44,276 may have seen a glimpse of what the future/the first 5 holds for Ohio State at this year’s Spring Game, which the Scarlet (offense) dominated the Gray (Defense) 59 to 27.
The score line makes it seem like the offense was the juggernaut of the 2 sides, but honestly both teams had their moments and the defense captured some life as they harassed all 4 QB’s at some point during the game.
In this recap, we’ll focus JUST on the QB’s, since that appears to be the big talking point going into the 2011 season. So who will start in the first 5 games without TP? Let’s take a look.
:QB SITUATION:
As much as we wanted Tressel to reveal his hand on the QB situation, it was really tough to see anything. Although before I go more in-depth here, Braxton Miller went from being the 4th starting QB in the first 4 possessions to starting with the first team offense at the end of the game. Take that for what it’s worth.
QB DRIVE SYNOPSIS
*5th year senior Joe Bauserman got the start in the opening possession, and looked like a fish out of water. As a 5th year senior, I was expecting a more composed performance but Heacock’s defense pinned their ears back and got after the veteran. If the first drive was any indication as to what we should expect from JB, then Tressel may want to think more about starting the guy that’s been there for a while in the first 5. Looked better in the 2nd drive from the 25, but still failed to get in for 6. The last throw of the game was a TD to freshman Ryan Ross, which may have been Bowser’s saving grace on a day where he looked less than impressive. But either way, he didn’t look too sharp.
*Taylor Graham was the next to start after JB, and right now looks to be Tressel’s safe pick, although coming into the spring game I was assured that would be Bowser. After today, Graham put me a little more at ease. Taylor looked to be much calmer in the pocket, made some smart throws to receivers on his first drive and didn’t make too many mistakes. From a stats standpoint Graham was probably the most impressive QB on the day, orchestrating an 8 play, 97 yard drive that saw him put a beautifully thrown ball out in front to TY Williams for a 68 yard TD, but there was a certain in experienced corner in coverage that we will get to later.
*After Graham, Kenny Guiton a.k.a. the smooth Jazz maker Kenny G stepped in and channeled his inner Joe Bauserman on his first drive that saw the sophomore go ¼ for 7 yards. Afterwards, Guiton got back in, threw 2 nice passes with a bubble screen to Jamaal Berry and a nice pass to freshman Verlon Reed that got KG on the board. His last 2 drives weren’t too much to ride home about, but we saw what we needed to see from Kenny on his 2nd possession. Guiton won’t wow you with immeasurables and isn’t the most polished or refined quarterback, but he can make plays every now and then (i.e. the Eastern Michigan run for 6).
*And then there was the true freshman everyone was raving about. Braxton Miller was the guy I was eager to see in person, and to be completely honest he didn’t disappoint. His first drive came after the first 3 had their first shot. Didn’t look good on his 2 throws, but what I saw was a composed, comfortable QB that rolled out and had a chance to make a play to Posey who was running open towards the sideline. Yeah, he overthrew a wide open receiver, but he’ll complete that pass with more time and practice. I was more impressed by watching him run towards the sideline, square his body, and throw mechanically sound. His 2nd drive wasn’t much more besides a decent first down run and a solid sideline pass to Posey. It was Miller’s 3rd drive where we may have seen what could be the future starter under center at Ohio State. Just like I mentioned before, composed under pressure, solid mechanics, great pocket presence, Braxton had it all on that 3rd drive that spanned 14 plays and went 92 yards. BM had a pass over the middle to Posey that was perfectly crafted and got a 28 yard pick-up. The drive ended with a Jordan Hall TD run, but we got to see what makes this kid incredibly special. Then if that wasn’t enough, he threw another beautiful ball on his 4th and final drive to Philly Brown for a TD on what will be someone who will play in the secondary this year, Orhian Johnson.
WHAT WE LEARNED
1. Bauserman will be a tough QB to rally around. Although he’s been through the trials and tribulations, watching him today confirmed my worries that he just isn’t capable of starting at QB for the first 5. He’s not going to wow you with big plays, and he is fairly accurate. Knowing Tressel, JB will still be towards the top of his list when deciding his starter on opening day vs. Akron since Bowser is a 5th year senior, but seeing him today confirmed my worst fears that he can’t get it done. He’s not Todd Boeckman, he’s Justin Zwick.
2. Taylor Graham should be Tressel’s safe play. Taylor looks like, plays like, but doesn’t run like Craig Krenzel. But he has nearly the same demeanor and mindset when he’s out there. Graham is a guy that will throw the ball out of bounds when he’s under pressure, he will take a sack just so he doesn’t throw a bad pass in coverage. That’s the kind of guy the Senator can get around, and he’s also someone that I can look to as being a potential starter. I know I haven’t even covered the backs and receivers yet, but throwing that into consideration, Graham seems to be the guy that makes sense if OSU goes back to Tressel ball.
3. Guiton has X-factor abilities, but still hasn’t marked his spot as being a potential starter. He’s still a questionable passer, which ultimately could be okay when taking into account the ability of the backs for this season, but you still need to have the ability to throw when needed. Of course, having a name like Kenny G will get you notoriety immediately, but I don’t think Tressel sees KG as being a guy he can count on. He’s got talent, there’s no doubt about it. But another season under the tutelage of QB coach Nick Siciliano, and then just maybe he could get a shot against the rest of the crew next year. I’d still like to see him in on some running plays like he was in against EMU last year.
4. Braxton is all he’s made out to be. Incredible athlete, great runner, solid arm, great poise, I could go on and on. I loved what I saw from Miller. Of course, the caveat to all those positives is he is just a true freshman. It’s not a true freshman starting at RB like Maurice Clarett, it’s a true freshman starting at QB for Ohio State. That’s the only negative I see from Brax. But going on his game performance, he’s got my vote to be the starter. He’s got a great mindset when he’s out there, and he didn’t make any mistakes from what I saw. Sure he overthrew a receiver or 2, but he didn’t compound that into turnovers or sacks. And he’s only going to get better from here. Knowing that and the performance he had today, there’s a belief in this here youngster writing this piece that a true freshman could start for Ohio State.
THE WAY I SEE IT
If we lived in a perfect universe, I would say Braxton Miller gets the start through the first 5. He’s got to. Watching him out there against the first team defense on his last drive only confirmed the notions that many had about him. What should happen then is Braxton continues to get snaps with the first team, learn the offense, improve his power and comfort with the offense, and go from there. We know he’s got the abilities, that’s not the question. Now, it’s just getting him the reps to get him comfortable in the position he’s in. But that’s the perfect world, and we don’t live in it. My gut feeling is Bauserman will get the start against Akron, and Tressel will use the first 2 games as a rehearsal to see who gets the nod against Miami on September 17th. He’s going to leave the competition wide open; all 4 will have a chance at starting. I still think a 2 QB system isn’t bad, but it didn’t work with Zwick and Smith or Boeckman and Pryor, so there’s not much that makes me believe it will work in this instance.
From me, my depth chart is: 1 Miller, 2 Bauserman, 3 Guiton, 4 Graham. Even if JB had a tough day, he’s still got to be the back-up as a 5th year senior in my mind.
More to come from this year’s spring game including: How the offense looked as a whole, Where is the defense on replacing the starters, and Supplanting 5 suspended starters. That and more coming up this week!
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