Ohio State Football: 5 Burning Questions On Kickoff Eve

How New is this New Offense?

JT Barrett’s departure will mean a new, more open offense — or so the conventional wisdom goes. Barrett, its said, couldn’t make the throws required to play a vertical style; or maybe Urban Meyer was just too set in his ways, too loyal to his offensive philosophy that relies on a heavy dose of QB runs.

The strong-armed Dwayne Haskins will allow Ryan Day and company to run the kind of offense they’ve always wanted — a downfield passing attack with a power run game to keep defenses honest.

But just how much will change from last year to  this year?

It’s hard to envision an Urban Meyer led team getting too far away from the read option style that won him 3 national titles.

Haskins isn’t the athlete that Barrett was, much less Braxton Miller or Tim Tebow. But he’s probably better than Cardale Jones, and who can forget the 6’5″, 240lb Jones running through defenders for a first down?

Chances are we’ll see a lot of familiar plays out of the “new look” offense. But what will be different?

Haskins’ game tape from last year showed a willingness to take chances that may be the biggest hallmark of a new offensive approach. From threading the ball into tight windows on a seam route to firing an out with enough velocity to avoid the trailing cornerback, Haskins has shown he’s not afraid of the tough pass.

That will mean more turnovers. But it should also lead to more big plays.

Sure, some fans may cringe at yet another QB keeper on 3rd and short, just as they did all last season. And they’ll probably cringe at each interception that comes from a gunslinging mentality. But they’ll cheer those incredible touchdown passes — and if there are enough of them, they may cheer when Haskins goes in the first round of next year’s NFL draft.