Presser Bullets: Urban Meyer Talks Rutgers, Quarterbacks and More

By Eric Seger on October 19, 2015 at 12:05 pm
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No. 1 Ohio State is 7-0 and 3-0 in Big Ten play after its 38-10 defeat of Penn State Saturday night at Ohio Stadium.

Urban Meyer rolled with J.T. Barrett in the second half at quarterback to dispose of the Nittany Lions. He met with reporters Monday at the Woody Hayes Athletic Center to talk about where his team stands before its first-ever game at Rutgers this Saturday. Kickoff is set for 8 p.m.

Notes:

  • Offensively, champions from the Penn State game were J.T. Barrett, Taylor Decker, Michael Thomas, Jalin Marshall, Curtis Samuel, Braxton Miller, Pat Elflein, Jacoby Boren, Billy Price, Nick Vannett, Marcus Baugh and Ezekiel Elliott. The co-offensive players of the game were Barrett and Decker.
  • On defense, champions were Joey Bosa (player of the game), Tommy Schutt, Adolphus Washington, Darron Lee and Vonn Bell. Punter Cameron Johnston was the special teams player of the game.
  • Saturday was "probably our most complete win" of the season.
  • Tommy Schutt had wrist surgery and will miss a few weeks. "It was his decision to play Saturday ... Really impressive with how far he's come at Ohio State."
  • Dontre Wilson's foot is still bothering him, the reason for him not playing much against Penn State.
  • Meyer singled out Terry McLaurin, Bryce Haynes, Jeff Greene and Malik Hooker for their work on special teams. Stepped up after injury to Joshua Perry, cramping of Dante Booker and Cam Williams getting ejected for targeting.
  • On the quarterback situation: "Nothing is going to be announced right now." He didn't have a chance to meet with J.T. Barrett and Cardale Jones because he was with recruits all day Sunday.
  • Torrance Gibson "didn't earn the right to dress last week." He added Gibson's had some academic issues, but he remains on the team.
  • Meyer said he loves recruiting New Jersey: "It's very much like Ohio. I have a lot of respect for the coaches, the seriousness, the attention to detail. My history, that's what you get out of New Jersey and that's why I love it." He also added that New Jersey has great delis.
  • Meyer said he "thinks so" when asked if he knew in his head who would start at quarterback: "Just with the night game, we're behind right now."
  • "I think it ran better Saturday in the football game, with him in there." — Urban Meyer on the Ohio State offense with Barrett at the helm.
  • The linebacker room is very strong right now and they're trying their best to get Jerome Baker ready to go.
  • More on quarterbacks: "If there is a change, it is very delicate." He added that he cares deeply for each individual: "Is that always the right thing to do? In my opinion, it is."
  • Meyer said he felt the buzz on the sidelines when Barrett was playing quarterback Saturday. On making the decision, he said "everything plays into it."
  • "We always use a phrase around here, 10-80-10, and the 10 is the elite guys with regards to leadership and everything else ... (Barrett) is certainly in the upper-10." — Urban Meyer.
  • Meyer credited the offensive line for Ohio State's ability to run the ball Saturday against a stout rush defense.
  • Is playing two quarterbacks possibly better than playing one? "Those are all conversations that we're going to have ... It's not always going to go by script. So I don't know."
  • Ohio State has a "big belief" that scheme doesn't win games. What wins them is the dynamic players and plays win the game. He noted one of Barrett's touchdowns from Saturday, where he read it and pulled the ball on a read-option and scored untouched: "It's rare that a play like that is ran perfect."
  • Braxton Miller had two plays Saturday that weren't exactly script, but he's "a monster, a freak" so it worked out.
  • "I've always believe that. The good guys gotta touch the ball. They've earned that right." — on getting touches to various players throughout the course of the game.
  • Meyer "kind of feels" like Barrett is getting back into the same groove he was in last season, after missing the opportunity to win the job after the Virginia Tech game when Jones got pulled.
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