw it down the field. One of the big things lacking this season was a vertical passing game. If you take the Hawaii game, NIU, and Western Michigan, the longest pass that Ohio St completed in those 3 games was 25 yards. Yes, thats it. 25 yards. Ohio St finally started to toss it downfield vs Maryland and the offense finally clicked.I also love using JT in the red zone. I like doing that, but I don’t like running him every play. Jones likes to throw the ball 100MPH every throw and you can’t do that in the red zone. Coming into the Maryland game, Jones was 2-10 passing, 0 TDs and 2 INTs in the red zone this year. That’s terrible no matter how you slice it. Elliot is always going to be Elliot. He’ll get his yards cause of what a great RB he is. In the end I love finally throwing downfield, I think that is what was missing.
I kept hearing that we are missing D. Smith, and we are, but we have WRs to replace him. Marshall, Thomas, and Miller are lightning, send them out there, throw it deep. Then you bust Elliot up the middle and there’s no one that’s going to stop us. One more thing, I hate running Elliot sideline to sideline, he is NOT a East to West runner, no where close. Keep him in the middle and around the TEs. And another big one, no turnovers.
I don’t think we turned the ball over a single time in this game. Not sure if the 4th down play at the end of the game counts, but no fumbles or INTs in this game that I remember. You simply can’t keep turning the ball over and expect to win big or even keep winning period.
@HarryFromCbus – I truly believe the key to the Buckeyes’ success vs Maryland was Ezekiel’s hard work. Without #15, the Buckeyes would be a mediocre to above average team. I am really nervous about this new QB split between Cardale & JT. This may work against Maryland or even Penn State, but will it work against a better opponent, like Michigan State? Also, could this cause a divide eventually in the locker room? But back to the original question, it’s mainly because of Ezekiel that this offense is getting by.
Too bad if you don't like rotating quarterbacks for the #Buckeyes. You will just have to grin & "Barrett"….
— Harry Yeprem Jr. (@HarryFromCBus) October 10, 2015
@syko4sports – I think all 3 of those conditions added to the key for their offensive success, but let’s not forget NO TURNOVERS. I feel we have had success between the 20’s for the most part but there was always a fumble here, interception there that stalled our success.
I love me some Cardale but he just looks lost and confused back there. No idea why……
— Red Bull (@syko4sports) October 10, 2015
Putting JT for the red zone offense to me was more a mental complacency for OSU. I felt Coach needed to make sure he got playing time for both guys, and when JT sits on the bench he gets no reps, and no reps means a very “tight” QB. This way, JT gets playing action ( much needed) and this also takes SOME of the pressure off of Cardale and allows him to have more confidence in his game knowing the “compliancy” of JT and consistency of the offense is in good hands.
Give this formula a couple of weeks and you will see more and more of JT in “situations” and the team will then be more consistent. As far as Ezekiel….hard work is a GIVEN and no longer a surprise to anyone. Once we start stretching the defense, especially in a nickel or dime package due to the long ball success of Cardale, 200 yards games will be a GIVEN for us.
@bzimmerman9 – There were a few different factors at play on why the offense was able to succeed. First, I think the play calling on Saturday did a good job of getting the main playmakers the ball in space. I felt like for the first time, they made an effort to center their offensive game plan around Thomas, Elliott, and Miller. In the previous games, it felt like they just wanted to get as many people touches as possible. I think Samuel, Marshall, and Wilson are very good players but they just aren’t at the same level as the other three right now.
I think today is going to be the Michael Thomas show.
— B Zimmerman (@bzimmerman9) October 10, 2015
Secondly, I think Jones and Barrett both looked comfortable for the first time all year. It seemed like each QB knew their role and flourished because they weren’t pressing too much to impress Buckeye Nation and the coaching staff. With Cardale running the offense, it felt like the coaching staff was always afraid of him turning the ball over in the red zone. As soon as they got to the red zone, the offense would go very simplistic. With Barrett, I think they know he won’t turn the ball over and they aren’t afraid to run the 2014 offense in the red zone. Ultimately, we know both QB’s are great and this gives them both an opportunity to shine without looking over each other’s shoulders.
With all of that said, this offense would be in a world of trouble without Elliott back there. I have not enjoyed watching a running back more than Zeke. Even when he does not have the ball in his hands, I still find myself watching him. As Zeke goes, this offense will go.
@AnaBuckeye – The combination of all 3 was the key to their success. Having Cardale work it down the field and then letting JT finish it off forces the opposition to make adjustments they may normally not make. Ezekiel’s agility and speed is the bonus that helps finish it off
The Silver Bullets have been caught with their pants down so to speak the last two weeks not being prepared for a running QB. What’s causing their ill’s and can it be corrected?
@CWGBuckeyes35 – Running QBs has always been Ohio St’s downfall on defense. Their defense is aggressive and you can’t play like that against a running QB. Time and time again our DEs and LBs would run up the field to get the big sack and Hills (Maryland’s QB) just ran straight into a giant void in the middle of the field.
Ohio St’s defense is always looking for the big play, the big hit, the big sack. Don’t get me wrong, I love that. However, against a running QB, it leads to big plays. Look at Michigan the last 2 years. Michigan was terrible on offense, but against Ohio St they racked up huge yards and points cause they had a running QB.
Everyone except Ohio Sts defense knew the QB would run
— Michael the Fan (@CWGBuckeyes35) October 10, 2015
The real sad part is everyone and their brother knew Hills was going to keep running but Ohio St did nothing to adjust to it. There is a very simple solution to that. Have a LB spy the QB. Yes, it is that simple. Instead of sending a LB on a blitz or delayed blitz, have him sit there in the middle and spy the QB. Where the QB goes, the LB goes. That would’ve prevented a number of the big runs Hills had vs Ohio St. On the 4th and 8 play early in the 4th qtr, I was screaming at the TV “He’s going to run it!, He’s going to run it!” What happened?? Our DEs and LBs ran right by the QB and there he went.
We have the LBs who can easily spy the QB, Lee and Perry. The one big run by the Indiana QB was just simply a bad angle by Powell. If he takes the right angle that would’ve been a 4 yard gain.
@HarryFromCbus – I am dumbfounded as to how and why the “Silver Bullets” are being gashed by mediocre QBs running on them. Sudfield, Diamont & Hills pretty much ran at will. Could it be complacency? Could it just be a matter of taking these lesser opponents lightly? That’s my guess. I think the upcoming night game/blackout and yes, even the new black uniforms will fire the guys up.
@syko4sports – Well, what happened Saturday against Maryland was more of the plays “breaking down” from Maryland and a large, quick QB making play. In all of the cases you have seen these last 2 weeks, should remind you of the loss to Clemson in the Orange Bowl. Sammy Watkins OWNED us in bubble screens because our players did not WRAP and have discipline with the one on one match ups. Simple as that.Those types of plays only work when Defenses break down in man coverages and the guys that is specially assigned to that player, misses the tackle, then all there is ahead of him is green grass and end zones. With these last 2 weeks, other than the long pass Saturday which was busted safety coverage, was that the interior defense ( linebackers) bit on slants, bailed their zones and missed tackles. That is 100% discipline. Most of this to me was on Raquan McMillan but let’s not forget he is a sophomore and you are going to get some of that as a younger MLB.
Might be able to take some of the film on Saturday, and slide these linebackers over a bit, or set a MIC for whoever seems to be having success ( I.E their QB Saturday) and go from there. Definitely need to BLITZ more, but I think more form the inside, not the outside. I would let Joey Bosa get off of the line, and let him roam as a LB perhaps. His speed and size is being missed now because he is being double teamed. Sliding him across the line, not really to me the answer. Might cause some confusion for a bit but a good QB cab recognize that and adjust the pay call. Which is exactly what Perry Hills did Saturday and ran opposite the strong side. It’s a chess game.
@bzimmerman9 – I think it is easily correctable but I don’t think they will have to worry about it until the playoffs or bowl game. The rest of the season they face primarily pocket passers and their rushing numbers are pretty bad:
NAME ATT YDS
Hackenburg 32 (-34)
Laviano 28 (-22)
Leidner 49 122
Lunt 9 (-61)
Cook 19 68
Rudock 31 84
Total 168 157
It’s not exactly a murderers row of running QB’s. I think they knew they could give up some yards on the ground and not have to worry too much about creating a specifically designed defense for Maryland. For the most part, the defense played very good. The only scoring drives against the defense came at the beginning and end of each half. If they needed to focus on stopping the QB run, they showed last year that they can develop a scheme to stop a mobile QB when they held Mariota to 39 yards on 10 rushes. It will be corrected but mainly due to the QBs they will be facing. Now if Hackenburg runs for 100+ yards, I will become pretty concerned but that isn’t happening. Maybe -100…
@AnaBuckeye – truly think it’s over confidence. The tools are there but the line needs to put in the work
Reputation alone won’t win the game. No one in the B1G is afraid of the “silver bullets”. The line needs to step up and show them why they should fear our defense. Can it be corrected? Absolutely…. Use all the talent and make a statement early.
Grade the over-all performance Saturday (A, B, C, D, F feel free to use + or – as well) explain your grade and what you believe they need to do to improve for Penn State.
@CWGBuckeyes35 – Overall, I’ll go with B. But I’ll split it up. Offense A-: I love finally throwing it downfield. There was a couple things I didn’t like. The amazing catch by Miller early in the game, shouldn’t have been. If Jones throws that ball even a little bit better thats an easy walk in TD. Jones still needs to work on those throws.
Penalties, still killed a drive and led to Maryland making a game of it. Up 21-7 and driving at the end of the 1st half, a holding penalty killed the drive and Maryland got the ball and scored to make it 21-14 at halftime. However, they did do a better job this week with the penalties. Elliot again went over 100 yards, the dude is just a stud thoroughbred. We had 3 WRs go over 75 yards receiving this game, keep it up.
Defense D: What a truly awful performance by Ohio St’s defense. They gave up 28 points to a team that in their last 2 games combined scored a total of 6. Maryland’s QB, Hills, had more rushing yards than Ohio St did. Yes, thats right, Maryland’s QB had more rushing yards than Ohio St did as a team. When you give up that many yards rushing to a QB, something is wrong, very wrong. Bell got completely toasted on Maryland’s first drive, giving up a wide open TD. Maryland had 105 total yards vs Michigan. Again, 105 total yards for the game vs Michigan.
They had 77 on their 1st drive against Ohio St. The problems can be corrected as I mentioned in the previous question. Against a running QB you need to keep contain. You need a LB spy on the QB. Hopefully its not easier said than done. Ohio St has been terrible against the run this year. No idea why. Western Michigan gashed Ohio St for big rushing yards. Ohio St is 10th in the big 10 against the run on defense. 10th! That’s got to change and improve dramatically.
@HarryFromCbus – I am going to go with a B- for the game vs Maryland. I was very close to going with a B, but watching the Buckeyes struggle in the first half against a squad that just blew it’s head coach out of the water won’t allow me to do it. I really think this team just needs to get it’s head screwed on straight and get some “fire in the belly” for the Penn State game. I think the atmosphere the night game at The Shoe will provide should do it.@syko4sports – I would give them a B and the only reason why is they gave up way too much yardage from a QB that did not do anything special to award that kind of game. I feel they should have made some adjustments defensively to SHUT THAT DOWN and yet they continued to let him pull a “Sammy” Watkins on us. We shut that down, and we win this game going away which we should have.
@bzimmerman9 – Offensively, I would give them a B+. This was the best the offense has looked in weeks but the offensive line really concerns me. It seems like the offensive line has really struggled to start the game lately. If they can come out and dominate early against PSU, Zeke will be able to get going and the offense will hum right along. If they struggle out the gate again, the PSU defense will be able to pin their ears back and blitz Jones a lot.
Defensively, I will give them a B-. I truly believe this defense is going to be very dominant by the end of the year but right now they are just too lackadaisical. As much as I like the guy, I feel like Perry has been struggling a lot on defense. A lot of this could be the inexperience of McMillan though. Maybe a few of those times I saw Perry out of place he was just covering for the first year starter but right now to my untrained eye Perry is the one struggling. I feel like once he gets things together, the defense will be able to shut down the run better. I fully expect the defense to play good on Saturday against Penn State. This will probably be their toughest test to date on stopping the run.
Overall, I would give them a B for their performance against Maryland. At no point did I ever feel like they were going to lose the game but they let them hang around into the third quarter. The offense played very well and the defense did great outside of the first and last possession of each half. I would not be surprised to see the Buckeyes we have been waiting for all year to show up on Saturday.
@AnaBuckeye – There were improvements on offense as well as defense. Continuing to use the 2 QB system with Ezekiel and Braxtons’ speed will be something a defense isnt prepared for. Buckeyes also need to take advantage of PSUs weak pass coverage. Put pressure on the QB and force the turnover. Bosa saw improvement last week and I think he’s in form to lead the line to get this done.
Penn State Prediction?
@CWGBuckeyes35 – Now against Penn St, the defense doesn’t have to worry about the problems that have bothered them the last 2 games. Hackenberg is a statue and his OL is not that good. Penn St was killed by Temple and barely beat Army and Buffalo. That being said they aren’t going to come into Columbus and lay down either. Penn St has a good defense as well. They need to have the same game plan they did vs Maryland on offense. On defense they can be their aggressive selves and it’ll be ok. Hackenberg is no runner. Can’t wait to see the black jerseys too! For my way to early prediction, Penn St’s defense keeps them in the game but gets tired in the 2nd half. I’ll go Ohio State 38 Penn St 17
@HarryFromCbus – I think the “Silver Bullets” come out fired up on the big stage Saturday Night & shut down Hackenberg. Sorry Joel Klatt, no upset here. Buckeyes win BIG, 45-17.
@syko4sports – DEFENSE: Basic principal here is BLITZ and BLITZ a lot. This QB is very “skiddish” in the pocket and if you come hard at him, he makes very bad decisions and poor throws and this has not changed since we faced him his Freshman year. Again, I think this is the game we could move Joey Bosa around and perhaps take him out of his stance and let him roam from the outside. I see the defense scoring a touchdown on their own Saturday night
OFFENSE: Stick with what we did against Maryland. No need to change, stay away from turnovers and score in the RED ZONE. This to me is the game our receivers could have over 300 yards collectively.
OSU 45, Penn State 17
@bzimmerman9 – Defensively, Ohio State needs to come out motivated to stop the run against Penn State. If they can establish dominance by stopping the run, this will force Hackenburg to beat the Buckeyes. If that is the case, I love the Buckeyes chances with Bosa, Lewis, Hubbard, and Washington spending a majority of the night in the back field. This is will all be on the shoulders on Tommy Schutt to clog up the middle against the team he originally committed to.
Offensively, as I stated before they just need to get the ball to their playmakers and let them make things happen. Elliott, Thomas, and Miller should get a majority of touches with a chance to make things happen. When PSU begins to focus on those three, use Marshall down the seam on a long pass. Additionally, I love Samuel as an H-back but I think they should begin using him more as a change of pace back for Elliott as the season goes on and Miller becomes more comfortable. The schedule is about to become brutal and a fresh Zeke will be needed to run wild.
I feel like this is the game they put everything together. Ohio State 49 Penn State 13
@AnaBuckeye – OSU over PSU 42-10 Cardale needs to make this his best game yet! Bosa needs make an early statement to set the tone. Solid defense and play off of the crowd! Let the #BlackKnight make the final statement. Buckeyes want it more
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