Ohio State Football: H-back unit could be Urban Meyer’s best ever

The H-backs on this year’s Ohio State football team could go down as the best unit Urban Meyer has ever had and he has coached some great ones.

The three H-backs on the 2014 Ohio State football team formed a terrific unit. Of course coach Meyer had an outstanding player at Florida, Percy Harvin, who put up huge numbers by himself as did Curtis Samuel two years after he was a part of the 2014 trio. Any other H-back(s) who added to their yardage totals made for an outstanding unit.

However, this year’s H-back unit may put up total yardage numbers that will surpass any others Urban has had.

Let’s look at Harvin’s and Samuel’s best season as well as the number’s put up by the H-backs in 2014. Then the totals this year’s unit has put up so far and project them out for a full season if the players stay on the pace they are on.

• In 2007 Harvin rushed for 764 yards and had 59 receptions for 868 yards. He had 1,622 total yards from scrimmage and scored 10 touchdowns.
• In 2016 Samuel rushed for 771 yards and caught 74 passes for 865 yards. His total yards from scrimmage was 1,636 with 15 scores.

Here are the stats the young trio of backs put up in  2014,

• Dontre Wilson:  100 yards rushing, 21 receptions for 300 yards, yards from scrimmage 400 and 3 touchdowns
• Jalin Marshall:  145 yards rushing, 38 receptions for 499 yards, yards from scrimmage 644 and 7 touchdowns
• Curtis Samuel:  383 yards rushing, 11 receptions for 95 yards, yards from scrimmage 478 and 6 touchdowns

Totals:  628 yards rushing, 70 receptions for 894 yards, yards from scrimmage 1,522 and 16 touchdowns.

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Now for the stats of this year’s unit:

• Parris Campbell:  11 yards rushing, 35 receptions for 501 yards, yards from scrimmage 512 and 7 touchdowns.
• K.J. Hill:  -3 yards rushing, 31 receptions for 364 yards, total yards from scrimmage 361 and 2 touchdowns.
• Demario McCall:  26 yards rushing, 5 receptions for 46  yards, yards from scrimmage 72 yards and no touchdowns.

If this unit stays on the pace they are on, they will have accumulated 68 yards rushing, 142 receptions for 1,822 yards, 1,890 yards from scrimmage and score 18 touchdowns by the end of the regular season.

Not too shabby.

In years past, Urban Meyer’s H-backs’ production was more balanced between rushing and receiving than this year’s unit. That’s probably due in large part to the fact he has two 1,000 yard rushers in the backfield to carry the load in the running game.

Whatever the case, you can’t deny the effectiveness of this year’s group of H-backs. In the end it’s the total yards from scrimmage and scoring that counts. So if Campbell, Hill and McCall continue to play at the high level they have thus far this season, they may become the best H-back unit Urban has ever had.