Jalin Marshall is Adjusting to a New Important Role for Ohio State
Take a trip back in time with me. Going back one year, Ohio State’s search for a playmaker at H-back was in full investigation.
Dontre Wilson entered the 2014 season as the leading candidate after a solid freshman year where he accumulated 460 total yards and three touchdowns, but was yet to breakout and live up to the hype surrounding him when he arrived in Columbus.
A good game against Cincinnati – six receptions for 71 yards and one touchdown and one carry for 21 yards – had fans believing he was on his way to seizing the position and becoming the next Percy Harvin.
Wilson was good throughout last season, but an injury in the Michigan State game ended his year early and another player began to emerge.
Jalin Marshall was a high school option quarterback who redshirted his freshman year as he looked to find a role on the Buckeye offense. It was a slow start to 2014 for a player who had a ton of athletic ability, but couldn’t find a chance.
Marshall’s first touchdown came against Kent State and the game reps slowly started to build. The more he was on the field, whether it was on the offense or on special teams, Marshall began to show his dynamic playmaking ability.
By the year’s end, Marshall amassed 927 total yards and seven touchdowns doing a little bit of everything for the Scarlet and Gray. He was the weapon head coach Urban Meyer looked for in his offense.
A year later, some of Ohio State’s top receiving options are gone and Marshall is deployed in a true wide receiver role. The offense sputtered to start the year while looking to replace these players, but things appeared to move in the right direction last Saturday in a win over Western Michigan.
“It’s been, I can’t say frustrating, but it’s been hard because coming off last year, we expect to come back this year and keep the train rolling,” Marshall said after the victory. “We kind of got stopped a little bit but I feel like we practiced hard, we worked on the things we needed to clean up, and we came out today and proved that we’re still a high-octane offense.”
Entire article:
http://theozone.net/Ohio-State/All-...usting-to-a-New-Important-Role-for-Ohio-State