Seth's 50 Centers

Brian Inglis stops by to talk about, what else? The Ohio State football team!

We break down every position and discuss the team’s chances at overcoming the stigma that it, and the Big Ten, has had for the past few seasons.

The Seth Shaner Podcast

 

OSU preview

This is as interesting a season as I can recall. It reminds me a little bit of the 2007 and ’04 seasons, except I feel like this year has the potential to be more exciting than either of those.

However, if the Buckeyes do as well as they did in ’07, I’m not sure I’d complain too much. I’d hope the final game would be better than that horrible BCS title debacle against LSU, though.

The reason for my excitement? Terrelle Pryor, of course!

I’m very excited to see how much he’s improved. He did everything last year on athletic ability alone, it seemed.
He now knows the offense 100 times better, and has reportedly put on some muscle, making for a much scarier Super-T! I expect him to throw the ball a lot more, to not take those horrible sacks that were the result of indecision last season, and he can always run the ball well.

Who will he have to distribute the ball to?

Ray Small’s still in the doghouse, but hopefully he can get out of it to at least be a top punt returner. I’d also look for Pryor to throw to him early and often. They seemed to have a good rapport last year.
DeVier Posey looks to be a breakout guy, and Dane Sanzenbacher will remain a good guy to catch those passes in the flat, or sitting down in zones.

I’m sure you’ve heard of freshman Duron Carter, the son of Cris Carter. This kid seems like he’s going to be a star, and it might not take long. I’ve always looked for tells from Jim Tressel to see if I can see what he’s thinking, and while he’s got a good poker face about these things, it’s rare that he talks up a freshman before the season, let alone before fall camp starts!

If I’m not mistaken, some freshmen he’s talked up include Maurice Clarett, Chris Wells and Pryor. He doesn’t just throw around accolades for kids who haven’t even played a down yet. But he seemingly went out of his way to mention Carter’s hands and route running abilities the first week of practice!

Another guy you can look for, now in his third year with the program, is Taurian Washington. He could have a breakout season, unless there’re just too many other guys playing well for him to get on the field often enough.

The running backs should play well, but you can’t replace Wells’ ability to take that first hit and explode for three or four more yards. That’s what I noticed last year when he’d go crashing through the line, and Boom Herron would do the same.

Wells would flatten just about any defender and always fell forward, whereas Herron, while making positive yardage, would simply go straight down. It’s not a knock on Herron, as much as it is a nod to Wells’ ability.

That said, you never knew when Wells was going to come limping off the field. Yes, those Michigan games were legendary, and he certainly knew how important those were, but even the Fiesta Bowl reminded me that you just couldn’t always count on him to be there.

Herron will be the starter, I’d assume, and Brandon Saine will get a chance to show that he’s regained his sprinter’s speed – Saine was so fast as an incoming freshman, but he’s dealt with injuries, too. I don’t really expect a ton from Saine, but that means if he gives the team anything, especially out of the backfield catching passes, then it’s a bonus.

I’m excited to see how well Jaamal Berry adjusts to the college game. He’s supposedly looked pretty good in practice and could crack the lineup, as could fellow freshman Jordan Hall, who played with Pryor in high school.

The O-line is interesting to me. Because I felt the line underachieved the past few years, I’d say it could be addition by subtraction that so many guys graduated, but it is important to get guys acclimated to each other, which could take some time.

Michael Brewster proved to be a solid center, even as a freshman, last season, which allowed the coaches to move Jim Cordle around, and with his versatility, I’d say that was a good thing.
Cordle will start at right tackle, with last year’s starter at that spot, Bryant Browning, moving to right guard.

Former Pickerington, and Michigan, standout Justin Boren is said to be as nasty a lineman as OSU has had in a while, which is something they line has lacked of late. He’ll play left guard.

Andrew Miller has won the starting left tackle job, but I’d say J.B. Shugarts will be there soon, too. This is upsetting because Dublin Coffman grad Mike Adams was in line to get that job before he broke an unknown rule and got himself suspended for two games.

Boren’s brother, Zach, is a freshman, but he’s listed as the starter at fullback, and Jake Ballard returns at tight end. Jake Stoneburner, a former receiver who was moved to tight end, will also see the field. I think Stoneburner could provide the team some new looks as a catch-first guy.

Aaron Pettrey returns as the kicker.

Defense

The defense needs to step up after seeing so many guys move on. There are a lot of guys who’ve been waiting for a chance to play, and here it is!

The D-line appears to be extremely deep, but we’ll need to see results from that depth.

Thaddeus Gibson and Cameron Heyward are starters at defensive end, and both need to get after the quarterback. Lawrence Wilson returns from another injury-plagued season, but he’ll have to get himself back on the field ahead of these guys.

It’s interesting, when Wilson went down with a leg injury in the opener two years ago it seemed to really hurt the team’s depth at DE, but Vernon Gholston went on to set the school record for sacks, and Heyward stepped in as a freshman and did well.

Heyward’s numbers weren’t what people hoped for last year, but he’s still a freak of nature out there, and should only get better as a junior.

Also look for Nathan Williams to get after it. It’s pretty rare, I think, when you can go four-deep at DE and not lose much at all if the starters are off the field.

Inside Doug Worthington and Dexter Larimore have the experience, and will start. I’d also look for Todd Denlinger to do some things in there.

The linebacker position has taken some hits this year. Tyler Moeller is out for the season after getting punched in a Florida restaurant – I’m sure that’s getting some play down there.

Ross Homan was the only sure thing as a starter when camp started, but I really like Etienne Sabino. As it stands, Austin Spitler startes ahead of Sabino on the outside, and undersized Brian Rolle is starting in the middle.

I’d look for Sabino to get on the field early and often, and I also like a few freshmen: Dorian Bell and Storm Klein.

Klein is a local guy who played really well for Licking Valley the past two years, and Bell’s from Pennsylvania. A lot of Bell’s fellow freshmen labeled him as a guy who’d get on the field and contribute early.

Kurt Coleman and Anderson Russell return for their final seasons at the safety positions, but Jermale Hines really impressed last year and will be on the field a lot. That guy can hit!

Chimdi Chekwa really flew under the radar the past few years as he played cornerback opposite Malcolm Jenkins, and even ahead of Donald Washington, but he’ll have to be the lockdown guy now.

I worry about it, though, because I’m not sure he can fill those shoes. I am happy that Andre Amos has battled back from multiple injuries to claim a starting spot opposite Chekwa. Amos was a guy who was on the field when we played at Texas in ’06 and he contributed often that year.

Devon Torrence is another capable corner, who decided not to play minor league baseball this summer to concentrate on working with the team.

Expectations

This squad could go in a few different directions, but the fact it has Pryor leading the way tells me it’ll be in games no matter what, and will win a lot of them.

I saw how upset he was after the Texas loss, and that fired me up. Some guys who had been there for the blowouts the previous two bowls seemed content with a close loss, but he would have nothing of it!

I can’t defend the “weak” Big Ten much anymore. It’s just that. But if OSU can beat USC early on, and win at Penn State, a lot of doubters will have little or nothing to say.

It’s not really any different than the past few seasons. There are some games that will be difficult that you simply have to win. From there, you have to take care of the lesser opponents.

I’d look for the offense to be opened up, much like the second half of the ’05 season and all of ’06 with Troy Smith under center. That will be very exciting, and I hope it turns into points on the board.

I hope the defense can get after it, especially up front. If the front four can get pressure on the quarterback, those possible question marks on the edges can be covered up a bit.

I think it’s another 10-plus win team, but it’ll take all the young, inexperienced players getting it done really quickly to be in the national discussion again.

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