Buckeyes struggle, but run all over the Hoosiers

The Buckeyes did not impress yesterday afternoon in Ohio Stadium against the now 1-8 Indiana Hoosiers. They did, however, manage to run for nearly 350 yards as a team with three players (Braxton Miller, Boom Herron, and Carlos Hyde) running for over 100 yards as the Buckeyes pulled away late from the Hoosiers 34-20 to improve to 6-3 on the season and 3-2 in the conference, keeping their hopes at Indianapolis alive for at least one more week.

After being the strength all season long, Fickell’s defense looked quite toothless most of the afternoon, allowing Indiana to score ten points on their first two drives to start the game. It seemed to me that the Buckeye defense struggled with the fast-paced tempo and mobility of Indiana QB Tre Roberson. Roberson, another freshman QB which made for the first such matchup in a Big Ten game since 1988, ran for 70 yards on 20 carries while throwing for 174 yards and 1 touchdown.

Indiana started the game at the 40 on a kickoff out of bounds and came away with an opening drive field goal. Then, Miller was hit from behind and fumbled (thanks for nothing, J.B. Shugarts) to give Indiana a short field, which they used to take a ten point lead on a Stephen Houston touchdown run. Houston had 56 yards rushing on the day.

Following the pattern of the past two games, the Ohio State offense continues to get much more potent. They were able to rip off several 20+ yard plays. Even though Miller had just 55 yards passing, nearly all of it came on two big pass plays in the same late first quarter drive: one to receiver Chris Fields over the middle for 26 yards on third and long and the other to FB Zach Boren as he leaked out of the backfield for a 25 yard gain. Braxton was 5-of-11 passing, and while some of those incompletions (and his one interception) were terribly overthrown, with those two plays, he showed that he is capable of hanging in the pocket and making the proper read. Miller was also able to draw a couple of pass interference calls on deep passes, which won’t be evident in the boxscore.

Braxton certainly still has a long way to go. First, I would love it if the Buckeye quarterback could be persuaded to throw the ball away occasionally instead of taking unnecessary sacks or running out of bounds behind the line. The Hoosiers racked up six sacks, and in my opinion, half of those could have been easily avoided with better awareness. Next, he needs to make the intermediate 10-15 yard throw. I’m not sure Braxton will ever be able to air it out 30 times a game comfortably, but overthrowing a guy by ten yards when he is ten yards away is just not acceptable.

So, as I mentioned, there were a couple of blips in the passing game, but this one was all about the ground. After falling behind 10-0 halfway through the first, Miller ran a QB draw on 2nd and long that turned into a 81-yard touchdown run. Key blocks by Herron at the line and receivers Philly Brown and Devin Smith downfield made Brax getting to the endzone a reality. Boom himself ripped off runs of 48, 40, 20, and 15 (TD) yards as the Buckeye offensive line and whatever back was carrying the ball were able to gouge the Indiana front seven all day long when they set their mind to it. Boom finished with 14 carries and 141 yards, and it’s no coincidence that the Buckeyes have taken their play to another level since Herron was reinstated. Carlos Hyde, who despite being third on the depth chart at running back is the team’s leading rusher, got over the century mark too with 15 carries for 105 yards and one score. With Jordan Hall injured and Jamaal Berry suspended, Hyde got his opportunity, and with the run-heavy offense, Ohio State will continue to need two backs getting double digit carries in addition to Miller.

The defense did tighten things up in the second half, however, as they were able to keep the Hoosiers off the board for the final quarter and a half. The always-a-menace John Simon was that and more in this game, piling up 10 tackles (3 for a loss) and 1 sack. Bradley Roby had a bone-chilling hit early in the second quarter on Shane Wynn, and he continues to impress me as a starting corner and true freshman. They made the key play when it was needed as Indiana was trying to tie the game at 27 late. With just over 4 minutes to go and Indiana into OSU territory at the 44, Travis Howard intercepted a Roberson pass and set the Buckeye offense up to run out the clock. Instead, Carlos Hyde ripped off a 47 yard run which set him up to run in for six just two plays later for the dagger.

Quietly, one thing that has improved drastically of late has been Drew Basil and the kicking game. Basil missed the first four attempts of his career (two of those this year) but after putting two kicks from 36 and 45 through yesterday, he has now hit on 12 straight.

There’s no doubt the Bucks are gaining some serious momentum, and while I don’t think they’re consistent enough to rattle off three more wins to finish the season and potentially get to Indianapolis, the opportunity is certainly there. The Buckeyes face the Boilermakers in West Lafayette next Saturday afternoon.

(Photo: Jay LaPrete/AP)