BGSU’s pass attack is Urban Meyer’s biggest concern in Week 1
September 1, 2016Browns fall to Bears 21-7 in final preseason game
September 1, 2016A full eight months have passed since DeShone Kizer’s final pass fell incomplete allowing The Ohio State University to defeat Notre Dame in the Fiesta Bowl. Since then a record number of Buckeyes traded scholarships for NFL paychecks, and a new freshman class has arrived full of promise, but lacking experience. Both young and old players will get a chance to make their mark on the 2016 season this Saturday when the Bowling Green State University Falcons visit Ohio Stadium.
Saturday marks the fifth matchup between Ohio State and Bowling Green. OSU leads the all-time series 4-0. The schools last faced off in 2006 which the home Buckeyes won 35-7. Troy Smith accounted for three touchdowns and tailback Antonio Pittman accounted for the other two. Over all four matchups Ohio State leads Bowling Green 120-43.
BGSU, in many ways, exemplifies the best of #MACtion. The Falcons went 10-4 last year including victories over Big Ten clubs Maryland and Purdue. Bowling Green went on to defeat Northern Illinois in the MAC title game, but subsequently fell 58-27 to Georgia Southern in the GoDaddy
Bowl. The campaign marked BGSU’s second conference title in three years.
The hype surrounding Ohio State entering 2016 is subdued (by Ohio State standards). In 2015 the club received the Associated Press’s first unanimous No. 1 ranking in the preseason poll. OSU struggled under these expectations and led to consternation among the fans. A victory over
Northern Illinois was dissected as if it were a loss. Indiana gave the Bucks a scare for the first time in twenty years. The perfect season ended at the hands of Michigan State who secured a last-second win in Columbus to take an East Division lead that they would not relinquish. Ohio
State took out their anger on That School Up North, but not even a 42-13 win there could return the Scarlet and Gray to the College Football Playoff. The Buckeyes took some solace in a Fiesta Bowl victory over illustrious UND, but the feeling remained that the season could have had more.
The Buckeyes own a No. 6 ranking entering 2016 which feels in line with the team’s ability and the rest of the college football landscape. Ultimately the success of the season lies between veterans living up to their ability and freshmen maturing quickly. On the one hand there is redshirt junior quarterback J.T. Barrett. No longer will Barrett share signal calling duties—he is the unquestioned starter and has appeared on preseason Heisman watch lists. Last season Barrett backed up the departed Cardale Jones until Week 8 when JT firmly claimed the reins to the offense. Barrett completed 93-of-147 passes along with 11 touchdowns and four interceptions. He will have less support on the ground (Ezekiel Elliott turned pro) and will need some icebreaker drills to get to know his new teammates. Still, Barrett is no longer the kid thrown into the fray for an injured Braxton Miller. He is unquestioned captain of the offense and will need to make plays to help his teammates improve. We know who he is. On the other hand, there is a certain sibling we still need to meet.
Nick Bosa is Joey Bosa’s younger brother, but I hesitate to call him “little.” Bosa stands 6-4 and weighs 265 pounds. He is large, strong, tough, and wears number 97 like his big bro. The product of St. Thomas Acquinas (Florida) knows that he has big shoes to fill, and head coach Urban Meyer is
banking on him stepping up quickly. Sophomore defensive end Sam Hubbard, who filled in for Joey a bit last year, will also be a stabilizing force for continuit on the D-line. Together they have the potential to wreak havoc on opposing quarterbacks.
Throwback Program of the Week
Continuing a tradition from last season, I will take a little time each week remembering a college football program from the past. For the first week of the season let’s look back a full century to a 1916 program for a game against Northwestern. Our leather headed cover player punts the rock in a classic throwback uniform with the background blending into the player’s scarlet jersey. Nike no doubt would not approve, but this look would be quite the throwback to bring to the twenty-first century.
Saturday’s season opening matchup features a subtle storyline – an intra-Ohio football game. Ohio State stands atop the Buckeye mountain as the premier college football program in the state. Not only are the Buckeyes a perennial national contender, the have held it down within state lines as well. No non-OSU club has defeated the Buckeyes in Columbus since Oberlin won 7-6 in 1921 (a year before Ohio Stadium opened). Under Urban Meyer the Bucks have trounced their fellow Ohioans a combined 172-38. Playing the Bucks is motivation enough, but it’s fair to wonder if that stat is posted somewhere in the Falcons practice space this week.
Unlike the NFL, college football teams do not play a preseason. Every game counts from the first to the last. While BGSU does not hold the same pedigree as some Big Ten foes, this is still a defending conference champion coming off a ten-win season that has the potential to do
damage on the field. Beginning this year, the Big Ten will play nine conference games which means these non-conference matchups take on more significance. While the juicy matchup comes when Ohio State travels to Norman, Oklahoma in a few weeks, it’s important to follow the classic sports cliché and take it “one game at a time.” All I know is there is finally football to watch on Saturday and I cannot wait to see what the Buckeyes can do.