Ohio State Football: 10 Keys To Beating the Miami Hurricanes on September 11
Seven years ago in Tempe, Ohio State shocked the college football world by defeating the Miami Hurricanes 31-24 in double-overtime, in what would be one of the greatest college football games ever.
Fast forward to September 11, as the Hurricanes come up north to Columbus for a regular season showdown with the Buckeyes.
This time, the tables are reversed, with the Buckeyes being the national title contender, and the U looking to get back to the level they were at in 2002. And a win against the Buckeyes would help the cause.
But Ohio State will need to win this game to state their case for playing for the national championship in Glendale in January.
As two talented teams meet in Columbus, here are 10 keys that Ohio State will need to take care of the Hurricanes on Saturday.
1. Terrelle Pryor Must Be Spectacular
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It's no secret that Terrelle Pryor is a Heisman favorite among several players.
It's also no secret that Pryor has a lot to prove on a big stage, and being able to win games by himself a la Vince Young.
But Pryor has looked much better, showing in his first game of the season, albeit against Marshall, improved throwing technique and pocket awareness which has helped him become a better passer.
With the talent the Hurricanes possess in all three levels, Pryor will need to be at his best for 60 minutes, at a level higher than the performance against Oregon in the Rose Bowl.
In fact, Jim Tressel has tried to give his Heisman hopeful QB some motivation by saying that he hasn't had a "winning performance" in his career as a Buckeye.
Whatever Tressel implies when he mentions a winning performance, he and the rest of Buckeye Nation hope that their star QB can have a big day.
And he can't just have a big game running or throwing, but doing both and being able to keep the Miami defense off balance.
If he can be a true dual-threat and be effective both in the pocket and running down the sidelines, he will give Miami's defense a full load to handle.
2. Boom, Zoom, and Others Must Run Ball Effectively
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Even though many out there believe that Ohio State will be a much-improved passing team, the Buckeye offense will always be a rush-oriented attack.
This means that RBs Brandon Saine, Dan "Boom" Herron, and possibly backups Jordan Hall and Jaamal Berry will need to be effective running the football against a Miami defense that held Florida A&M to 52 yards rushing in their Thursday night win.
Saine will be the main guy counted on, and his experience plus his great combination of size and speed will have to be put to good use.
Herron may not be the flashy type of back, but he is very capable of ripping off chunks of yards, and does not fumble the football.
The wild cards in the backfield will be the guys that return the kickoffs, RBs Jordan Hall and Jaamal Berry.
While neither may have too many carries in Saturday's game, should they see the field, they can both be just as dangerous as Saine and Herron.
Hall is the shiftier of the two and has some of the best vision out of the Ohio State backfield. Berry has some of the fastest acceleration of any OSU tailback.
But regardless of whatever backs Pryor gives the ball to, they must run the ball with authority and make the Miami defense respect the run.
3. OSU Offensive Line Must Slow Down Miami Defensive Line
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Everyone knows that Ohio State has one of the best defensive lines in the country.
But the Buckeyes offensive line may have the biggest challenge of all going up against a star-laden and deep Hurricane defensive line.
And when it comes to the Miami defensive line, it is about two star players, All-American DE Allen Bailey and DT Marcus Forston.
Bailey is a very athletic end and is a load to handle with his size and speed, making him a tough cover for left tackles. And LT Mike Adams will certainly have his hands full.
The interior linemen, especially C Mike Brewster and LG Justin Boren, don't have a vacation either, going up against Forston who is a very athletic linemen who can create havoc in the interior of the line.
While Ohio State's offensive line has been untested, they do have experience against talented defensive lines, practicing against their own every day.
But this will be a challenge in itself because they have not seen Miami's unit.
For the Brew Crew, which is the nickname for the 5-star offensive linemen, Adams, Brewster, and RT JB Shugarts, who came together to Columbus in 2008, this may be their biggest challenge yet.
If they can contain this explosive unit and win the battles in the trenches, the Buckeyes will have a big advantage on offense.
If not, the Canes can really control the tempo with their defense.
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4. Ohio State Must Create Pressure with Just Four
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While Miami has a great defensive line, the Buckeyes do have plenty of talent on their own to get pressure on QB Jacory Harris.
But to have the most effect on Harris, who is prone to making mistakes under pressure, Ohio State must be able to get pressure with four linemen and drop seven into coverage more times than not.
And OSU has some excellent horses on the line to help, including DE Nathan Williams who should be activated for Saturday's game after a knee injury.
Williams, who will be opposite All-American DE Cameron Heyward, has a relentless motor off the edge and can make life miserable for offensive linemen and blocking backs.
Heyward himself has created an image of being powerful off the edge and being strong in the running and passing game.
But the guy to keep an eye on should be sophomore DT John Simon, who may be the strongest guy in the front four.
Simon has been a workout warrior, and he is relentless in the middle, which should cause him to draw double-teams more often.
What should give Ohio State an edge is that they have a veteran defensive line going up against an inexperienced Miami offensive line.
But it will be up to the front four, outside of any exotic blitz packages that Jim Heacock and Luke Fickell cook up, to create problems for Harris and the Miami offense.
5. Back Seven Must Be Opportunistic
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Forcing mistakes is one thing, but a great defense knows how to turn mistakes into turnovers and big plays.
And when it comes to the Ohio State defense, they know very well how to force takeaways with an aggressive mindset.
The Buckeyes forced the third-most turnovers in college in 2009 with 35 takeaways, all without one of their most ferocious players, S/LB (STAR position) Tyler Moeller.
Moeller, the Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week for Week 1, has tremendous speed and is a powerful hitter, which makes him a X-factor for the Silver Bullets defense.
LBs Brian Rolle and Ross Homan are two of the best LBs in the Big Ten, and are very cerebral in addition to being terrific athletes.
The secondary is a question mark, with DBs Chimdi Chekwa and Devon Torrence being talented, but inconsistent at times, and OSU breaking in S Jermale Hines and C.J. Barnett.
But even with question marks, this group still has a ton of talent and will have its hands full against Miami WRs Leonard Hankerson, Aldarius Johnson, and Travis Benjamin.
Expect Miami to get their big plays, but also expect that the back seven for the Buckeyes will make their presence felt in a positive way.
6. The Offense Has To Spread the Ball Around
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Miami's defense has just as many weapons as Ohio State on defense, including a true shutdown corner in Brandon Harris.
This means that if Pryor wants to target his favorite target in DeVier Posey exclusively, he may be playing right into Harris's hands.
To help counter this, the offensive game plan should call for the Buckeyes to utilize all of their main playmakers, especially WR Dane Sanzenbacher and TE Jake Stoneburner.
Past history suggests that Stoneburner, who had 41 yards on three receptions against Marshall, should have a big day against Miami, who gave up a combined 215 yards receiving to Wisconsin tight ends in the loss at the Champs Sports Bowl.
In addition, OSU can have success by putting Brandon Saine out wide as he has shown to be an effective weapon in the passing attack.
By spreading the ball around, they can keep Miami's athletic defense from overloading to one side of the field or focusing solely on one player.
But in order for that to work, all of Ohio State's playmakers must be at a high level, which they are certainly capable of doing.
7. Special Teams Must Elevate Their Play
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Kick coverage was a problem for Ohio State last season, and it came up again in the game against Marshall, where the special teams gave up a 62-yard kickoff return from RB Andre Booker.
And Miami has some dangerous returnmen of their own in freshman RB Lamar Miller and experienced WR Travis Benjamin.
If Ohio State wants to make Jacory Harris and the Miami offense work, they cannot afford to let Miami's dangerous returners give the offense great field position.
And when the Buckeyes receive kicks, it will be up to returners Jaamal Berry and Jordan Hall to create short fields for the offense, and possibly tilt the field in the direction that favors OSU should they go into a Tresselball mode.
Special teams may be the most underrated facet of football, and the Buckeyes will have to execute effectively to take the pressure off both the offense and defense.
8. No Tresselball Allowed
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During the era of Jim Tressel, one word has come to mean both good and bad things: Tresselball.
Tresselball is the style of play that centers around an ultra-conservative offense and relying on defense and special teams to win games.
The strategy has come under fire for several years as playing not to lose instead of playing to win, as the Buckeyes did against Texas in 2005, LSU in 2007, and USC in 2009.
If nothing else, the losses in big games have taught us that Tresselball doesn't work against teams of equal or greater talent.
So for the Buckeyes to win this game, they will have to abandon Tresselball and play a more aggressive style of offense with a killer instinct.
But that only happens when Tressel has an offense and a QB he trusts will protect the football. If the Marshall game was any indication, that is what Ohio State has.
Saturday afternoon would be a great opportunity for Jim Tressel to let loose the horses and never look back.
9. Feed off the Crowd
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Even though USC was able to beat Ohio State in the Horseshoe in 2009, Matt Barkley and the Trojans learned a valuable lesson all opponents should already know: Never challenge the Buckeye fans.
After saying that the OSU crowd won't affect him, Barkley and the Trojans invoked the largest crowd in Ohio State history to be the loudest it had been in years.
Vince Young and Pete Carroll among others have said that the crowds at Ohio State are the loudest they have ever seen.
And Tuesday, Sun-Sentinel reporter Steve Gorten was the latest to poke the proverbial bear, by saying that Ohio State fans aren't intimidating and a couple of Miami players shared in his opinion.
What Ohio State needs to do is to take the expected crowd noise, which should be at a very high level, and turn that into energy on the field.
If the USC game was any indication, the OSU fans will bring their loudest voices all afternoon to respond to the challenge and stand behind their team.
How the Buckeye players respond to the volume may make the difference in how much effort and heart they play with Saturday.
10. Take Advantage of Any Potential Miami Overaggression and Start Fast
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Recent talk from Miami players cites a high amount of confidence and a potential desire to show the world that Miami football is back on top.
With the desire to get back to the top of the college football world and the potential to avenge the U's loss to OSU in the 2003 Fiesta Bowl, the Hurricanes might be playing with a lot of emotion.
But the problem with that is there is a difference between playing with all emotion and playing with controlled emotion.
That is not to say that Miami will be out of control, but the potential is there based on the history in different situations.
And if the Hurricanes are too aggressive, they might play into OSU's hands, as they will try to take advantage of mistakes caused by playing too reckless.
Regardless of whether or not Miami will be playing under control, they will come out with plenty of early energy.
So that means Ohio State will have to get off to a fast start to try to drain some of that energy and make them play from behind.
Prediction:
Miami's talent keeps the game close, but ultimately Ohio State has more big-game experience which gives them the edge in the final score.
Ohio State 31 - Miami 21
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