I finally got a chance to sit down and watch Ohio State’s 49-21 win over Indiana a lot more closely on Sunday, so I wanted to share some of what caught my attention. There were no replays up in the Indiana press box, so this was my first real opportunity to watch the game.
I especially wanted to get a closer look at J.T. Barrett’s performance, since I know we all have our own thoughts on how he played on Thursday. First, however, let’s start on defense.
Nobody Puts Babies in at Corner
Watching the game live, I wasn’t nearly as disappointed in the Ohio State corners as Urban Meyer was after the game. Of course, he was busy with the offense quite a bit and didn’t see every pass. He only saw the chains moving. It seemed to me that the coverage was there almost every time, but that the corners’ hands were either late, or the catches were simply fantastic.
Watching the game a second time, and I don’t feel any differently. The coverage was far from perfect, but Indiana’s receivers simply made some outstanding plays. An offense isn’t going to sustain one-handed catches over four quarters, and eventually the Hoosiers began to shrivel.
I know some people were upset that the Buckeyes weren’t bumping or weren’t looking back for the ball, but they did that at times, just not every time. Kerry Coombs doesn’t want them looking back and running because you can’t run fast looking behind you. This was the first time Damon Arnette and Kendall Sheffield played extensive time at corner, so an issue here or there isn’t a surprise.
The best news for the defense was that there were very little yards after the catch. That’s how you know the coverage was tight.
Jashon Cornell Impressed
Even before redshirt sophomore defensive tackle Jashon Cornell’s sack and forced fumble, he flashed into the backfield twice earlier in the game. He showed great burst and quickness off the line. Dre’Mont Jones is the starter at the three tech for good reason, but Cornell being in the rotation is no fluke. His motor was impressive.
Jashon Cornell sacks the QB and forces a fumble in his first big play as a Buckeye and Tracy Sprinkle is the happiest guy on the field. pic.twitter.com/2azwyikJkK
— Tony Gerdeman (@TonyGerdeman) September 3, 2017
Plastic Man
I’m looking at my notebook right now and it says, “Jalyn Holmes is a panther.” The dude is just so long and has a reach that can get him around the edge before his legs get there. I don’t know how to explain it, but he’s just really smooth. He can play inside or out. Heck, he can probably be an outside linebacker on a 3-4 defense in the NFL.
His reach allowed him to knock down a pair of passes as well. He also got his first career start in this game, which was cool to see.
Ridiculousness
If all you can say about this is “He was offside,” then you’re missing the point. Dre’Mont Jones is ridiculous.
Dre'Mont Jones ????? pic.twitter.com/HlyyI0PlMw
— Tony Gerdeman (@TonyGerdeman) September 3, 2017
Issues at Right Guard?
Watching the replay, I got a chance to see what everyone on Twitter and the message boards were talking about. Branden Bowen’s first start got off to a very rocky start. He was getting blown up and put down. He couldn’t get the leverage that he needed and got pushed back because of it.
Bowen eventually got things righted and no doubt learned some lessons. At the start of the second half, left tackle Jamarco Jones was out of the game and Bowen moved to left tackle for a bit. Redshirt sophomore Matt Burrell then came in and played very well at right guard for a series.
This isn’t going to be a situation where the Buckeyes have their hands tied. Bowen is going to have to stay at the top of his game to keep the job. His first start had ups and downs, but he finished strong. The good news is that this should also be his worst start.
Cheeeeeeeeers Johnnie!
Look at how happy everyone is for Johnnie Dixon.
The Spare in the Pair
Yeah, J.K. Dobbins is great and Mike Weber is probably great too, but I was pretty impressed with Antonio Williams. Tony Alford said during camp that he dropped nearly 20 pounds, and he showed it. He rushed for 44 yards on seven carries, and did so when Indiana knew he was coming. He is more agile than he was a year ago and exhibited explosiveness through the hole. He showed nice vision as well.
Barrett’s Night
So here’s the thing, J.T. Barrett was 20-of-35 passing for 304 yards and three touchdowns, and for a lot of people it wasn’t good enough. Was he perfect? No. No quarterback is perfect. Urban Meyer was disappointed that they didn’t hit more deep shots — or any deep shots. That needs to change, clearly.
Watching the game again, I wanted to take a closer look at his 15 incompletions and see what the issues were. Here’s the breakdown of those 15 passes.
+ Throwaway on the run with nobody open
+ Corner route to Marcus Baugh that isn’t really close
+ Wheel route to J.K. Dobbins that hits him in the hands but gets blown up by the safety
+ Drop by Johnnie Dixon
+ Throwaway
+ Fade route in end zone to Austin Mack
+ Throw to Marcus Baugh in end zone, no holding is called
+ Pressured, incomplete to Baugh on corner route
+ Incomplete to diving Binjimen Victor, putting the ball only where his receiver could catch it
+ Thrown just wide of Parris Campbell on a crossing route
+ Drop by Parris Campbell
+ Drop by Parris Campbell
+ Incomplete on deep throw to Marcus Baugh
+ Errant throw while being pressured
+ Throwaway
So in those 15 incompletions there are three throwaways and three drops. The four incompletions to Baugh were bad, but we might want to keep in mind that Baugh had no spring football and very little fall camp. The fact that they haven’t locked in on each other yet isn’t a huge surprise. It’s good to see the Buckeyes trying to utilize the tight end so much, however.
Outside of the throwaways, there were only three passes to wide receivers that weren’t catchable.
When you add those three to the three drops and the three throwaways and the four passes to Baugh that probably need more work, the incompletions add up quickly.
What you will also want to see, however, are the completions.
Namely, once Indiana took a 21-20 lead late in the third quarter, Barrett would go on to complete his final eight pass attempts.
When the game was on the line, Barrett was on the mark, and that’s how you measure a quarterback.
No, the short game won’t beat Alabama, and nowhere in my words above did I say that. Things will need to get better, but they weren’t nearly as bad as some may wish them to be.