The 2nd of however many articles I will publish on the 2011 Spring Game focuses on the offensive side of the ball, which if you haven’t noticed has some positives and negatives going into next season.
On our first look at the 2011 Spring Game, we dissected each of the 4 QB’s and how they looked out on their possessions. This time, we will look at the offense as a whole, position by position.
RUNNING BACKS
There’s no doubt about it, the backs are going to be Ohio State’s strong suit going into 2011. With all of the talent, speed, and power at the tailback position, offensive coordinator Jim Bollman is going to have one heck of a time trying to figure out who his #1 will be. And to be quite honest, he may not need to name one for the first 5 games.
Let’s be straight here: after watching the spring game, Boom Herron is OSU’s #1 back once he returns from suspension. His combination of speed, power, and patience carrying the ball is by far the best on the team. I’ve heard from many Buckeye fans that they don’t want to see Herron as the feature back of this offense. Those fans were served a dose of humble pie as Herron looked excellent breaking tackles, waiting for his blocks, and fighting for extra yardage. Not to mention, we saw a little bit of his speed shine as well.
Outside of Boom being #1, it’s a dead heat for who’s going to be the #2. That means the #1 for the first 5 is not an easy decision to be made. And who knows, maybe there won’t be a #1 back on this team going into the non-conference slate. Go back to the ’03 team that had Lydell Ross and Maurice Hall. While Ross may have the so-called ‘starting running back’, they shared the bulk of the carries. That could be the same situation heading into the home opener this year.
Jordan Hall is the guy that could be the one called upon to get the start. Great vision, great speed, and he has an uncanny ability to shed tacklers and stay on his feet, which is contributed to that low center of gravity he has. Outside of his running ability, we also saw Hall utilized as a receiver in the slot on a few plays. You know Tress wants to get him out in the open field and out on the edge to make plays, and he can do that. Reminds me a lot of Garrett Wolfe from Northern Illinois, who stands at 5’7 while Hall is listed at 5’9 (yeah, that’s if Hall is standing on 2 phonebooks.) Wolfe is a shifty back that can fool you with his power by his size, Hall is the same way.
Jaamal Berry is your power and speed back. He’s one of the more powerful downfield runners I’ve seen at Ohio State. Once he gets in the open field, he’ll turn on the jets and do everything he can to muscle out yardage while staying in bounds. He only managed 2 carries, but he did the most with those 2 shots by tallying 16 yards with 2 solid gains. He’s not the most patient runner, and sometimes wants to make the big play when he immediately gets the ball, but he’s a great compliment back.
The guy I came away most impressed with was freshman Rod Smith. I know all the talk about the comparisons to Eddie George, and honestly they aren’t too far off. He’s got excellent balance for standing 6’3 as a running back. His power is exceptional, and he’s already got great speed and vision for his age. I doubt he gets the start, but he’s another guy to throw into the mix.
The last one to watch is sophomore Carlos Hyde, who by now is known for being the thunder to the rest of the running backs’ lightning. He won’t run away from anyone, but he’s going to be a tremendous guy to have down inside the red zone when needing those short pick-ups. Outside of the short yardage plays, Hyde doesn’t figure in too much more but he’ll get 5-10 carries a game with that specialty in this offense.
At a final glance, having this many backs can be a blessing, but it can also be a curse. When you don’t have 1 guy that is you can safely say is your #1, it is a little scary. But with the depth at this position, and the multitude of talents you have with these young backs, there’s no doubt the running game will be featured quite a bit come next season.
FULLBACK
I put this down as a singular position since Zach Boren may be one of the overlooked players on offense next season. He was the reason for quite a few runs breaking into big plays on Saturday, and don’t be surprised if that continued going into 2011. Zach may not tote the pigskin too often on carries, but he’s a guy that will be given the responsibility to break open big plays inside the tackles.
WIDE RECEIVERS
Besides DeVier Posey being the no doubt #1 receiver, tell me who else really stepped up and looked strong in the spring game? Tough to see wasn’t it? It was difficult to really gauge the talents and strength of the receiving core with the numerous QB’s thrown at multiple possessions, but there are some areas of concern on this part of the offense.
It’s difficult to not have a dependable and high quality receiver like Dane Sanzenbacher not returning, and throw in the fact that Posey is gone for the first 5 games, and these young receivers will have to grow up VERY quickly.
Right now, you’ve got to put Corey ‘Philly’ Brown in as one of your receivers on the outside. Solid route runner and good speed contribute to his cause. It was tough to see all the drops he had in this game though, even if the passes weren’t directly on target to him. But he’s another quality receiver that’s probably going to be the starter to begin the opener.
Verlon Reed was a pleasant surprise in this game, catching 2 passes, 1 of which was a sharp looking route towards the sideline for a touchdown. Outside of those 2 receptions, Reed is a young kid that has superb speed but is still getting used to the receiver position. Being more known as a QB and a safety coming out of Marion-Franklin, he’s still getting acclimated to the receiver position. But he’s got good size and speed, with the ability to turn a short gain into a long play.
T.Y. Williams may have turned in the most impressive performance of the game, catching 3 passes for 83 yards and 1 beautifully crafted TD from Taylor Graham (yes, that deep pass was thrown on a walk-on corner. So what!) The first thin that jumps off the page from Williams is his enormous size. 6’5, 228 is pretty darn big for a wide receiver. But he didn’t look too slow when going 68 yards on that fly pattern for the touchdown. He also showed his ability to go up and bring in catches inside the end zone. He will definitely need to work on his feet and his positioning on the field when bringing down lob passes. Williams will definitely be a useful weapon for this young group of receivers.
Those 3 names will probably have the best chance for playing time, next to Sophomore Chris Field. I really like Fields’ ability to walk in the footsteps of Dane Sanzenbacher as a guy who is sure-handed and a precision route runner. He won’t wow you with big plays or long TD passes, but he’s an all-around athlete that will definitely get a look.
After those 4 are: James Louis, Chris Roark, Tony Harlamert, Ryan Ross, Don Senegal, and Jared Riley. Of those names, keep a close eye on Florida speedster James Louis. He’s still working into being a solid receiver, but there’s no denying his speed and quickness.
TIGHT ENDS
With the lack of experience on the receivers side comes the experience and talent on the tight end position. We all know what Jake Stoneburner brings to the table. A great pass catcher with size and speed to go along with his improving blocking skills makes him a no-brainer to get the nod on the line of scrimmage. Next to him will be junior Reid Fragel who is a behemoth of a pass catcher at 6’8. Didn’t see him much during the spring game, but he had a coming out party at the Sugar Bowl with his long pass play in the 1st half. Besides those 2, freshman Jeff Heuerman saw extensive action and made some nice catches and plays as a true freshman. There isn’t much depth at this position, but it’s a spot that can be dependent on 2 experienced juniors that have been there before.
OFFENSIVE LINE
If you thought the wide receivers were inexperienced, then you ain’t seen nothing yet. Thank goodness Mike Brewster anchors the line at center; cause without him this unit was going to have severe problems in 2011. I remember him coming out of college being all the rage from Florida, and now he has officially fit into the category of great OSU centers with LeCharles Bentley and Nick Mangold amongst others. We know what guys like Mike Adams and JB Shugarts bring to the table, but the loss of Adams for the first 5 is extremely concerning seeing how he has turned into a solid left tackle for the Bucks. Shugarts didn’t make the start due to an injury, but we know he’ll be slotted in as a starting tackle more than likely. Outside of those 3, take your best shot. Andrew Norwell figures to be in the equation but he’s more geared as a tackle, which works for the first 5 with Adams being out. But there’s a deficiency at the guard position with the departure of Justin Boren and Bryant Browning. So who’s left? Marcus Hall is a guy I like a lot, but he’s another tackle that will share the duties with Norwell; which means Shugarts will more than likely slide over to a guard spot. That leaves another guard spot open, and it will probably be filled by sophomore Jack Mewhort. The youngster is still filling in to his 6’6 300 lb. frame, but he’s a likely choice to make the starting 5 along the big uglies.
The offense for next year may not have the experience of past teams, but there’s plenty of talent and speed to go around. And sometimes, that can go a longer way than having returning starters. I still say the key of the success this upcoming season lies on the O-Line. If they can gel quickly and gain some depth at the guard positions, then just maybe this can be a unit that will succeed. I still have my doubts, but the spring game gave me some belief that they can make this work come 2011.
The breakdown on defense is next to come, which will then be followed by the buzz from the Spring Game press box!
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