Ohio State vs. Maryland Preview

osuHelmetWhat started off to be a rough start for the Buckeyes, ended up being a great win. Cincinnati is not a slouch. The Bearcats have a very talented offense. I expect big things from this program and would not be surprised to see the Bearcats win the AAC. Now let’s move on to this current week, as the Buckeye take on the Terrapins.

Quick Rant: As I watched this game I was very frustrated with this Ohio State secondary. Like many of you I wonder when in the world will this secondary get fixed? I did call out one particular player last week on twitter and that was Eli Apple. While I am not the biggest fan of calling out young players, but this kid came to Ohio State for a reason. Over the next few years I expect the talent level to get better in the Big Ten and for Ohio State to get even better recruits. However if this young man wants to start for this football team now and in the future he cannot continue to get beat the way he has been the past few weeks. Apple has a good future and I think he will adjust, but clearly Meyer wants to get more aggressive on the edges. If that is the style the Buckeyes go to, I will say it is about time. I was tired of the defense giving up the short yardage passes because those yards eventually add up and give quarterbacks confidence. With Ohio State’s defensive line, the Buckeyes should be playing press coverage all day. What is the point of having the best defensive line in the country if you’re going to give up those quick passes? The way offenses are going to eliminate your defensive line is by doing those kind of plays. I think the coaching staff for the Buckeyes recognize that and will finally get this issue addressed.

When Maryland is on Offense: Maryland is a team that likes to allow quarterback C.J Brown uses his arm and legs to make plays. Brown is the leading rusher for the Terrapins, with three hundred and forty yards and five rushing touchdowns. Brown likes to take lots of chances with the ball, as can be seen by his three interceptions already this season. Anyone who follows Ohio State recruiting might remember a wide receiver Urban Meyer wanted really badly and that young man is Stefon Diggs. Coming out of high school Diggs was someone who felt would be filling in the role Dontre Wilson is currently playing. However, Diggs decided to stay home and help build the Maryland program up. Wilson is very versatile he can carry the ball, as well as catch the ball. The Terrapins have a smaller offensive line than the Bearcats did last week. While these guys are smaller, that usually means the line is lighter and quicker off the ball. I expect this offense to try and do what Virginia Tech did on offense. Quick throws and let your play makers make plays.

When Ohio State is on Offense: This offense over the past few weeks has really got into a rhythm. I expect the Buckeyes to have a balanced attack. I like the way the Offensive line has played the last few weeks and I think that momentum will continue. The Buckeyes needed to be very focused on holding on to the ball and not committing any turnovers because this Terrapin defense knows how to force turnovers. I would love to see the offense put Michael Thomas or any tight end on the side of Will Likely. There is some big mismatch potential, with Likely on being five foot seven. While Likely is small, this kid is a player. He leads the team in interceptions and is fourth on the team in tackles. However, I want to see the Buckeyes to put a bigger body across from Likely. If the Buckeyes are able to cause a mismatch and make the Terrapins have to use a safety to help Likely out, that is going to cause more holes in the field for receivers to find and Barrett could have a huge day.

Maryland NFL Potential: The offensive side of the ball is what we have focused on the past few weeks in this section. Why don’t we change it up a bit and go on the defensive side of the ball? A guy I really like is Sean Davis. The leading tackler on the team Davis is a big safety and is only a sophomore. He only has two pass break ups and zero interceptions. Davis however does have two tackles for loss and as a safety you have got to love his toughness and willing to get into the backfield. Davis needs to improve his pass coverage skills, but if he is able to become a better cover safety and continues to be a physical safety I would not question his name being called in the third round range come the NFL Draft in 2016.

Buckeye to Watch: I am going with an obvious pick here and going to pick J.T Barrett. I am going with Barrett because to me this is a statement game for the Buckeyes. While this first week has passed and teams seem to be different, the college playoff committee will remember how close West Virginia was to beating Alabama on a neutral site. This Terrapin team only lost to that same West Virginia team by a field goal. If Barrett, and the Buckeyes, goes into Maryland; put up a big W that will look good to the committee. Barrett also needs a big game here because I think he has started to put thoughts into Meyer’s mind about next season. If Barrett continues to light the world on fire does the coaching staff really want to ruin what Barrett has done and turn the team back over to Miller? My opinion is if Barrett is able to lead the Buckeyes into East Lansing and pull out a W. Then go on to win the Big Ten title, the coaching staff sticks with Barrett. Thus leading to Miller Transferring or the Buckeyes move him to another position.

Bottom Line: While I think the Buckeyes need to blow out Maryland, I expect this to be one of those games where whoever has the ball at the end wins. The Terrapins are able to force turnovers at a high level and I think the Terrapins will dare Barrett to beat them. I do believe the Buckeyes defense will hold off the Terrapins long enough for Barrett to lead the Buckeyes to a win in the closing seconds.

Weekly Getting the SEC Fan about the Truth: I want all the SEC East fans plus Indiana to stand up. Now everyone, who is not undefeated in the SEC East, to sit down. You will notice that one team will be standing and that is Indiana. For years we have heard that the middle and lower talented teams in the SEC would be competitive in the Big Ten. Well how the tables have turned this season. Indiana has a very talented offense and the question has always been about their defense. When the defense shows up they can hang with anyone, as seen by them beating a ranked Missouri team on the road. If the defense does not show up then they lose to teams like Bowling Green. I think it is time the whole Country finally gets off the SEC band wagon and look at the conference is carried by the SEC West and there is just so much parody in college football.

Who Should Michigan Hire? This is going to be a new weekly segment. I will talk about how bad Brady Choke is and how terrible this Michigan football team is. Also I will talk about whom I believe the university should actually hire and not some dream fantasy Michigan fans have on who the next coach should be. Brady Hoke is just an awful coach. I mean for heaven’s sake why would you keep Shane Morris in the game? I understand completely that you do not want Devin Gardner in the game because he is horrible, but Morris is the future of this team. Side note I wonder if Desmond Howard still thinks that Gardner is one of the best quarterbacks in the country? Anyways let’s continue about who Michigan should hire. In a previous post I wrote I talked about how the state of Michigan is very important to the Big Ten conference and I still stand by what I wrote. As much as it pains me to say this Ohio State needs Michigan more than Michigan needs Ohio State. As long as college football is played Michigan will brag about all their wins they have and all their championships, that happened like a hundred years ago so who cares? If Michigan and Michigan State are good then that makes Ohio State better. If both or just one of these teams are down it brings Ohio State down because of the national perception. I say Ohio State needs Michigan more because no one expects anything from that embarrassment of a team up north, however if they seem like they are on the rise then it makes Ohio State look good. As Ohio State fans we expect NFL caliber players and national championships. We don’t expect or fans to bring in coke cans just to get into the game. I think the best thing for Michigan is to hire Dan Mullen of Mississippi State. Mullen coached under Meyer at Florida and has been terrific job at Mississippi State. This could bring back memories of when Schembechler and Hayes.

 

Comments

  1. I think that we fans in the big ten need to stop looking for holes in other conferences, and start focusing on what we need to do to get better. All I have seen is Ohio state, Michigan state, Wisconsin, and Michigan lose everytime they had an opportunity to beat someone that matters. Wohoo, Indiana won this season. Not sure that makes up for about the last 6 times Missouri beat big ten teams (Illinois and Indiana over the last 6 years). Is this what it comes down to? My conference looking to hang its hat on Indiana by tearing a part one division in a conference that has dominated bowl games and national championships? Guess that will have to do, since as long as we continue to focus on the shortcomings of another division, we will continue to suck.

  2. With the schedule changing in a couple years, the out of conference schedule will get more difficult (Oklahoma, ND, TCU, etc..) and also more attractive from a fans perspective. This will strengthen the schedule and will make Michigan being great less important in the overall scheme of the strength of schedule and a poor reflection on the big ten. This is especially true if other teams like MSU, PSU, Rutgers, Nebraska, and Wisconsin continue to improve. I dislike Michigan so much that I hope they never recover because if my assertion is true it simply doesn’t matter that much in the big picture of the BIG TEN…

  3. College football needs to get rid of the subjective nature of their post season.

    It’s ridiculous.

    I will never in a million year root for other B10 teams. They are in Ohio State’s way. In no other sport do fans of a team root for their rivals. It’s dirty and borderline creepy.

    I’ve heard many OSU fans concerned about the coaching and AD situations at UM. They are next level terrible and hope they stay that way. And yes, I know what is coming…”But…we need a strong UM and B10 to make sure OSU is perceived well.” Blah, blah, blah….

    College football is going to quickly move to a more NFL style postseason, because the CFB final 4 really hasn’t fixed much of anything.

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