Archives for August 2013

So there you have it sort of. These guys will be the game captains for games but at the end of the year the players will vote again and reward the players who best lead the team all year long.

Ohio State finally released the official Depth Chart for this weeks game. You can click the following to view the Depth Chart.

Coach Meyer was on the weekly B1G coaches conference call today and here is a collection of tweets from the media members on the call with him.

https://twitter.com/ESPN_BigTen/status/372415024486039552

https://twitter.com/BenAxelrod/status/372413694988136449

Now that we’ve had a chance to look at the pieces parts of Ohio States defense, how are things going to look this year when the defense is on the field?

The Buckeyes, in their base defense, run a 4-3 under. This defensive scheme has been the bread and butter of Ohio State defenses for many years now. This “traditional defense” will be on the field when the opposing team comes in with a pro-type offense (such as Wisconsin or Michigan). More often than not, however, the defense will be combating a spread attack and to cover the field with athletes. They will be in a Nickel page (take out an outside linebacker, bring in a fifth defensive back [the Star]).

But that’s not all, folks! As Ronnie pointed out earlier, they may also show a 3-2-6 dime package. Offenses are evolving to present different looks and formations and defenses have to adapt accordingly.

The Defensive Line

No matter what formation/package is in place, there will always be two defensive ends on the field. The prohibitive favorites to start at those two positions are going to be Noah Spence and Aldophus Washington. They are backed up by a bevy of competent players. Urban Meyer has already said that Joey Bosa will be one of the freshmen to see the field against Buffalo (but let’s be honest, most of the freshmen are going to see the field against Buffalo) and is going to get dumped into the fire early and often. Steve Miller, the veteran of the group, should also factor heavily in the DE rotation.

With the exception of the 3-2-6 look, We can also expect to see Michael Bennett and Tommy Schutt clogging up the middle at the defensive tackle spots. Schutt will probably come off the field in the 3-2-6 configuration to let the more effective pass-rusher, Bennett, try to get pressure from the three-man line. This position is also full of guys that can be plugged in without much drop-off in size or production. Both Joel Hale and Chris Carter have game experience (Hale more so than Carter) and the shape Carter is putting himself could be the makings for a nasty nose guard for the next few years.

You never be strong enough up the middle. The linebackers and defensive backs get to make all the big plays but it start with wide bodies forcing the ball carrier into their hands.

Linebacker

In the base defense Curtis Grant will anchor the middle of the linebackers while Shazier and most likely Josh Perry will be at the Will and Sam position respectively.

More often than not, Perry will come of the field in favor of the Star, Tyvis Powell. Powell has been impressing coaches at camp.

Shazier will be the featured linebacker and will be called upon to time and time to step up. With the unknown quantity of Grant’s improvement and aggressiveness, Ryan will have to shoulder the burden of being the most dependable of the linebackers. Given his improvement from the beginning of the 2012 season to the end, his fundamentals looked to be on target to being an experienced, disciplined linebacker.

Defensive Backs

Rounding out the back four (once Roby returns from his suspension) will be Bradley Roby and Doran Grant at the corners with CJ Barnett and Christian Bryant at the safety positions. Throw in Powell (and Von Bell) at the star position and this group of defensive backs is the most experienced group of defenders.

There are also young ones in the wings, but they are all green and will probably get most of their game exposure on special teams this year.

Roby will bring the defensive Voltron to full strength in week 2 and will be the biggest contributor on the field. His ability to be on an island yet be strong in run support makes him a very dangerous defender and Coach Coombs will lean on him to lock down his side of the field as Grant develops his own set of tools. Barnett, Bryant and others will also get their chance to play both the run and pass as the coaching staff finally gets their scheme firmly entrenched in the players’ heads and with the personnel to execute it.

Silver Bullets

This defense, on paper, has some issues. The linebackers outside of Shazier are relative unknown quantities. The potential of the defensive line is huge but the experience at game speeds is not. The maturation of these two groups will define the ceiling of the defensive unit. Coupled with a talented and experienced defensive backfield, the front seven may have some leeway in growing into and getting comfortable at their positions. But they won’t have a lot of time. The B1G opener and a night game at Northwestern loom in the near future.

Good morning Buckey Nation.

Monday Night Football: We will get to see Ohio State play against Virginia Tech in Lane Stadium on Labor Day 2015. According to elevenwarriors.com they posted the story from a Virginia Tech radio station. The game will be the ACC Labor Day (night) game on ESPN. The last time the Buckeyes played on a Monday night was on August 29, 1994 against Fresno State. There might need to be some schedule shuffling needed since the game is being moved from Sept. 19th originally to Sept. 7th. Will be exciting to see.

Football Week: Speaking of our friends from elevenwarriors.com they released a great video to get you in the mood for some Saturday football.

Last Exhibition Game: Buckeyes men’s soccer has conclude their exhibition season with a 1-2 record last night by dropping a close match with seventh ranked Norte Dame.

“I think the team played really well and stayed tough under constant pressure tonight,” John Bluem, Ohio State head coach, said. “Notre Dame is a very talented team and they played their first team for about 70 minutes. The final 20 minutes were pretty even as both teams substituted. Overall, I am very pleased with our effort and fight.”

Buckeyes open their season this Friday at 7:30pm at Jesse Owens Memorial Season.

OT Victory: Ohio State women’s soccer beat Eastern Michigan to go 2-0 on the season so far. The 23rd ranked Buckeyes got a goal from Ellyn Gruber in the 99th minute for the victory.

“The team showed a lot of heart which over time is difficult in the early season,” Ohio State head coach Lori Walker said. “We had a lot of opportunities and I’m pleased that we found a way to win. It wasn’t the most beautiful game we’ve ever played but we were able to get two wins in one weekend and that’s always a success.”

Academic All-Americans: Buckeyes women’s volleyball team announced 11 of their players were named NACGC/W Scholastic All-Americans for the 2012-13 school year. To be recognized for this honor, student-athletes must carry a grade-point average of 3.50 or better. The Buckeyes also finished 20 nationally with a 3.47 GPA.

That is awesome work ladies keep up the great work and representing Buckeye Nation so well.

Blue Colors Not Welcome: Zac Jackson of Fox Sports Ohio published an article about how Urban Meyer and staff will not even let scouts wear the color blue at Ohio States practice facilities. A lot of talk shows have been running with this and saying Urban has gone to far, who does he think he is, blah blah blah. One of the scouts claimed it was embarrassing and it could have been handled differently and they should have been notified.

I might be living under a rock but I thought this has been in place since at least last year and I’m sorry but if your at the Woody Hayes practice facility there should never ever be any blue worn in their. It is a facility that is named after the man who let it be know for his distaste for TTUN. What about the respecting his passion and namesake and don’t bring those colors around and besides you were given free Ohio State gear to wear I don’t get any of that.

4 Days: 4 Days till kick off so I will leave you with Number 4 intercepting a late fourth quarter pass from Gardner.

Until next time Buckeye Nation…

In a new book released recently by Armen Keteyian and Jeff Benedict titled “The System: The Glory and Scandal of Big-Time College Football“. The writers delve into the world of the NCAA and College Football and the complexities that they cause.

In this book they talk in depth about “Tattoo Gate” and how it was handled by both the NCAA and OSU.

Dan Wetzle wrote a nice piece on this book and gave the following excerpts…

• A thorough retelling of the Ohio State “tattoogate” scandal including the previously unreported transcripts of NCAA interviews by Jim Tressel and athletic director Gene Smith.

You can see Tressel hanging himself with his own words as he tries to explain his cover-up of the scandal that doomed his career and led to major sanctions against the program. Meanwhile, on a separate issue, Smith is vague on some details but claims he was forceful in multiple conversations with booster Bobby DiGeronimo, who was cited for overpaying players for work at his companies and later banned from associating with the Buckeyes for the next 10 years.

That leads to DiGeronimo, who speaks publicly for the first time, to slam Smith, claiming the two never had the conversations Smith claims they did.

“Never,” DiGeronimo said. “Never called me. Never called me one time. Never. We never had a conversation about that. There was nothing. He’s lying. He’s outright lying. Never any meeting. Never any voicemail. Everything he says is a lie. Everything.”

Smith declined to comment on the book.

Also in the book there was this nugget of info about Former Buckeye DeVier Posey…

“The System” also presents the case that NCAA investigators were overzealous in parts of their investigation against Ohio State, most notably in ignoring some pretty compelling evidence that DiGeronimo overpaid player DeVier Posey by a mere $3.07 and should never have received a five-game suspension for that. It also shows the seemingly differing and troubling standards for players and coaches/administrators, where the former must recall every detail precisely or risk eligibility, while the latter is allowed to struggle with specifics.

I will never understand the NCAA and what it does or doesn’t do. I have a horrible feeling that Posey had his OSU career ruined over $3.07. What an awful thing to do to such a really good person. Read the whole article linked above and if you want read the book I am sure there is a lot more info to be had.

Last Year’s Performance:

One place on the field that the 2013 Buckeyes can drastically improve from last year is in the return game, especially kick-off returns. Last year, the Buckeyes ranked 84th nationally in kickoff return yardage with an average of 19.9 yards. Coaches are looking for more consistency and explosiveness on kickoff returns this year. The punt returners were more consistent last year led by Philly Brown. He averaged a very respectable 12.28 yards per return last year with 2 TD’s.

Key Losses:

None of note. Every player that contributed in the return game is back this year.

Expectations for 2013:

With the infusion of young speed, the potential for impact plays in the return game is looking up. Coach Coombs expressed his enthusiastic optimism about the versatility and options in the return game to the Columbus Dispatch.

“We have got a ton of guys this year”

“We’ve got specialists in abundance”

In the same article Coach Coombs names five guys being considered for kickoff return duty. Jordan Hall, Rod Smith, Dontre Wilson, Ezekiel Elliott, and Bradley Roby. I like that mix of players. It is a good mix of speed and reliability, experience and young excitement, and players looking to make a mark on the team.

My expectation is that we will see the “experienced” players fielding kicks early in the year sprinkled with the freshman. Once the coaching staff is comfortable with Dontre and Ezekiel’s ability to avoid mistakes, I would expect them to see the lion-share of the returns as the season progresses.

As for the punt returns, Philly Brown will look to duplicate his excellent 2012. Of course, he will be pushed by the youngsters, but again, I expect the coaches to rely on a proven commodity. Based on these two returns, that is not a bad choice.

Early in camp Urban Meyer told the Cleveland Plain Dealer:

“I’d be disappointed if our return game isn’t really good this year”

Given the talent and speed at his disposal, I expect his assessment has not changed as camp has gone along. I have the same expectation. The return game should be much improved with the plethora (Meyer’s term) of returners with the ability to impact the game.

“LONESOME KICKER” from Greg Kohs on Vimeo.

“Who cares about the kicker?” The truth is we all do at some point during the season when the game is on the line and out onto the field trots the lonesome kicker. People will remember your name for one of two things. A shank to lose a game or hitting the game winning field goal as time expires. The fact is a kicker is under intense scrutiny and pressure. The same can be said for the punter. They are back there on an island. A lot i.e. field position is riding on the punter’s foot. So let’s take a look at who will have the pressure on their shoulders this year by handling the kicking duties for OSU.

BTW – for those interested in a throwback version of The Lonesome Kicker check out this performance on Conan O’Brien. I remember watching this as it aired. I guess I am getting old!

Who the Buckeyes lost from last years team…

Ben Buchanan – Ben was a three year starter for the Buckeyes. He averaged 41.2 yards for his career. That was only good enough for 7th in the Big Ten last year. Ben was a solid performer during his career, but there is room for improvement this year. That being said, Ben is an all-around good dude. He was a finalist for the Jesse Owens Medal of Honor. We wish him all the best in his future endeavors.

2013 Starters…

Cameron Johnston – is a 21 year old freshman. He is a former Australian rules football player. He has a sweet accent. Most importantly, he is the starting punter for the 2013 Buckeyes (an hopefully the next four years).

Cameron was brought in to be a starter from day one. After to listening to him, he seems like he will handle the pressure well. I am looking forward to his contributions to the team. If he lives up to the hype, OSU has themselves a great punter for the next four years. If you have six minutes to kill feel free to watch Cameron punt.

Drew Basil – Drew is our version of Andre Kristacovitchlalinski, Jr. Drew is entering his senior year and third year as a starter. He has made his field goals at a 75% rate during his career. I expect another solid season from Drew. He has been there and understands the pressure we discussed. I have confidence that he will be up to the task if given the opportunity to kick a winning field goal, but let’s be honest hopefully a game never comes down to that!

Who are the Backups…

Hopefully we never have to find out.

How they will fare…

Extra points a plenty and an impressive debut by the Aussie.