We have all seen the Buckeyes kick FGs instead of scoring TDs over the past two games. Certainly this has been discussed often on this board.
There are multiple reasons listed, by people a lot smarter than me, for the team's struggles in the red zone.
- Pre-snap penalties
- Post-snap penalties
- Poor play calling
- Lack of experience
However, I would be willing to bet our frustrations on Saturday are not nearly as intense as the offensive coaches' frustrations while watching film on Sunday. I can remember coaches lamenting that after overcoming mistake after mistake, you finally get the look you want and you have the right play called too. However, during the play, there is just that one little mistake which causes the play to not go as planned.
Here are a few examples:
This play is near the goal line against Penn State. This should result in a TD. Watch LG, #75 Thayer Munford. He should be responsible for the A-gap second level player on this play. Normally, this would be a LB. However, in this goal line scenario, the defensive player responsible for the A-gap is a safety. Munford doesn't realize this and attempts to block the LB. The result is the safety makes a good tackle for a short gain.
The second example is from the Nebraska game. Again, I believe this play should result in a TD for the Buckeyes. This is a five man box from Nebraska. This alignment is a pretty straight forward read for a running play for today's offenses and certainly should be for the talent level of the Buckeyes. However, #75 LG Thayer Mumford is a bit late to his block on the second level. Or you could say he took a poor angle. Either way, this little mistake cost points.
The final example is from the Penn State game. It is difficult to know who is at fault here. If you watch the defense, #23 comes from the backside to make a tackle on the goal line. To me, it seems #79 Dawand Jones should block back to account for #23 and #11 Jaxon Smith-Njigba should block the last man on the line of scrimmage.
An argument could also be made that #32 Henderson's aiming point is not correct. He should be trying to hit this play off tackle, as designed, but he seems to be running straight ahead.
If you recall, the Buckeyes decided to go for it on 4th down but TreVeyon Henderson had a false start on the play. This penalty caused the Buckeyes to kick a FG instead and not score a TD.
Pretty confident that the coaches will get all these little things fixed. The big question is will the fix be in time. Thoughts?
