Ohio State head coach Urban Meyer said Tuesday during the weekly Big Ten coaches teleconference he's still trying to figure out why the Buckeyes have had trouble during the first half of games.
Ohio State trailed 7-6 at halftime in its season opener against Navy and was down 21-7 at halftime Saturday in a loss to Virginia Tech.
"Maybe it's the way we practice," Meyer said. "I'm looking at everything, maybe it's the play-calling. ... I'm not sure, but we've got about three days to figure it out."
One thing the Buckeyes can look forward to this weekend is the return of defensive end Noah Spence, who will return to the field after being suspended for the first two games of this season.
"He's an exceptional player," Meyer said of Spence. "I know myself and his family are very anxious to see him play. He's been on scout team and we're very anxious to get him going."
Meyer said the thing that he was most impressed with about Virginia Tech quarterback Michael Brewer was his escape ability.
"We had him bottled up a few times, but his escape ability was really good, I thought."
In his third year as Ohio State coach, the majority of this season's roster is made up of Meyer's recruits. It might be a little early to tell if his first three classes are disappointments, however.
"I'm not disappointed, but this season is how you evaluate it."
Notes:
Week 2 was rough for the Big Ten with an 8-5 record. The conference took a major hit Saturday evening when Ohio State, Michigan State and Michigan all lost primetime games.
Seven teams currently hold 2-0 records in the conference and the first conference game of the season will be held Saturday when Penn State travels to Rutgers. Below are a few comments from the other 13 coaches from Tuesday's weekly Big Ten coaches teleconference.
Brady Hoke (Michigan):
- On moving on from Notre Dame blowout: "It's important. You don't want one game to beat you twice."
- Hoke said he uses situations like Ray Rice's as "teaching moments" for his team.
- Hoke said Miami (Ohio), the Wolverines' opponent this weekend who was 0-12 last year, has "great tradition. Sure, coach.
Gary Andersen (Wisconsin):
- Andersen said quarterback Tanner McEvoy completed 17 straight passes in Saturday's 37-3 win over Western Illinois.
- Andersen said he wasn't happy with his running game against Western Illinois and said "it needs to improve going forward."
Bo Pelini (Nebraska):
- Was Ameer Abdullah's game-winning touchdown more impressive in person or on film? "No matter how you look at it, it was pretty impressive."
- On the Ray Rice situation: "To me, there's no greater crime than putting your hands on a woman."
Mark Dantonio (Michigan State):
- "We lost a football game, but I don't think we lost our team. There's a big difference there."
- Dantonio said Oregon quarterback Marcus Mariota is one of the best quarterbacks he's faced since he's been at Michigan State.
Kirk Ferentz (Iowa):
- On the rivalry with this weekend's opponent Iowa State: "I don't know where it ranks nationally but this will be my 25th experience and they've all been hotly contested games."
Jerry Kill (Minnesota):
- Kill said he didn't want to play this game against his good friend and TCU head coach Garry Patterson, "but I'm not the boss, I'm the football coach."
- Kill was in Gary Patterson's wedding.
Kyle Flood (Rutgers):
- Rutgers opens up Big Ten play against Penn State this weekend. Flood said, "First impressions in life matter and this is our chance to make a first impression on the Big Ten."
- Flood referred to Penn State as "our neighbors to the west."
Tim Beckman (Illinois):
- Beckman noted only four Illinois teams have started 3-0 in the last 25 seasons. Illini have a chance to do that with a win Saturday at Washington.
- Would that be a signature win for Illinois? "Every win for us is signature," Beckman said.
Randy Edsall (Maryland):
- On Maryland's defense so far: "We're giving up too many big plays, but the bottom line is we're keeping people out of the end zone."
- Despite six turnovers against South Florida, "nobody panicked."
Darrell Hazell (Purdue):
- On Purdue's quarterback play so far: "They've just got to relax. They're too uptight."
James Franklin (Penn State):
- On Penn State's eligibility: "I found out from the media, our players found out from the media and social media. ... I'd say 99 percent of the team knew already."
- Potential rivalry with Rugers: "I don't know, I don't know if I necessarily even look at it that way. I do think there's some regional ramifications and some excitement."
Kevin Wilson (Indiana):
- On traveling to play at Bowling Green: "I think it's always great to play teams within the region. It makes sense."
Pat Fitzgerald (Northwestern):
- Northwestern off to an 0-2 start, Fitzgerald said, "We're embarrassed right now. I'm embarrassed as the leader of the ship."
- "We're not playing very well, so morale is what it is."
