Breaking The Trojans: Matchups, Challenges, and Keys to a Buckeye Victory

On September 12th, the Ohio State Buckeyes will take the field representing not only their university but an entire conference that has fallen from grace. Not long ago the Big Ten was considered a premier football conference, but through its own failures it has become a national punchline.

First among failures has been my beloved Ohio State Buckeyes, who have turned in several excellent regular seasons but have failed to beat a top 10 ranked team since 2006. Since then the Buckeyes have been living a football program's worst nightmare, embarrassing itself against top teams on a consistent basis.

By nature college football is cyclical and a new generation of Buckeyes is taking the field, a generation that came very close to ending the Top 10 blues with a narrow 24-21 defeat against a Texas Longhorns team that many argued should have played for the National Title.

This coming Saturday evening college football will be introduced a new, very young Buckeyes team.

This team has been built carefully, since the epic defeat at the hands of the Florida Gators, to adhere to one basic principle—speed at skill positions. On a very general level, the 2009 Ohio State Buckeyes are less experienced than recent teams but are more athletic and potentially more explosive.

Facing the Buckeyes this weekend is a Big Ten tormentor.

The UCS Trojans have made a mockery of their recent Big-Ten opponents, including a 35-3 drumming of last season's Buckeye team. This is not a normal USC Trojans football team.

While loaded with NFL talent and explosive play makers, this team is less experienced than what we are accustomed to in a USC juggernaut.

Quarterbacks:

The first discussion of this matchup revolves around the QBs.

Both teams boast the #1 QB of their respective recruiting class, but these two outstanding prospects have a different two different sets of talents.

Matt Barkley, the true freshman leading the USC offense, has the classic pro-style skill set, with a big arm, tall build, and a fearless attitude concerning passing windows.

Terrelle Pryor is the man behind center for Ohio State. He brings outstanding physical skills to the table. Pryor runs a legit 4.4 forty, has outstanding vision and sense of timing when running the ball, and his size makes him very difficult to tackle.

Pryor has worked very hard on his passing skills and it was reflected in the game against Navy. His footwork and pocket presence were very improved and the result was accurate and effective passing. When pressured, however, Pryor can still have a tendency to fall back on bad habits and his accuracy can suffer.

The overall edge here would have to go to Pryor due to the dual threat nature of his game and because of the year of experience.

Pryor has already seen the most terrifying college defense since the 2001 Miami team, in last season's rendition of the USC defense. It is unlikely that USC will be able to replicate what they were able to do last season with the losses of their defensive end, defensive tackle and all their linebackers.

Ohio State on Offense:

The biggest area of concern on offense for the Buckeyes following the Navy game is  the offensive line, which under performed in the eyes of analysts and fans. Rumors coming into the season had Ohio State coaches unhappy with the performance of the offensive line during summer practices and they did nothing to dispel those reports in the first game.

Highly touted offensive tackle Mike Adams reportedly showed up over weight and out of shape, losing his presumed place on the far left of the offensive line to walk on Andy Miller.

On the other end of the spectrum, highly touted Michael Brewster has stepped right in as center and has laid his claim to the job until he chooses to leave for the NFL.

Facing the Buckeyes is a new look front seven for the Trojans.

Faced with a huge task of replacing an epic core of linebackers and pass rushers, DE Everson Griffen is the key. Griffen is an explosive pass rusher who can also easily shed blocks to help against the run game. Griffen could easily make Pryor's life a nightmare on his own, but paired with Christian Tupou and Jurrell Casey, it creates a clear advantage in the trenches for USC when their defense is on the field. 

A factor that could compound the problems at the line of scrimmage for Ohio State is the lack of clear starting running back. The current starter is Dan Herron, an undersized outside runner of a Tailback. Herron splits carries with Brandon Saine, who is a north-south runner with homerun speed but lacks an array of moves to evade tackles in the open field.

Both players have considerable talent, but it has yet to be translate into production.

Meeting these two Ohio State running backs in the hole will be a unit of fresh faced linebackers, lead by top talent Chris Galippo. Galippo can line up inside or out, has excellent pad level and brings a similar level of physicality as Rey Maualuga while retaining more awareness and football IQ than Maualuga.

There should not be that much of a drop off in linebacker play for the Trojans and the Ohio State running game will suffer as a result.

In the passing game Ohio State may find success, but Pryor will have to be careful as the USC secondary is the most veteran unit of the defense.

The primary target for Pryor is wide receiver DeVier Posey, who is a premier talent with a rare blend of speed, route running, hands, and intelligence. NFL teams are already eying Posey despite him being only a sophomore and Ohio State fans are anxiously awaiting his breakout game.

A pair of very tall tight ends give Pryor that ever important escape valve.

Other targets for Pryor include raw speedster Ray Small, who USC fans will remember for running his mouth and producing very little. Small has outstanding 4.4 speed but has not really shown all-around football skills and his playing time has suffered as a result.

Duron Carter is a true freshman, who seems to have an identical set of skills as his Hall of Fame father Chris Carter and likely earned playing time with an impressive debut against Navy.

Dane Sanzenbacher rounds out the wide out group and gives Pryor a steady pair of experienced hands to find for reliable check down.

Lining up against these corp of pass catchers are a pair of senior corners, Josh Pinkard and Kevin Thomas, both likely will hear their names called on draft day, but they will have their hands full this weekend with Posey and Carter. If the pass rush doesn't reach Pryor and plays get elongated, the receivers have a very good chance to come free.

The star of the defense is safety Talyor Mays, a premier pro-prospect and a legend at USC.

Ohio State will certainly have to find an answer for his outstanding play and account for his location at the start of every play. Pryor's performance in this game relies in his handling of Mays. If he is able to look Mays off and keep the ball away from him, he will likely have an excellent outing. If Pryor is unable to take Mays out of the game, Mays will be an absolute ballhawk and likely will force several turnovers that will break the Buckeye's collective backs.

The Ohio State offense has the potential to explode for quick scores, but prolonged drives will be hard to come by. The play making ability of Pryor will be a key for Ohio State in converting first downs. Scores will be few and far between, but the offense can be effective enough to move the ball to mid-field and give the defense excellent field position.

Ohio State on Defense:

The matchups while USC's offense is on the field should be a game defining matchup.

Both teams are stacked with talent and playmakers and it starts on the edge for both squads.

The Buckeyes are strong with pro-level defensive ends Cameron Heyward and Lawrence Wilson who will take pass rushing duties on the right side. On the left is the premier pass rusher of the Ohio State defense, Thad Gibson.

Coming up the middle is defensive team captain Doug Worthington, who was moved from end to tackle after a knee injury. Worthington doesn't have the raw bull rush, but rather is a shifty, elusive player, that actually serves him very well as both a pass rusher and run stopper. The bulk is provided by 300 lb. Dexter Larimore. Together they create the most talented, and possibly most productive, defensive line Ohio State has seen in some time.

Charged with stopping that list of pass rushers is an equally impressive array of blockers.

At left tackle, the senior Charles Brown, a veteran if not a top tier talent. At right tackle, 5-star recruit Tyron Smith in his second year of playing. Up the middle the Trojans have an outstanding pair of 300 lb. guards, Butch Lewis and Alex Parsons, who just drive holes in defensive lines. 

The battle on the line of scrimmage will be a key point for both teams.

The talent is equally balanced but the edge rush of Ohio State will have its moments in the game and will disrupt USC's young quarterback.

Matt Barkley's best friend in this game will be lining up behind him. RB Joe McKnight burned the Buckeyes for almost 10 yards a carry last year and has an amazing ability in space combining shifty moves and explosive speed.

The thunder to McKnight's lighting is Stafon Johnson, who is a North/South runner the Trojans will bring in on short yardage plays and as a change of pace.

This running game is a clear advantage for the Trojans, and it seems Tressel is very aware of this potential problem. Coming into this season the coaches choose to go with experience over raw talent, playing senior Austin Spitler and junior Ross Homan over talented red-shirts Etienne Sabino and Andrew Sweat. Homan and Spitler's experience, paired with the talent of Brian Rolle and the Ohio State linebacker corp will be a tough group to face for much of the year but they could get overwhelmed by what USC brings to the table.

In the passing game both teams bring talented and evenly matched players.

Chimdi Chekwa developed from a raw athlete into OSU's top cover corner and Andre Amos is a talented senior getting his first real crack.

Southern Cal's Damian Williams has seen real playing time in some of USC's biggest games of recent date, having 90+ receiving yards in last season's games with Ohio State and Oregon State and 162 yards in the Rose Bowl.

On the other end of the offense is the inexperienced David Ausberry, though his size and leaping ability make him a very tough cover.

Like the Trojans, the Buckeye defense is anchored by a senior safety—strong safety Kurt Coleman. Coleman's skills were on full display against Navy as he ripped a fumble and making a diving interception. Coleman has a nose for the big play, is an excellent run stuffer, and good in coverage.

Despite the big play potential, the Trojans are going to be very reliant on their running game and will need to work on short fields to score consistently.

Ohio State's defense is ideally suited to torment a pro style, freshman QB with their strong safety play and excellent defensive ends.

The crowd at Ohio Stadium will be loud and out for blood.

Barkely will not be able to audible.

Combine this with the fact unless Barkley is an amazing study, he will be working with a limited playbook and it seems the Trojan offense is kneecapped coming into this game.

In both cases it seems the defense holds the advantage and the result should be a very low scoring game. Statistically when the Trojans win, it is by 20 or more and when they lose it is by 10 or less, so a close game does not favor them.

Pryor's mobile quarterback play also works against USC, who has historically struggled against running quarterbacks in the Pete Carroll era.

Working in the Trojan's favor in a grinding slug-fest is that they hold a solid advantage on the line of scrimmage over the Ohio State offense and are on even footing with the Buckeye offensive line.

Domination in the trenches is almost always a formula for victory and often can lead to a game that is not so close.

In the end, sadly, I feel the Trojans hold the edge coming into the game, despite their true freshman quarterback.

The edge they hold in the running game and the explosive nature of McNight gives them the quick strike threat that could easily sink the Buckeye defense.

Ohio State could win this game if they are able to force freshman mistakes out of Barkley and Pryor doesn't turn the ball over.