Is Ohio State's Jim Tressel or Terrelle Pryor More at Fault for Sad Offense?

Yesterday, the Ohio State Buckeyes took care of the formerly unbeaten Wisconsin Badgers 31-13 with the help of 21 points from returns. What makes Buckeye fans uneasy about the win is the continuing saga of offensive ineptitude.

The offense looked dreadful in the first half and failed to sustain drives; don't forget QB Terrelle Pryor looked horrible once again.

Now the message board chatter has flared up again as to who is at fault: the coach, Jim Tressel or the triggerman, Terrelle Pryor.

Regardless of who is at fault, something clearly needs to be done, as the Buckeyes had only one successful offensive drive all game: the final drive of the first half.

So who is really to blame for the struggles infuriating Buckeye Nation?

Here's a look at both sides of the issue.

Reason to blame the coach: The scheme and playcalling lacks flow

Ever since Jim Tressel has been the coach at Ohio State, the Buckeyes have never had quite the offensive dominance that some of the powers like Florida and Texas have nowadays.

The offensive unit in 2006 was the best by far, but most of the stats could have been inflated from a weak conference schedule.

With all of the weapons at wide receiver Tressel has had at his disposal, he has had problems making them as effective as they could have been.

Part of that falls on the lack of a good QB, but that goes back to recruiting. Tressel has not been a good recruiter of solid QBs in his decade long tenure in Columbus.

Pundits have never felt Tressel has adopted an offensive game that can be successful in the modern game where the I-formation is an afterthought in most circles.

Other arguments are that the problem lies in the offensive line, but that can also be a coaching issue. Tressel controls the offense, and must know that he must call plays to help take pressure off an offensive line.

Playcalling involves a delicate balance, but some feel that there's no attempt to balance, and that the play calling borders on insanity.

Many experts feel that the offense would improve if Tressel gives up the play calling duties and hires outside help. But after nine years, he's done nothing.

Clearly at this point, something about the coaching needs to change.

Reason to blame the quarterback: The plays must be properly executed

When it comes to play calling, there is a flipside to the formula: it doesn't matter how good the plays are if they are not executed.

And lately, Terrelle Pryor has been part of a firestorm where he has been unable to read defenses and throw properly, showing poor mechanics. Some have even gone on to say that he was better as a freshman.

Now in all honesty, Pryor is still a good player, but his inconsistency is what is driving fans crazy. He makes amazing plays at a good rate, but he makes boneheaded plays just as often.

He has not been able to read defenses, and looks slow and indecisive when running out of the pocket.

One other thing that has become very apparent is he is afraid of contact and does not run through the middle of the defense when the hole is there.

His runs are all to the outside, which make it much easier to defend if the defense strings the play out, which is more and more common from opponents.

Even if Pryor never becomes the passer that everyone hoped he would be out of high school, he at least needs to improve his decision-making and run the plays that are called.

Great execution oftentimes makes play calling look great, and the onus of that falls squarely on the QB.

Regardless of who is at fault, Ohio State needs to get their act together offensively and fast.

They have no choice because if their offense plays this way against Penn State and Iowa, they may not be in the top ten much longer, regardless of how great the defense is.