The Ohio State football team might need Caleb Downs on offense

The season-ending knee injury to T.C. Caffey has taken the Ohio State running back room from thin to woefully thin. The Buckeyes now have just four scholarship running backs and two of those are true freshmen. Last month, Ryan Day said former Alabama transfer safety Caleb Downs has been sitting in on running back meetings. If Downs playing some running back was kind of a possibility a month ago, it is now a distinct possibility. The question is, how can he be used in the Ohio State offense?

It's Not That Simple

I’m sure a lot of people look at Downs’ superior athletic ability and think you can just hand him the ball and magic will happen. It’s not that simple. The Buckeyes won’t be able to give him the ball each time he is in the game. That makes things way too easy for the defense, so Downs will have to learn to do some other things when he is not getting the ball.

The most difficult thing for young running backs to learn is pass blocking. He will have to learn this so Will Howard (or whoever starts at quarterback) doesn’t end up on his back. A running back who can’t pass block is a liability for an offense.

Speaking of the passing game, Downs will need to learn to run precise routes when called on to do so. Quarterbacks rely on receivers being where they are supposed to be when they are supposed to be there. Running a lazy or sloppy route is a headache for a quarterback and can lead to interceptions. It may seem like a simple thing, but route running requires attention to detail.

When he is in the game for a running play, Downs will need to learn to take the proper course to the hole and the proper way to take a handoff as well. Again, this requires attention to detail. A bad first step can ruin a play and we all know what can happen on a bad handoff.

Once he has the ball, he will need to identify the hole and get through it quickly. That means Downs will have to learn to run with his eyes. The hole will not always open where it is designed, so he will have to keep his head up and use his eyes to make the adjustment.

Once he is through the hole and into the second level, he’ll still need to use his eyes to find running room and turn what is a modest gain into a chunk play. Like all positions in football, running back has a lot of nuances Downs will have to pick up on if he is to help the Ohio State offense.

Can He Be a Weapon?

Despite all he will have to learn if he sees time at running back, I don’t doubt for a second Downs can learn enough to be a very effective weapon. He’s not just a superior athlete, he’s a very intelligent athlete as well. As he showed while playing safety for Alabama last year, he is not afraid of contact, and I expect he will not hesitate to deliver a blow to a defender when carrying the ball.

If Ryan Day and the offensive staff decide to utilize him on offense, I see it being in a spot-duty situation. I think they’ll start him off with a small package of plays and then slowly expand as they see different ways to use him.

I believe Caleb Downs can be a real weapon for this offense, but I don’t want to see it come at the expense of his defensive performance. The Buckeyes have not had a safety like him since Jordan Fuller was back there and Downs is already better than Fuller. He is a game-changer on defense. If they do try to utilize him on offense and it leads to a drop-off in his defensive play, the idea will need to be scrapped immediately.