Ohio State Football: Awaken from the OU Nightmare
Nightmare in ‘The Shoe’.
Ohio State fans wish they had fallen asleep around 8:00 Saturday evening and just awoke from a nightmare. Unfortunately, they didn’t wake up from one but lived through it.
Everyone talked about the Buckeyes flaws all offseason. The receivers could not get open. The team lost too much in the secondary. JT can’t throw the ball downfield.
However, all doubts were retorted. The receivers will figure it out. Ohio State is DBU; no worries in the secondary. Finally, JT can do it all.
The coaches did nothing to quell those projections, especially Urban’s unflinching loyalty to JT Barrett. However, tonight the nightmare revealed itself.
Baker Mayfield and the Sooners may be championship quality, but the Buckeyes let them exploit all flaws.
Starting on defense, the inability to get the OU offense off the field was indefensible (much like Mayfield and his crew of freshmen). The Buckeyes forced a single punt all night.
The way that OU stayed on the field provides a scarier outlook for the Buckeyes moving forward.
The Sooners consistently beat the Buckeyes sideline to sideline. Whether with pop passes or dump offs, the Buckeyes made backs and tight ends into All-Americans. No answer existed running horizontally which is a testament to the loss of Raekwon McMillan and the Buckeyes lacking at the safety position.
Additionally, like Indiana, the Sooners negated the one thriving part of the defense: the D-line. The all-stars up front mean nothing if the pass plays develop in two seconds.
The quick pass game also affects the run protection up front as they can’t afford to let plays develop. The line must dive full force into a mad dash at the QB. The draw works wonderfully against this attack.
The Sooners revealed a repeatable game plan to beat the Buckeyes. That is scary.
The offense disappointed in an unfortunately unsurprising manner as well.
Crucial passing downs saw receivers still (STILL) not able to find space. Barrett waits and waits, but no one is to be found.
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Combine the inability of the receivers to beat coverage with the right offensive line blocking air and a true disaster arises. Isaiah Prince still looks lost on third down protection.
The most unforgivable of all struggles may be with JT Barrett. Despite consistent backing, he seems unable to progress in focus areas.
The downfield passing game continues to look horrific. Part of this comes from dropped passes, but inconsistency and late decision-making continue to be underlying causes.
Placing JT next to Baker Mayfield tonight makes matters look much worse. Time after time, Baker turned poor situations into progress and touchdowns. Meanwhile, third down and medium distances seemed a sure punt for the Buckeyes.
Urban Meyer is still the coach he is and time remains to turn this around. Do not forget the strides made in 2014 after a week two embarrassment.
Next: Systemic Failure For Ohio State in Loss to Sooners
However, right now, go to bed and hope for better dreams than Urban. He will get no sleep for quite some time after this nightmare.