Urban Meyer's Tough Love Pushing Ohio State to Be Great

Since stumbling in an upset loss to Virginia Tech in Week 2, Ohio State has looked unstoppable in routs over Kent State, Cincinnati, Maryland and Rutgers.

But according to Urban Meyer, his team isn't playing at the level he expects it to, and he hasn't been shy about voicing that opinion. 

On the heels of a 39-point beatdown of the Scarlet Knights last Saturday, a game in which the Buckeyes out-gained their opponent by 240 total yards, Meyer talked as if the performance was a letdown. 

So what would Meyer consider great? That bar hasn't been reached despite Ohio State piling up more than 500 total yards and at least 50 points in four consecutive games, which set and tied school records, according to Adam Rittenberg of ESPN.com.

It's clear that Meyer has high expectations for his team, but that also extends to individual players. 

Quarterback J.T. Barrett has been sensational during Ohio State's dominant four-game stretch, completing 71.7 percent of his passes while throwing for 17 touchdowns against one interception. A brilliant performance against Rutgers earned him Big Ten Player of the Week honors. 

What did Meyer think of the showing from his rising signal-caller, who currently ranks third nationally in passer efficiency? 

"He could have played a lot better," Meyer said, according to Ari Wasserman of The Plain Dealer.

But those comments aren't made to put his Buckeyes down. Meyer is looking to motivate and—to his credit—it's having a positive effect that's permeating through the team. 

Linebacker Joshua Perry knows why Meyer is pushing so hard, according to Bill Rabinowitz of The Columbus Dispatch.

"

We all know we’re not as good as we could be right now. That’s kind of the interesting thing. We’ve been playing really well and beating teams by a lot, but we still have got a way to go on offense, defense and in the kicking game. 

I think that’s what [Meyer is] excited about, and that’s why he’s grinding us so hard. That’s what our leaders recognize, and that’s why we’re grinding so hard.

"

Fellow linebacker Darron Lee echoed that sentiment after Ohio State's thrashing of Rutgers.

The Buckeyes will need that hunger on the road this week when they travel to Happy Valley for a matchup against Penn State. One of the nation's most hostile environments will challenge a team stocked with first- and second-year players. 

But Meyer has made sure his players will go into Beaver Stadium with the right attitude.

“I love coaching this team,” Meyer said, according to Eric Seger of The Ozone.  "If our expectations are higher than the player’s themselves, that’s a problem.”

All stats via NCAA.com.  

David Regimbal covers Ohio State football for Bleacher Report. Follow him on Twitter @davidreg412.