Ohio State Buckeyes Surprises and Disappointments of 2010

With no preview to write during the bye week, rather than suffer from withdrawal, I decided that this is a good time to take a look at which players have risen above preseason expectations, and which have failed to produce as anticipated in 2010.

Biggest Disappointments

1. Cameron Heyward—In no way am I saying that Cam has played poorly.  He is a fine player with a great motor, and he has enjoyed some excellent moments in 2010. 

But I'd be lying if I said he has lived up to the lofty expectations.  After a super junior year, including a monster game at Penn State, most fans expected Heyward to dominate this season at the point of attack.  After getting to the quarterback for 6.5 sacks in '09, he has only 1.5 thus far in 2010.  And, he failed to come up big in the Wisconsin game when the team needed him most.  Never fear—he'll likely still be a first round draft pick who will have a fine NFL career.

2.  DeVier Posey—Another guy who has been the victim of huge expectations after a big 2009.  Posey finished with 60 catches and eight touchdowns, saving his best for the Rose Bowl when he torched Oregon for eight catches, 101 yards and a touchdown.  Most people (including me) thought he would have a 1000 yard season in '10. 

Like Heyward, he has certainly had his moments, and may be rounding into form.  But after being "the" man last year, he has taken a backseat to Dane Sanzenbacher for most of this season.  And, against physical teams like Illinois and Wisconsin, DeVier has disappeared, developing a case of the drops, particularly when cutting across the middle.  Let's hope he reverses that trend against Iowa.

3. Brandon Saine—It's hard to believe that this guy was second team Big Ten last year, finishing with 739 yards at 5.1 per carry, after running strong down the stretch.  This season after a big start against Marshall, Saine disappeared, reverting to his sophomore form when he frustrated fans with his dancing around behind the line of scrimmage.  Never great at hitting the hole, he improved greatly as a junior and came into 2010 with a lot of confidence.  Alas, as the year has progressed he has become a receiving threat out of the backfield who is pretty much a non-factor as a runner.  To his credit, Saine hasn't complained and has served as a leader in spite of his limited role.

4. Orhian Johnson—Coming into this season, we heard a lot about how Johnson is a "superfreak" athlete, and he was expected to be the starting strong safety out of fall camp. Instead, it was former corner C.J. Barnett who got the call against Marshall (and coaches made it clear it was more than the fact that Johnson was banged up). 

After Barnett's injury in Week 2, Orhian assumed the starting spot but has struggled ever since.  He simply has not made enough plays (27 tackles, none for loss) and has been out of position repeatedly, showing poor pass coverage skills.  There is still time for the sophomore to redeem himself, but 2010 has to be considered a flop. 

5. Ben Buchanan—We all know how Jim Tressel preaches that the punt is the most important play in football.  Well, if that is the case, the Buckeyes have been an epic fail this year.  Ben has not kicked the ball particularly long or high, and lacks the kind of consistency an Ohio State punter is expected to possess.  The team's net punting average of 32.9 may not all be on Buchanan but he has been the greatest culprit.

 

Biggest Surprises

1. Johnathan Hankins—The big guy from Detroit came to Ohio State labeled by many as a project.  Most recruiting services had him as a three star player, and Phil Steele, who merely averages out the ratings from the various services, ranked Hankins as the 94th best defensive lineman in the class of 2010.  Listed at 335 pounds, many estimate that Johnathan weighs at least 350, so the popular thought was he would redhsirt and get in better shape.  But his quickness defies logic, and Hankins has quickly become the best D-lineman of the bench, totaling 14 tackles and a sack.

2. Dane Sanzenbacher—After a nice junior year as the No. 2 receiver, we all knew Dane ran good routes and had sticky hands.  But few fans would have picked him to become Pryor's go-to guy.  So far in 2010 Sanzenbacher has 42 catches, 658 yards and eight touchdowns, all of which surpass his 13 game totals a year ago.  And, Dane was one of the few guys who rose to the occasion at Wisconsin playing with a toughness exhibited by few Buckeyes that night.

3. Boom Herron—Like Sanzenbacher, Boom was supposed to be a complimenatry player, not the main guy.  After running for 600 yards at 3.9 per carry in 2009, he has already rushed for 634 this season, averaging a yard more per carry.  Boom has also scored 12 touchdowns, and seems to be getting stronger as the season wears on.  I, for one, thought 2010 would be the year of Brandon Saine, but Herron long ago secured the starting job and hasn't looked back.

4. Andrew Norwell—This fall Ohio State seemed loaded on the line with five experienced starters plus reserves like Andrew Miller and Marcus Hall.  Norwell seemed destined for a redshirt.  However, with Hall's off the field issues, Norwell was needed.  Still, few thought he would end up making a major contribution.  As 2010 reaches the most crucial stretch of games, he is the first lineman off the bench, and considering J.B. Shugarts' foot problems it is a good thing Norwell came to OSU ready to play.  In the classic words of Cousin Eddie he has been a real nice surprise.

5. Terrelle Pryor's completion percentage—I realize I am talking about a statistic more than a player, because we all expected Pryor to be the star of this year's offense.  But how many of us thought he would be hitting over two thirds of his passes?  I don't remember the last time a player improved their completion percentage as greatly (56.6 to 67.6 percent) in one year as Terrelle has done from '09 to '10. Admittedly he has feasted on weaker competition, and it remains to be seen what he will do down the stretch.  But his accuracy has been down right amazing at times, including setting a school record with 16 consecutive completions against Ohio.

Honorable mention: If not for an early season ending injury we would be listing Tyler Moeller as a surprise, after a fabulous start to 2010.  And his replacement, Christian Bryant, was also an unexpected positive until he, too, went down with an injury.

 

Taking Care of Business

A number of players have played good football just as expected. They don't qualify as positive surprises because we thought they would be good, but you have to tip your hat to the solid job they have done week in and week out.  Among this group are seniors that will be greatly missed: guards Bryant Browning and Justin Boren, defensive tackle Dexter Larrimore, linebacker Ross Homan, cornerback Chimdi Chekwa, and safety Jermale Hines. 

You just can't remember many times that these guys made mistakes or were out of position this season.  Some might include Brian Rolle, but I thought he was exposed at Wisconsin, and Devon Torrence, who has been burned a few times too many for my liking.