*Editorial Note: I know, I know, "all games matter."

I admit this may be a silly theory, but when looking at last season, Eze only had 27 carries through the first three games in 2014. Over 15 games he had 273 carries; the benchmark for a RB having too much of a load is typically considered the 300 carry mark. The possible wear and tear on a player over a 15 game season cannot be understated. Given the early 3 games with limited carries, we saw a fresh-looking Eze who hit the post-season humming.

Through the first 4 games of the current season, I keep seeing analysts remark that OSU should be giving Eze the ball more than they are, and up the middle on inside runs (considered OSU's bread and butter). Through 4 games he has 77 carries, a rate of around 19 carries per game. Through 4 games last year he had 55 carries, an average of around 13 carries per game. It seems to me that Meyer is not going to force carries on Eze + runs up the middle (where he's likely to take several shots, not to mention any extras in a pile up) just to pacify the crowd against teams the likes of Hawaii, NIU, WMU, etc. 

One thing that was also mentioned briefly during the game yesterday (which was the first time I heard it, but I think was a savvy point), was that Meyer knows what he has in Eze + the run game, whereas Cardale/QBs + passing game is where he has his questions, and is looking to find answers. That would explain why they are so heavily running packages and calling plays that look nothing like the bread and butter stuff we were used to last year. I know that supposedly they installed a new offensive system (less zone read), and that Meyer has been clear that the OL has been struggling, but in my mind that doesn't necessarily mean we won't see them return to the inside running game we saw early on against VT (i.e. the 80 or so yard TD run by Eze in the first quarter), or against any team that poses a genuine challenge (MSU, UM, etc) down the road. Sure NIU did, but I don't suspect they figured NIU would when it came to preparing for the game (and establishing the gameplan); not to mention the way all of the turnovers stiffled drives in that game.

Is my theory crazy? Am I giving them too much credit? I just think there's a very distinct possibility that they've been using these early games to run packages and plays they're unsure of to see how they go, as opposed to merely running the plays and packages that they know work. It seems a bit too easy, but I surely can't be the only one who's noticed they've run Eze up the middle maybe 7-10 times all season? By running Eze outside he has to contend with DBs and OLBs, rather than the DTs and MLBs he'd deal with on the inside. My logic is telling me that there's a reason for this beyond the OL struggling a bit, or the playcalling being off. What do you think? Maybe I'm overly-optimistic, but I get the feeling we're going to see that smashmouth inside run game that terrorized Wisconsin and Oregon last year once OSU gets to the meat of their schedule (MSU, UM, B1G CG potentially).