Ohio State Football: Why the Outlook in 2012 Is Much Brighter

After nearly losing to Toledo and getting dominated by a depleted Miami squad, things did not look bright for Ohio State. However, fast-forward to Week 11, and the Buckeyes are looking more and more like a team that could win the Big Ten.

They beat Wisconsin at home and get a demoralized Penn State team at Ohio Stadium next week. After that, they go play Michigan in Ann Arbor, in a series that the Buckeyes have dominated in recent years. In last season’s game, they completely stopped Denard Robinson.

Looking ahead even further, the outlook for 2012 is even better.

The most important factor in predicting how a season will turn out is experience, and Ohio State will have a bunch of it.

There are only five seniors who start, including Mike Adams and Dan Herron, who have both missed time this season. Therefore, their backups already have a lot of experience.

Quarterback Braxton Miller has grown by leaps and bounds since arriving on campus in January. If he can continue to progress at that rate, he will be one of the premier signal-callers in the conference and possibly in the country.

Additionally, none of the juniors are expected to leave early for the NFL draft. Their defense should get even better. Ohio State currently ranks 16th in the country in yards allowed and are only giving up 18 points per game.

On special teams, both the kicker and punter return, and both of them have been remarkably efficient all year.

The only place of concern is on the offensive line, where three starters will be gone. That includes both tackles as well as center Mike Brewster.

However, with a running quarterback, the offensive line is not as critical as it is for other teams.

If this team can finish the year strongly, make it to the Big Ten championship game and/or win a tough bowl game, they should be in the Top 15 or Top 10 come 2012.