Amid countless suspensions, allegations, and a difficult quarterback controversy, Luke Fickell proved in his head coaching debut that the Buckeyes are going to be as strong as ever in 2011. The rookie head coach delivered a 42-0 beating to the Zips to start off the season. There were a lot of positive things to take out of week one, with the most important being the fantastic play of both quarterbacks.
After the disgraceful departure of the former quarterback, Terrelle Pryor, Fickell faced an interesting challenge as a first-year head coach: who would start at quarterback? Ultimately, the choice came down to the senior Joe Bauserman and the freshman Braxton Miller. All preseason he has been noncommital to who would take the first snap of the season. It seemed as if Fickell was in a catch-22. If this opener means anything, it looks like that catch-22 has turned into a win-win situation. Both quarterbacks were phenomenal against the Zips. Joe Bauserman, who was chosen to start, shattered all expectations. He showed no remnants of the shaky backup from a year ago when he went 12/16 for 163 yards and 3 TD's. Not only was he impressive throwing the ball, but he showed that he has worked on his mobility with his 32 rushing yards and 1 rushing TD. However, Miller made sure that he did not lock up the starting job by going 8/12 for 130 yards and 1 TD. He was also hindered by his receivers who dropped 3 of his passes. He showed his scrambling prowess by rushing for 30 yards on 6 attempts. This quarterback controversy is by no means settled. We will definitely be seeing both quarterbacks throughout the first few games to see who will emerge as the clear cut starter.
The other main areas of concern were the receiving corps and the running backs, and again, they performed much better than any Buckeyes fan could've hoped for. With the leading receiver from a year ago suspended for the first five games of the season, the receivers stepped up big time for Ohio State. Eight different Buckeye receivers caught a pass, with two of them getting one or more touchdowns. The most impressive of the receivers was the tight end Jake Stoneburner. His three touchdowns on Saturday surpassed his season total of two from last year. He showed that he will be a reliable target for whoever ends up running the show at quarterback. The new receiver that really broke out was Verlon Reed, who caught three passes for 66 yards. However, all the achievements were topped by this absolutely incredible catch by freshman Evan Spencer. This one handed grab was one of the best I've ever seen! The running backs also had a big day. Carlos Hyde, who started because of suspensions to the two other backs ahead of him in the depth chart, had a great first start. He mowed over Akron's defense for 93 yards on 19 carries. Hyde is the big, strong kind of back that the Buckeyes have been lacking since Chris "Beanie" Wells went to the NFL. Hopefully he has done enough to secure him the starting job even when the two backs ahead of him return from their suspensions.
Both the football team and the Ohio State fan base needed a dominating win like this to start off the season. Luke Fickell showed that he will be able to put the distractions from a hectic offseason aside and coach this team to another year of Big Ten title contention. The quarterback situation has yet to be settled, but it seems as if both players are capable of succeeding under center. We'll see if they can keep it up next week when Toledo comes to town.
No comments:
Post a Comment