Meyer wants to stick with one guy, understandably, but when Jones struggles, even for just a quarter or two, it’s impossible not to think, “Well, Barrett is just sitting there”.
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To be honest, Elliott bailed out a struggling Ohio State offense on a Saturday when it needed to be bailed out. Both bring a championship pedigree to the position and are so talented that it didn’t feel it was possible to go wrong either way.
Meyer was asked if he had considered using J.T. Barrett at quarterback in those situations, similar to what he did with Tim Tebow when he was a freshman at Florida. NIU and Hawaii each held Elliott to less than 5 yards per carry, and the Buckeyes only scored 26 points per game across those two outings.
“It’s impossible to live up to expectations”, Meyer said. Ohio State has yet to face an opponent with even the faintest hope of national relevance and has looked listless and ordinary, anyway. The same theme has weaved its way through all of the Buckeyes games so far this season though, the offense that ran like a Ferrari last season has numerous same parts, but not the same fluid efficiency.
In the first five games, the Buckeyes have 13 turnovers (six fumbles, seven interceptions) for a minus-4 margin that ranks 101st of 128 FBS teams. “I mean right now”. Michigan State is also solid on defense (as they always are), although they have shown signs of weakness against a few of the teams on their schedule. Caleb Rowe completed 8 of 27 passes for 47 yards, no touchdowns but three interceptions. Turnovers and penalties and producing in the red zone, which were strengths past year, have slowed the Buckeyes in 2015. “We’ve had that conversation. If you have any hair, it’s blowing backwards and the game is screaming the whole time”.
“Red-zone production, we’ve spent more time than normal on it (in practice)”, Meyer said.
Sudfeld is banged up again and limped through an ankle injury inflicted at Wake Forest that was aggravated against Ohio State.
With an experienced passer in Connor Cook and a solid running duo with LJ Scott and Madre London, the Spartans’ offense has more than enough firepower to give any team fits, and the Buckeyes are no different. Defensively, they’re getting off the field on 33.3 percent of their third downs, which is tied for 46th nationally. You can’t just say, ‘Throw it to him.’ You just can’t do that. “Everyone has been dogging the offensive line, so it represents what our unit is all about – a bunch of tough, hard-working dudes giving it their all and trying to help our team make plays”.
Saturday was Elliott’s 10th consecutive game running for over 100 yards, and his performance against Indiana should put him officially back in the Heisman race. These next five games will tell whether or not the Buckeyes will be able to handle the season ending games against rivals Michigan State and Michigan to attempt to get back to the playoff. After months of hype about having the three best QBs in the country, the Buckeyes find themselves with two signal callers who have yet to play to their potential.
Price said Ohio State’s explosive offense – Ezekiel Elliott had rushing TDs of 55, 65, and 75 yards in the second half against the Hoosiers – can be a problem near the goal line.
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The line for Saturday’s game, which opened closer to 30, could come down closer to kickoff.
