Malibuckeye:
No. False. Starts. Oklahoma State was flagged for this for the first time during the 7th game of the 2011 season. The reason? No huddle offense. Also a reason? JB Shugarts didn’t play for the Cowboys. Guess what? He doesn’t play for Ohio State anymore either. <hugs, JB>
Special Forces. A point of emphasis for Coach Meyer, and there’s been a lot of talk about “The Freak Show” punt return/block unit. Let’s see them make magic happen. Also? I’m perfectly fine with no field goals all game.
Quick Cals. Will students even be on time, given the change to semesters forcing them to be up late studying and doing research…. OK, let’s be honest- Will they be too drunk to pull it off? It’s the pre-season, but they’ve been on notice since April of 2012.
Janelle:
The “UN-Caged Tiger.” Urban has referred to Braxton Miller as a “caged tiger” because he hasn’t been allowed to run or be hit in practice. I want to see what he can do when he’s “uncaged” after having actually had some coaching this off-season from Meyer and Company.
JUICE. Etienne Sabino went over this concept last Saturday night at the Buckeye Kickoff. I want all of the fans and students to make sure they have the #JUICE when they walk into the ‘Shoe on Saturday. Let’s get it rocking and show the world that the Buckeye Nation train is rolling, full speed ahead.
Noah Spence. Noah and I are both from Harrisburg, PA, and even though he went to one of my high school’s rivals, now that’s he’s a Buckeye like I am, I can look past that. He should get some playing time this week against the Redhawks, and I’m excited to see how well he does. Rep the 717 for us, Noah.
Joe L:
The forward pass on first down!
The unknown. There is soo much unknown with this team and I am anxious to see it. I think we know that they will play fast, the Dline will be good, and there will be growing pains.
The pups. All the young kids getting to play and show what they got.
Westy:
Passing Yards. In the wake of Miller throwing for 358 in the recent scrimmage (after the team averaging 127ypg last year) I did some research. Urban Meyer’s teams have passed for an average of 227.9 ypg with a 63.2% ratio vs Jim Tressel’s 192.3 ypg and 59.7% ratio. That may not seem like a huge difference, but I’m dying to see it on the field this season.
Stoneburner Unleashed. Stoneburner came in as a highly ranked TE prospect and has quite frankly never been consistently used to his potential. Coach Meyer has a history of using his TE in “creative” ways, I can’t wait to see what he’s got in mind for Stoneburner (especially now that they’ve essentially removed his blocking responsibilities by “repositioning” him).
M*chigan returning to Earth. After 7 excruciating seasons (especially the last four before Hoke’s arrival) it was understandable for the rodents to the north to be excited for their 11-2 season and BCS victory. But listening to them talk this off season you’d think they just won their 5th superbowl in a row. Thankfully the Crimson Tide of Alabama will be crashing them back to the Earth’s surface in week one this year. Hopefully their douche-baggery will take a bit longer to land.
The Debut of our highly touted D-Line. I’m sure any special surprises will be held in reserve for more high profile games, but how can you not be excited to see this D-line in action for the first time this Saturday? Simon, Williams, Bennet, Goebel, Hankins, Spence, Washington, and more…. ughhh, I pity any QB we face this season.
A highly enjoyable absence of Jim Bollman. If only someone had made a time machine, gone back, and fired him years ago….
WVaBuckeye:
Speed. I am honestly tired of hearing about the speed that we do not have. I want to see that speed in full display on D and in this 99% of the time no huddle that they have installed. I want to see black streaks of rubber following the players as they are pursuing and running away from the grilled redhawks.
Lockdown Secondary. Last year was a disappointing year with regards to RB’s and WR’s getting to the second and third levels in our defense. LB’s are shored up and should be much more efficient which in turn should make the Buckeye secondary stout. Looking forward to my favorite all-time Buckeye Travis Howard having a stellar season.
Tradition. I too am excited for the Quick Cals as an edition to the traditions at tOSU home football games. It gets the early arriving students an opportunity to really be involved and the football players are involved, thank you Coach Marotti. I am on the fnece with regards to what will happen with the hive. This was Coach Tressels thing and it spread across the coountry and all teams practically do it. This is Coach Meyers team and the players team, if they feel it’s time to move on from the hive then so be it. He is excited for the skull session and the walk, and most especially singing Carmen Ohio at the end of the game.
Offense. No Offense. I loved Coach Tressel and the way he coached. He was a strategist to the purest extent and put the responsibility of his teams success squarely on the shoulders of the defense and special teams. For the majority of his career it worked and for the majority of the time it was boring to fans. I will miss coach very much, but to be honest I am looking forward to Coach Meyers strategy. Hurry up and get into check-mate as fast as possible and take the guess work out of it. No offense to the past offensive regime, but you will be forgotten pretty quickly this Saturday. Go Bucks
Jim:
Young D-Linemen. Freshmen linemen Noah Spence, Adolphus Washington, and Tommy Schutt all made a name for themselves in the trenches during fall camp and quickly moved up the depth chart. They should all see the field against the Redhawks and I am excited to see what they can do.
Offensive Line v. 2012. Getting the offensive line depth back up to Ohio State’s standards will be a project that takes a few years, but this year’s starting group have the potential to be above average at least. I am looking forward to seeing what they can do under new leadership and (hopefully) with a new attitude.
Braxton Miller. He managed to move the offense (at times) despite play calling that would have been a joke for any D1 high school program in Ohio. What can he do at the head of Urban Meyer’s innovative and proven offensive system?
‘Spread Smash’ at rapid speed. Urban Meyer is known for the spread offense. That will be combined with Offensive Coordinator Tom Herman’s fast paced, no-huddle attack. The goal will be to keep defenses winded and off balance as you attack them in space. When those defenses are appropriately confused and out of breath, it will be time to unleash Ohio State’s stable of big backs: Carlos Hyde 6’0″ 232, Bri’onte Dunn 6’1″ 210 and Rod Smith 6’3″ 228. If things go as I envision them, the name that popped into my head for this offense is the ‘spread smash,’ but if you can think of a better name I am open to suggestions.
Tim:
JUICE. It has been the term of all of training camp for the Buckeyes. “Juice” has been defined by many players as that energy level that every team needs to have to be great. “Juice runs in your blood. You either have it or you don’t,” is how linebacker Etienne Sabino described it. I’m anxious to see that excitement out on the football field making plays. The Buckeyes seem to have found a certain swagger under Coach Meyer, and Saturday will be our first opportunity to see what “juice” is all about.
Mr. Hyde. All things coming out of camp lead me to believe running back Carlos Hyde is going to have a big year. And, with Jordan Hall out, it is Hyde’s show. Meyer has said that Hyde is one of the most improved players on offense, and it will be interesting to see exactly how he fits into the spread system. As a bigger back, Hyde likes to run downhill and between the tackles, so Meyer will need to find ways to work Hyde in. My gut tells me Meyer won’t have a problem doing that.
Men in the Middle. Unlike years past, linebacker was a weak point for Ohio State last season. The outside linebacker positions are manned by Ryan Shazier, who came on very strong at the end of last season, and Etienne Sabino, a fifth-year senior. But the biggest question mark is the middle linebacker, sophomore Curtis Grant. Highly touted out of high school, Grant really struggled during his freshman season. But, word out of camp is that Grant has been doing very well, so it will be interesting to see how he, Shazier and Sabino man the middle for the Ohio State defense.
Jeff:
Eric:
A Wide Receiver Explosion. I want to make up for last year’s crappy receiving all in one game. Say, about 350 yards of receiving will do the job.
A Strong Day for the Linebackers. They were the weak link of the defense last season. A strong showing would go a long way towards allowing us to really believe in this defense as a unit.
Nathan Williams. It has been far too long since Williams was able to take the field for the Scarlet and Gray. Reports suggest he will play, and that gives me a warm and fuzzy feeling inside. You know, that warm and fuzzy feeling you get from seeing Quarterbacks smashed in the backfield? Yea, that one.
Buckeyes Running Wild in the Run Game. You can probably imagine what this might look like. It would be nice to actually see it live. The crowd reaction to Hyde breaking a long one for a score would be quite the sight to see.
A Wedding. Former tBBC basketball staffer Jay is getting married tomorrow night! Congrats Jay!
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