Ohio State Football: 10 Things To Watch in Week 1 Against Marshall
It's finally here. The 2010 season of college football is finally here after months of fevered anticipation.
And one of the first games of the year will be played in the Horseshoe when the Marshall Thundering Herd come to face the Ohio State Buckeyes on Thursday night.
The Buckeyes are ranked second in the country and have national title aspirations, which would exorcise the demons of championship failures in 2006 and 2007.
And many people feel that this game is merely a warm up for the big showdown September 11 against Miami in Columbus.
But first things first, the Buckeyes need to focus on the Marshall game and avoid the letdowns the team has been notorious for against weaker competition in recent years.
All that said, here are ten things to watch for in the Buckeyes' home opener for the 2010 season.
1. The Beginning of Terrelle Pryor's Heisman Campaign
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Whether or not most fans want to admit it, experts agree that Terrelle Pryor has a chance to win the Heisman Trophy with a spectacular season in 2010.
Despite having inconsistent numbers in 2009, Pryor showed he was capable of throwing the football well not only in the Rose Bowl Game win over Oregon, but in the OSU spring game last April and throughout practice sessions.
Teammates have raved about Pryor's maturity and growth as an overall quarterback, which has been a question ever since his freshman season in 2008.
While he may never have perfect throwing form, if he is more forceful and decisive throwing deep down the field, it could open another dimension to the Ohio State offense.
Fans should not expect an overaggressive offense against Marshall if they want to spring some surprises on Miami, but that doesn't necessarily mean they should play it safe instead.
This is as good an opportunity as ever for Jim Tressel to show he has faith in his star QB and give him the keys to Darrell Hazell's offense, as the WRs coach is expected to take over a large majority of the offensive playcalling.
A strong performance both through the air and on the ground would do wonders for his confidence and his early chances of being a Heisman contender.
2. New Starters in All Levels of the Defense
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Like all great teams, Ohio State is capable of reloading at all the necessary positions.
They will need to continue that trend in 2010, especially on the defensive side of the ball with five new starters.
Most notably will be the two starters up front, DE Nathan Williams, who will not play Thursday against Marshall, and DT John Simon.
Williams, who many Buckeye fans know as a relentless pass rusher in spot situations, will fill the vacancy left behind when Thaddeus Gibson went to the NFL Draft.
Fans in Columbus and throughout Big Ten country should know Simon's name by the end of the season, as he showed great talent throughout his freshman season in the middle of the line, and may be the biggest workout warrior on the entire roster.
The surprise of the fall camp was LB Andrew Sweat, who missed most of the season last year and the spring with a knee injury, stealing the final starting job from Etienne Sabino with a spectacular fall camp.
Sabino, however, should see plenty of time as the fourth linebacker if OSU goes into a 3-4 as they did at times last year, and potentially as a rush end in certain situations.
In the secondary, senior Jermale Hines and another surprise, redshirt freshman C.J. Barnett, will start as the safeties.
Like with Sweat, Barnett was a player who impressed the coaches in fall camps and won the job away from projected starter Orhian Johnson, although both will receive significant playing time.
With this defense, the depth at many of these positions is very good. But it's always exciting to see these new starters fall into place.
3. Ohio State Might Incorporate the Tight End in the Passing Game
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For as long as Jim Tressel has been the coach in Columbus, the Buckeyes have not exactly had a tight end capable of being a big playmaker like Kellen Winslow Jr. was at Miami.
But junior TE Jake Stoneburner might be in position to change all of that.
A converted WR, Stoneburner will look to fill the void as the pass-catching tight end that the Buckeyes offense has not had in a long time.
If Stoneburner can be effective catching the ball in the middle of the field, it can open up receivers DeVier Posey and Dane Sanzenbacher tremendously and some more outside running lanes for Pryor.
And conversely, the fact that so much attention will be paid to Pryor's legs and Posey and Sanzenbacher on the outsides means that Stoneburner should have some opportunities to make big plays.
But we will have to wait and see whether or not this is mostly talk or this will actually happen.
.jpg?w=256 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
4. Will Jim Tressel Let the Horses Loose on Offense?
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While the Ohio State offense should be much better this season than in past years, how much better they are might have nothing to do with Terrelle Pryor—to an extent.
Ultimately, it is Tressel who holds the keys to the offense and will ultimately decide if he wants to let the horses out of the barn.
Tresselball, the ultra-conservative gameplan of winning with defense and field position, might not be a popular choice with the type of talent the Buckeyes have offensively.
It still wins games, but recent history has shown that teams need good offenses as well as good defenses to win.
And with a potential Heisman contender, two talented WRs, and a highly-skilled complement of backs behind a good group of offensive linemen, it would be almost unimaginable to stay conservative.
The offense has the talent, but they need the trust of the coaching staff to make the kind of plays that a national title contender needs to have to get to the big game.
5. The Long-Awaited Debut of Jaamal Berry—Maybe
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Last season, Jim Tressel was constantly flirting with the idea of playing highly-touted freshman RB Jaamal Berry, but injuries kept him from playing throughout the season and in the spring game.
But now, the redshirt freshman back from Miami finally appears to be healthy, and should see some carries against Marshall.
Word out of camps dating back to spring has said that the players are excited about what Berry has done in practices and he has great electricity with the ball in his hands.
But the best news for fans hoping he sees playing time is a commitment from him to holding on to the football, something Coach Tressel values more than anything out of an offensive player.
Berry along with fellow third-string back Jordan Hall are expected to be the lead returners on kickoffs, straying away from the original Tressel philosophy of putting starters back to receive kicks.
And if No. 4 can light up defenses in the first game or two of the season, it may be very tough for Tressel to keep him off the field, unless Berry has more injury problems.
6. Expect Freshmen To Be Contributors Right Away
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One staple of Jim Tressel's career is that if freshmen are good enough to play, he will play them whenever possible.
It appears when it comes to a handful of players, namely WR Corey "Philly" Brown and DT Jonathan "Big Hank" Hankins, they will be on the field by the time the final whistle is blown Thursday, and possibly even early on in the game.
Brown, compared to Philadelphia Eagles WR DeSean Jackson by Terrelle Pryor, has caught the eye of the coaches all camp long and may be the second fastest player on the roster behind Pryor.
Early speculation has him being one of three potential punt returners behind sophomore RB Jordan Hall and senior DB Devon Torrence.
And in the depth chart, Brown is listed as the fourth or fifth receiver, something which should have eyebrows raised throughout the Buckeye State.
Meanwhile in the defensive front, it might be hard to miss Jonathan Hankins.
At 330 lbs., Hankins should remind many of Dan "Big Daddy" Wilkinson as a big defensive tackle with decent athleticism.
While conditioning is a concern, as well as questions about his motor, Hankins may see spot time, especially in run situations.
What might help him is having Cameron Heyward and John Simon on the line, two guys who, on any given play, demand double teams, to take pressure off Big Hank.
In addition, freshman DB Christian Bryant has been inserted as a backup to Tyler Moeller and Jermale Hines in the STAR position, which is a hybrid S/LB position created to help the base 4-3 against spread offenses.
The 2010 recruiting class for OSU may have been small and below the par created by the stellar 2008 and 2009 classes, but there is certainly high-flight talent, and fans might see some of it right away.
7. Changes to the Special Teams Philosophy
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Jim Tressel has long said that the punt is the most important play in football.
But he could not feel happy about how his special teams performed in 2009, with inconsistent punting, field goal kicking, and kick coverage.
That's why in 2010, Tressel seems to have opted for a more entertaining special teams game, with more explosive returners on kickoffs and punts.
As mentioned earlier in the article, young guys like Jordan Hall, Jaamal Berry, and Corey "Philly" Brown will be given the keys to be returners.
All three guys have speed and the ability to be big time returners which could make life much easier for the Buckeyes offense.
Meanwhile, as for the most important play in football according to Tressel, sophomore P Ben Buchanan will have his opportunity. He has a power leg which should help the Buckeyes take control of the field position game, something Tressel values greatly.
8. Facing the Unknown: Doc Holliday and His New Coaching Staff
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While Ohio State has a clear talent edge over the Thundering Herd, the unique challenge of facing a new coach might manifest itself in the early parts of this game.
No one is quite sure what the new Marshall offense will look like this year, especially the OSU defensive coaching staff.
So, it might not be surprising if Marshall has some early offensive success against the Buckeyes.
Doc Holliday has been able to inject some new life into a Marshall football program which has not been too special for a few seasons.
But they will need to do a lot, at least early, to keep themselves in the game and frustrate the OSU defense or it will be a long night for Holliday's Herd.
9. Mike Adams Tries to Lock Down the Left Tackle Spot
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As Lawrence Taylor's infamous hit on Joe Theismann in 1985 and the movie The Blind Side has reminded us, the left tackle position is the second-most important position on offense.
And for the Buckeyes, they have to hope that junior Mike Adams, a five-star recruit out of high school, can turn it on and be the dominant LT many thought he could be.
So far, he has not been able to hold on to the starting job, and it may still be in doubt as senior LT Andy Miller can still steal the starting job during the season.
But for the offensive line of the Buckeyes to take the next step, Adams must become the dominant player he was hyped up to be coming out of high school.
He certainly is athletic enough, but the light just hasn't come on for him as it usually does for most players with his amount of experience.
Adams certainly has the tools to be a great LT, but he has to go prove it on the field.
10. Dealing With the Ohio/Navy Factor
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The most unsettling trend of the Jim Tressel era has been his team's misfortune of keeping teams they should easily beat in games which should realistically be blowouts.
The most recent examples come from 2008 where the Buckeyes needed a fourth quarter rally to beat Ohio University 26-14 and last year where Brian Rolle's interception for a two-point conversion helped OSU escape Navy 31-27.
While Navy was clearly a much better team than the Bobcats, the trend of Tressel teams overlooking weaker competition is unsettling and sure to catch up with the Buckeyes as it did at Purdue last season.
If Ohio State wants to envision itself playing for a national championship, they need to buck (no pun intended) this trend right away and give their players confidence before playing against Miami on September 11.
That said, with the primetime spotlight on the Buckeyes and the decisive talent edge, Ohio State should have little problem taking care of the Thundering Herd.
Final Score Prediction: Ohio State 34 - Marshall 10
This article can be found on Storm the Field.
.jpg?w=480 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
