Football

Reading the Buckeye Leaves — Michigan State Week

by Kyle Morgan

There is a lot at stake this week versus a Michigan State opponent that has historically been a thorn in the side of Ohio State.

Defensively, the Buckeyes should be motivated to prove last week was an anomaly and not the true identity of this collective unit.

From an offensive standpoint, Kevin Wilson and Ryan Day need to prove they can be creative and control the tempo versus a good defense, something that has not happened this season.

Finding ways to get the playmakers the ball has been the primary assignment this week, so it will be interesting to see what resulted from last week’s beating in Iowa.

When Michigan State Has the Ball

Michigan State runs a similar offensive scheme to that of Iowa, as they use multiple tight end formations and a fair amount of pre-snap motion to create matchups in their favor.

Their pro-style offense allows for quarterback Brian Lewerke to use his mobility outside the pocket in traditional play-action to complete his throws.

Michigan State also uses Lewerke in the Read Option as he is a tremendous athlete with good speed. This creates opportunities in the passing game where they add wrinkles to common RPO plays.

Here, Lewerke makes the wrong read as the outside receiver fakes a block before releasing downfield. This has disaster written all over it for an undisciplined defense.

Misdirection continues to be the theme with Michigan State, whether it be pre-snap or post-snap. The book is out on this Ohio State defense, so look for opposing teams to continue to strain the mental capacities of the linebackers from here on out.

When Ohio State Has the Ball

Michigan State slanted their defensive line to help contain Saquon Barkley last week, bringing a cornerback off the backside to protect against the quarterback keeper or cutback ability of Barkley.

Look for Sparty to use a similar game plan in an attempt to allow Barrett to keep on true read-option plays. Ohio State can counter the slanting defensive line and catch the blitzing cornerback with a counter of their own. A play we saw the Buckeyes use earlier in the season.

Michigan State has struggled against the pass this season. With young cornerbacks and aggressive linebackers, the Buckeyes can use a steady diet of the Mesh Concept, as they have proved it effective versus Man Coverage or Zone Coverage.

We saw nary an RPO last week versus Iowa, a team that looks very similar to Michigan State defensively.

An effective method in attacking an aggressive linebacker unit is misdirection (who knew?) or the use of RPO, especially on first down.

Meyer hinted at the thought of a two running back formation this week.

We’ve seen Meyer use K.J. Hill in the backfield with great success. I will settle for much of the same, just make it a greater part of the offense. This will be another way to attack the aggressive defense of the Spartans.

 

Share
Tweet
Share
Pin
0 Shares

2 Responses

  1. If they’re not going to commit to a 2 back look and run it multiple times a game, IMO it’s a bad idea. The defense will slam the door on it the first time and Wilson will go back to closing his eyes and throwing a dart at the play sheet.

  2. Bring back the Counter to the Read Option with Dobbins as the ball carrier. We really need this play.

Comments are closed.