Fresh off undressing the Rutgers Scarlet Knights last weekend in New Jersey, Urban Meyer's squad returns to Ohio Stadium in prep for a Saturday afternoon showdown against Maryland.
Though many see the Terps as a program on the rise, D.J. Durkin's team enters the Shoe as a 30.5-point underdog despite owning the nation's 24th-best rushing attack and road wins over Texas and Minnesota.
Will the Buckeyes cover? Will we see more of Demario McCall? And what should we make of all those penalties this year?
For thoughts on those topics and more, we welcome a golden gunslinger by the name of Bob Hoying to the 11W roundtable as he joins staffers James, Johnny and Andrew Ellis.
Go deep fellas..
Demario McCall, despite apparently still not being 100%, looked both elusive and explosive as he racked up 103 rushing yards on over nine yards a pop with a touchdown while adding a 35-yard touchdown reception. With Mike Weber now healthy and in the mix at running back with J.K. Dobbins, does McCall just need to wait his turn on offense or could there be a notable role for him at tailback, or maybe even at H-back as Parris Campbell flashes speed but also mediocre hands as the season unfolds?
Bob: Weber is a bruiser with a proven track record after his 1,000 yard season last year, and Dobbins has shown signs of being a complete back in the mold of an Ezekiel Elliott or Carlos Hyde. With that said, I still think there’s a role for McCall’s particular brand of speed. He looked great in his limited time last year, and he was certainly explosive against Rutgers. I suspect he’ll continue to be the third option at tailback, but he could be a nice change of pace—particularly late in games against tired defenses.
Andrew: I actually believe there’s some sort of discipline issues going on with McCall, and I’ve never been too worried about the alleged injury. Either way, I still think it’s going to be another year before he is fully unleashed — whether it be in the backfield or as more of an H-back. I look for him to see the occasional carry during the meat of the games, but his role will mostly be similar to what it was in the fourth quarter against Rutgers. Patience will be a virtue for this one.
James: I have maintained since watching him last year that McCall is Ohio State’s best option at H-back and I am sticking to that. Parris Campbell is one of, if not the fastest player on Ohio State’s roster, but is a liability when it comes to catching a pass that is anywhere beyond the line of scrimmage. I think once McCall gets to be 100 percent healthy, the Buckeyes have to strongly consider him for reps at H-back, especially if Campbell continues to struggle catching passes downfield.
Johnny: I think the Demario situation kind of lays bare the inherent lie that's at the center of every super badass, take no prisoners attitude that coaches like to espouse but not actually live up to: they're just as susceptible to emotion and nostalgia and what they feel they "owe" to players as much as anybody else. Mike Weber is a talented running back, but he's not anymore of a short yardage specialist than Dobbins or McCall could be. I'm not saying that Demario should be taking the lion's share of carries away from Weber, but the truth is that the dude deserves more chances to show his talent on the field than he's been given. I say split him out at H-back as often as possible and see what happens.
Johnnie Dixon had a career night against lowly Rutgers with 115 receiving yards including a pair of long touchdown strikes. While Dixon is easy to root for considering the injuries he has overcome to this point, is he a guy you feel like Ohio State can ever count on for consistent production, and/or legit production against good-to-great teams? Rank the top three wideouts through five games, excluding Parris Campbell since he’s the one true H-back almost exclusively lining up in the slot, and briefly defend your order.
Johnny: Terry McLaurin, Bin Victor, and K.J. Hill have all been okayish, but in my opinion that okayishness is still enough to put them ahead of Dixon. It's great to see the guy step up, but he's going to have to play much more consistently against better competition in the second half of the season to prove that he deserves to be a top target. And frankly, you could say that about all of the receivers, but the good news is that some of the younger guys might prove to be viable options as the season goes on.
James: In terms of productivity, Dixon is at the top, but I have been saying since the offseason that Binjimen Victor has the highest ceiling of any wide receiver on Ohio State’s roster. His speed, combined with his height and ability to go up and win 50/50 balls is unmatched, at least by other Ohio State wide receivers. That said, I will put Victor at the top, followed by Austin Mack and Dixon, simply based on their overall game. Terry McLaurin is a close four to Dixon, but the Florida native has been the one that has produced the most out of any wideout so far in 2017.
Andrew: I couldn’t be happier for Dixon, but I still wonder how reliable he will be against the Penn States and Michigans of the world. Ranking the wide receivers is really tough right now. Outside of Campbell’s role as the H-back, the rotation and lack of an effective passing game have made things murky for the wideouts.
I suppose I would rank them as follows: Victor, Hill, Dixon. I know Victor hasn’t put up huge numbers, but he certainly has the potential and I love that he appears to be an actual red-zone threat. Hill isn’t super fast and he’s not big enough to really use his size to his advantage, but he seems like a reliable pass-catcher who’s good with the ball in his hands. Dixon has been one of the best stories of the season so far, and as long as his health holds up then I think you have to include him based on what he has done thus far.
Bob: There is certainly room for Johnnie Dixon to step up. The receiving core has fallen a bit short of preseason expectations, and JT could use a go to guy. Outside of Campbell, K.J. Hill has been the most consistent player, but he hasn’t put up big yard per catch numbers yet. Terry McClaurin has done a much better job fighting for the ball this year, but to date hasn’t had many big plays either. Victor Binjimin has shown a bit more explosiveness. I think those are the top 3 guys at this point, though I do like Dixon’s performance against Rutgers, and CJ Saunders should get special mention for some great work in mop up time.
Urban Meyer’s squad is racking up the penalties at a pretty alarming rate, ranking 98th out of 130 teams with 7.4 penalties per game. Against Rutgers, the Buckeyes were flagged for 10 penalties with many of them coming from Ohio State’s better players in Jamarco Jones, Denzel Ward, Jerome Baker, Nick Bosa (questionable) and Tyquan Lewis. Any concerns about the lack of discipline being shown or will this take care of itself? What’s the secret to reducing penalties? Some put it on coaches; others put it on the players. What say you?
Bob: Players play the game. I am sure that Coach Meyer’s practices haven’t changed much over the years as it relates to this topic. In my experience, this falls on the players doing the right thing on the field. A lot of times you can handle the aggressive penalties but it’s the foolish ones that always are the most frustrating.
James: The penalties haven’t been a concern against lesser teams, but if this continues, it could come back to bite the Buckeyes against Penn State or Michigan. I think it’s a concern, but Ohio State has bigger issues when it comes to putting together a gameplan for the Nittany Lions or Wolverines. Anytime you have this many penalties, it comes down to coaching and teaching proper technique. If a lineman has poor pass blocking technique, he will get called for holding. If a corner doesn’t get his head around, he is going to get flagged for pass interference. Its partially on both, but if it continues to be an issue, its more coaching than anything else.
Johnny: One of the things that a lot of coaches on the Ohio State staff look for, particularly from the defensive secondary, is aggression. The problem is that there's a pretty fine line between that and trying to make up for getting burnt on a route, and I feel like a lot of the penalties this season have been a result of the latter more than the former. The amount of penalties should level out over the course of the season, but for now, this speaks to a defense trying to use athleticism to make plays instead of technique or positioning. As far as holding or false starts go, well... that's just an offensive line rite of passage.
Andrew: The only real concern I have right now is in the secondary. Kendall Sheffield really likes using his hands and the officials have picked up on this. Things were especially rough against UNLV and I worry how he will fare during conference play. I think in this situation it is more on the player. I’m sure Greg Schiano teaches the defensive backs to use their hands at times, but the player has to know when he’s going overboard. Sheffield goes overboard a lot.
Maybe more so than most teams, Ohio State is feeling the effects of the mass exodus of early entrants to the NFL. Last season specifically, the Buckeyes lost Marshon Lattimore, Malik Hooker, Gareon Conley, Curtis Samuel, Pat Elflein and Noah Brown. If you could have one of those guys back for this season’s stretch run, which would you choose and why?
Bob: Probably Lattimore or Conley. As well as Arnette and Fuller have played this season, not very many teams have to replace two first-round draft picks at cornerback in the same year. But as a QB I would love to have Elflein back. Having an experienced offensive center and leader of the OLine directing calls takes a big load off of the quarterback.
Johnny: People with anxiety about the offense would probably leap at a guy like Curtis Samuel being on the roster, but having Malik Hooker roaming around in the backfield would be absolutely incredible. The Ohio State pass defense has been okay this year, but the loss of Hooker and others have taken Ohio State from 7th in the country in pass defense during the 2016 season to 41st so far this year. They'll get better with experience, but Malik has already turned into one of the most exciting defenders in the NFL this year.
Andrew: Without question it would be Marshon Lattimore. I was actually just thinking about that over the weekend when I was watching the Saints and Dolphins square off in London. Lattimore is already getting rave reviews in the NFL, and the cornerback opposite Denzel Ward may be the biggest concern for Ohio State right now. I am a little worried with how our secondary will handle some of the passing offenses remaining on the schedule. A guy like Lattimore would greatly ease that concern.
James: For me, it’s Marshon Lattimore in a landslide. Ohio State’s cornerbacks have struggled more than anyone on defense this season, more specifically Damon Arnette and Kendal Sheffield. If you could put Lattimore opposite Denzel Ward, I think the Buckeye secondary would be just as good as last season. I realize you would be without Malik Hooker, but I am a big believer in what Jordan Fuller can do in that spot.
Maryland heads to Columbus boasting the nation’s 24th-most prolific rushing offense (233.5 ypg) behind Ty Johnson’s 102.8 rush yards per game. Meanwhile, Ohio State’s run defense slots 56th nationally giving up 134.6 yards per contest. Any worry Johnson and the Terps move the ball on the ground effectively against the Silver Bullets? What kind of day can we expect from the Buckeye run defense?
James: I don’t have many concerns about Ohio State’s run defense. The numbers are misleading because the last three teams the Buckeyes have played have been held under 100 yards passing, so going to the ground was their only option. The numbers are also skewed largely due to the Army game. Big picture, Ohio State’s opponents are going to struggle to run the ball as long as the Buckeyes can continue to rotate 8-10 bodies up front. Not having Dre’Mont Jones might result in a few more yards on the ground for Maryland, but not nearly enough for Ohio State to be concerned moving forward.
Andrew: I am actually more worried about D.J. Moore and the passing game — even if it is ranked outside the top 100 nationally. I think Maryland/Johnson will move the ball, but I don’t look for them to gash the Ohio State defense. Maryland has lost its two starting quarterbacks already and both of them were more of a threat on the ground than the third-stringer they got running the show now. I look for Ohio State to get out to a comfortable lead and at some point Maryland will be forced to throw the football. The Buckeyes should be able to hold them to around 150 yards or so.
Bob: The first and second units on the defensive line have started to play better the last couple of weeks, and the linebacking crew is starting to come around. I expect Maryland to have some success between the twenties, but rushing yards will be a bit tougher as the field shortens. I think Ohio State currently ranks 10th in the country in Red Zone defense, so don’t expect a big scoring day from Maryland.
Johnny: I'm personally curious to see if Schiano and company decide to take away either the running or passing game for Maryland and dare them to try and win the game otherwise, or if they'll put a hat on a hat and see if they can go for a second shutout in a row. Ty Johnson should not be underestimated; he had excellent games against both Texas and Minnesota, and Ohio State fans thinking that he'll be another bottom-tier Big Ten pushover player are in for a rude awakening.
Through the air, the Terps on their third starting quarterback after the first two suffered major injuries. To his credit, third-stringer Max Bortenschlager led the Terps to a game-winning touchdown in Minnesota last Saturday. While Bortenschlager won’t strike fear in the hearts of many, wide receiver D.J. Moore is a legit target (100.8 rec ypg, 17th nationally) and we know Ohio State has trouble in coverage beyond Denzel Ward. How concerned are you that Moore could have a field day in the Shoe as the Maryland braintrust should likely move Moore all over the field to get him in more favorable matchups?
Bob: It will be interesting to watch. I look for the D Line to step up its pass rush and take some pressure off of the young cornerbacks, but D.J. Moore is likely to get 8 or 10 touches. Maryland’s production from its receivers drops off pretty quickly after Moore and Taivon Jacobs, so I think we should be able to run some coverage schemes to keep those two in front of them and limit their yards.
Andrew: This is the matchup I will be watching most closely on Saturday. A lot of it is going to depend on Denzel Ward and whether or not he is going up against Moore the majority of the time. One would certainly think that would be the case since both players are the best on their respective teams. If Sheffield and Arnette are trying to cover Moore regularly, then I definitely can see him making a few big plays. Hopefully Ward gets the bulk of the duty and I expect that he would handle Moore quite well.
Johnny: Moore is really good and has at least one touchdown in each game this season. His longest reception of 2017 is 46 yards, but I wouldn't be shocked if he ended up besting that on Saturday, possibly for another TD. But as good as Moore is, Maryland needs to figure out how to actually get him the ball. Bortenschlager's game against Minnesota was a marked improvement against his first game of major action against UCF, but neither of those teams can bring the kind of pressure from the defensive line that Ohio State will. Moore might have a successful first half, but as the game wears on I doubt that he'll get the same kind of looks from his quarterback.
James: I really like DJ Moore and I think Maryland is going to make a concerted effort to get the ball into his hands early and often. I wouldn’t be surprised to see him have an Austin Carr type game against the Buckeyes, but again, I don’t think he will be able to do enough to make the game close. Remember, he has a third stringer throwing him the ball, so his opportunities to make plays will also be hindered by that.
This week’s guest, Bobby Hoying, played under John Cooper and helped transition Ohio State’s offense from the dark ages to that of a more modern attack as he quarterbacked the ship from 1993-95. Over the years, Hoying had a trio of legit receivers to target in Joey Galloway, Terry Glenn and Chris Sanders. Beyond those three, the Cooper era also saw wide receiver names like Jeff Graham, Dimitrious Stanley and David Boston, to name a few. Thinking solely about their games as collegians, which three (this isn’t no Zach Smith 6-man rotation) would you take to round out your receiving corps and why?
Bob: My three would be:
- Joey Galloway for his speed, explosiveness and yards after the catch.
- Terry Glenn was rangey, fast and could catch anything in his “jumping radius”,
- Ricky Dudley was so raw as a basketball player making the transition to football, but his size and speed as a tight end set him apart.
Also I want to add that 1995 was the first time we really started to use running backs in our passing game on a consistent basis and Eddie George played a big part. He obviously won the Heisman with his ability to run the football but also had big catches and defenses had to prepare for him in the passing game.
Johnny: Glenn, Galloway, and Boston. J.T. hates the "weenie arm" haters, so screw it; let's give his approximately 50 chances a game to prove the doubters wrong.
James: Can you imagine a Joey Galloway, Terry Glenn, David Boston trio? That would be cheating. Add in Eddie George or Pepe Pearson to that mix and it is hard to imagine anyone at any level shutting that offense down.
Andrew: I would go with Galloway, Glenn, and Boston. I remember being a kid and watching Galloway and thinking he was the fastest human I had ever seen. Terry Glenn obviously had the awesome story with the whole walk-on-turned-star thing, and I’d include him even though he just had the one huge season. I also had his New England Patriots’ jersey, so maybe that has something to do with it. Boston was just a monster and was the most physical of the group. Loved the attitude he brought to the field as well.
Ohio State enters Saturday’s date with Maryland as a hefty 31-point favorite. Do the Buckeyes cover? Give us your final score and player to watch.
Johnny: The line on this game is completely stupid. Not only has Ohio State had issues covering the spread as of late, but Maryland is a much better team than Vegas is giving them credit for. I think this ends up being 38-17, with Maryland doing a decent job of holding the Ohio State offense in check and scoring some garbage time points to make it look slightly closer than it really was. And if I'm really busting out the tinfoil, I'm starting to get somewhat worried every time a young coach looking to make a statement against Urban Meyer and the Buckeyes rolls in to Columbus...
Andrew: I got the Buckeyes by four touchdowns and I’m expecting a lot of points. Let’s go with Ohio State winning by a score of 50-22. As for the player to watch, I’m actually going to go with Dwayne Haskins. The Maryland native was a longtime Terp commit and I think he'll see the field a lot in the fourth quarter and should score a couple touchdowns.
James: No I don’t think the Buckeyes cover. I think Maryland has enough on offense to keep this came competitive for a quarter or two, but eventually Ohio State has too much talent. My player to watch is Mike Weber. Can he build on last weeks performance? Will be and Dobbins get on the field at the same time? That is what I want to see. Ohio State wins, 41-17.
Bob: OSU wins 49-17 to cover the spread. Player to watch.. Mike Weber.
