Coach Meyer said in his press conference today that Penn State has one of the best receiving corps Ohio State will have faced in the last two seasons. Here are the primary receivers for the Nittany Lions.
- #3 DeAndre Thompkins - WR; 5'11, 185lbs Sophomore
- #12 Chris Godwin - WR; 6'1", 205lbs Junior
- #5 DaeSean Hamilton - WR 6'1" 211lbs Junior
- #88 Mike Gesicki - TE 6'6" 252lbs Junior
If you haven't watched a Penn State game this year, you may be in for a surprise. They have moved away from the offense used when Christian Hackenberg was the signal caller. Instead, the offense uses more spread concepts with zone reads and three receiver sets. Here is a base formation often used. You may recognize it since we see it often in Ohio Stadium. For you football junkies, this is called 11 personnel since there is one running back and one TE. Penn State is almost exclusively in 11 personnel. So we should expect to see quite a bit of the Ohio State nickel package this week.
Below is a cutup of #5 DaeSean Hamilton. He generally plays in the slot. You may recognize this play...it is the "Sail" concept. You can learn more about the "Sail" route here from Kyle Jones. You may also recognize the "Sail" route as the first play run from scrimmage by Wisconsin on Saturday night. Considering that Ohio State's opponents attack the safety or nickel back in coverage, it is almost assured you will see this play again.
The deep threat for Penn State appears to be #3 DeAndre Thompkins. Here is a 70 yard TD on a stop and go route against Maryland. Thompkins seems to have taken the place of #13 Saeed Blacknall who had been injured for several weeks but was listed as available for the Maryland game.
One of those guys who seems to be targeted for those 50/50 balls is #12 Chris Godwin. He is tied for the lead in receptions with 23.
Finally, there is the TE Mike Gesicki, number 88. He is tied for the lead in receptions with 23 and his size of 6'6" may pose a match-up problem for the Buckeyes. Here he is on a little pick play for a TD versus Maryland.
I didn't mention Saquon Barkley since most everyone knows about the RB. Although Saquon has 11 receptions for 143 yards in addition to his rushing stats.
Looking forward to watching the Buckeyes face the challenge again Saturday night.
