Quarterbacking [2010 Season Preview]

As Terrelle Pryor drops back to pass he locks onto Devier Posey, Posey is open as he makes his break. Pryor pats the ball 4 times and throws a wobbly pass to a now covered Mr. Posey. The pass is easily broken up and could have been picked.

As Buckeye fans, we’ve all witnessed this before.

Terrible mechanics, bad decision making, locking onto receivers, patting the ball, running toward the sideline instead of straight up the field and saying the most random and ridiculous things during post game interviews…no offense to Michael Vick.

Those are just some of the negatives that have come with Terrelle Pryor being the Ohio State Buckeyes quarterback the past two seasons.

With all that said and with all that is…or was wrong with Pryor, he led the Buckeyes to 2 BCS bowl games, 2 Big Ten Titles, 2 wins over Michigan, 1 Big Ten Freshman of the Year and 1 Rose Bowl MVP. He did all of that because whenever he steps onto the field he is the best athlete on it.

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Now…just imagine if he learns how to throw the ball on a more consistent basis? If the Rose Bowl was any indication, he is moving in the right direction. That’s not to say he is Dan Marino with Vince Young’s legs…that would be gross.

Pryor has improved every facet of his game and that is a bad thing for the rest of the Big Ten. Based on what I’ve watched from the Oregon beat down until now, Pryor will be a much better and more complete quarterback.

With all of Pryor’s physical gifts, this transformation didn’t start with his athletic ability. It started between his ears. He was dedicated himself to becoming a better leader. Just ask Tyler Moeller.

"Terrelle is a great player," Moeller said, responding to a question about Pryor’s claim that he’ll return to Ohio State as a senior in 2011. "It’s a huge difference from when he first got here to now, his maturity and how he became a leader.

"I think when he first got here, I don’t think too many people liked him, really. He was kind of a punk. But now I have the utmost respect for him. He’s a great player and a great leader and I’d follow him into battle any day."

“I’d follow him into battle any day.”

Because of Pryor’s growth this year, Jim Tressel will trust him far more with the offense. Leading up to the Rose Bowl, Pryor had an outstanding couple weeks of practice and showed Tressel that Pryor could be trusted with a more diversified offense. We all saw what #2 did against the best team in the Pac 10 and by all accounts he is even better now.

Trust is a big thing with Jim Tressel when it comes to his quarterbacks. Troy Smith wasn’t always a Heisman front runner. As a sophomore Smith split time at the QB position and was held back by Jim Tressel until the trust was there. Smith struggled until the Michigan game where he lit it up. He was then suspended for the bowl game for being an idiot but that season and Pryor’s sophomore season did have parallels.

Both played very average most of the time with flashes of brilliance. But after good practices, both were given a change to show what they could do and both delivered.

Quarterback Comparison
Player Passing Yards Rushing Yards Total Yards Total TDs
Smith vs. UM 241 145 386 3
Pryor vs. Oregon 266 72 338 2

Smith went on to have an outstanding junior season, catapulting him into a Heisman his senior year. Pryor is not the natural passer Smith was, but he is a far better athlete. I do look for Pryor to have a big junior year on a team loaded at just about every position.

Look for Ohio State to throw the ball much more this year. Quicker decision making and the ability to read defenses will open up other facets of the Ohio State passing game. Jake Stoneburner and Brandon Saine should benefit from this more wide open offense. Devier Posey should be the #1 target again with Dane Sanzenbacher being Mr. Dependable.

This could be the year the Pryor cuffs finally do come off for good. In my mind, Pryor should throw for between 180-220 yards every game and run for another 50-120 yards a game. What Pryor does best is run the ball and that part of his game shouldn’t be taken away.

He is the key to Ohio States success this year and it is his time to silence his never ending sea of doubters and haters.

The Backups:

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Joe Bauserman

Vs.

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Kenny Guiton

It’s Bauserman vs. Guiton. I’ll make this short and sweet. Joe Bauserman cannot be trusted. He is a ginger and therefore evil to his core. Kenny Guiton has been impressive this offseason and could take away the backup job. But in Tressels world, it’s all about trust, and The Magic Ginger has been around a long time. One of these two may have to squeak out a win at some point this year as Terrelle Pryor has a bad knee and is a physical runner. Let’s hope it doesn’t come to that because the Buckeyes are thin at the backup QB position.

But enough about the backups, we all know the season will come down to Terrelle Pryor. Like it or not, he will be given most of the credit and most of the blame for the success of the Buckeyes. Pryor is 6’6 240lbs, the best athlete on the field, has a cannon for an arm and by all accounts has finally learned how to play the position of quarterback. He is a defensive coordinators worst nightmare and will wreak havoc on every team he faces this fall.

Comments

  1. We know why Tressel didn’t rescue Terrelle during the Purdue game last year…he didn’t have anyone to save him. Based on nothing but a spring game performance, give me Guiton as the backup.

    I think Pryor is going to be better with his arm. Decision making is key. I’d like to hope Tressel lets him air it out and he responds by doing the opposite of last season and not throwing INTs.

    We find out Thursday.

  2. Sylvester-Yon Rambo says

    Kenny Guiton has been named the Back up QB…… I hope we get to see a lot of him in the scrub games to see if he can keep that spring game brilliance going. TP will be here next year 100% for sure and Braxton Miller will get to redshirt for a year if Guiton can step up. Following next year let Guiton and Miller battle it out for who continues our tradition of awesome QBs.

  3. As bad as Pryor was vs. Purdue, the offensive line was worse. I will say that many including myself view the 4th quarter of the Purdue game a turning point for last years OSU team and Terrelle Pryor.

    Pryor got OSU back into the game using his arm and legs. If it weren’t for a facemask call against the OSU defense on a critical 3rd down, Pryor would have had a chance to tie the game.

    @Syl-As of Friday, Bauserman was still listed as the backup, but I’m hoping you are right. I’m no Joe Bauserman fan and did like what I saw from Guiton in the Spring. He throws a nice ball.

  4. I cant find the link now that had Guiton as the Back-Up so I will concede Bauserman is still 2nd until I can find that dispatch link lol. Lets just hope neither are needed for the big games.

  5. EXACTLY! El Kaiser almost throat punched me even talking about it…

  6. I throat punch anyone who utters the possiblity of Pryor getting inj238rueaef342…

    Sorry, I had to throat punch myself before I finished that sentence.

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