2017 At First Glance Week One: Ohio State Buckeyes
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J.T. Barrett is back for his senior year and is looking to take Ohio State back to the CFP. Image: Getty Images
Written By Sammy Jacobs (@Hoosier_Huddle)
One hundred days, that is all that stands between Indiana Football and a showdown with a top-five Ohio State team to open the season. Every year we have put out an early preview out for each team to provide fans with a quick glimpse of what to expect, who is returning, who departed, and possibly a change in coaching staffs that game week. So, sit back and enjoy because 100 days will go by quickly. We start our Early Preview Series with Indiana’s first opponent, the Ohio State Buckeyes.
Week One: Ohio State Buckeyes
Date & Time: Thursday, August 31st, 8pm
Venue: Memorial Stadium, Bloomington, IN
TV: ESPN
Buckeyes at a Glance
Head Coach: Urban Meyer
Entering his 16th year as a head coach, 6th at OSU
Overall Record: 165-29 (99-20)
At Ohio State: 61-6 (39-2)
Last Season: 11-2 (8-1) Lost to Clemson in CFP Fiesta Bowl 31-0
Buckeyes Returning Leaders
Passing: J.T. Barrett (61.5 Comp. Pct, 2,555 yards, 24 TDs, 7 INTs
Rushing: Mike Weber (182 Att, 1,096 yards, 6.02 YPC, 9 TDs)
Receiving: Marcus Baugh (24 Rec. 269 yards, 11.21 YPR, 2 TDs)
Tackles: LB Jerome Baker (83 Tot. Tackles, 9.5 TFLs, 3.5 sacks, 2 INTs, 1 FR)
Pre-season Predictions
Athlon’s: 1st in Big Ten East
Lindy’s: 1st in Big Ten East
Street & Smith's: 1st in Big Ten East
Phil Steele: TBA
Impact Newcomers For The Buckeyes
A new twist on this year’s early preview, we are adding three or four freshman or newcomers that could play a major role in this given game.
1. J.K. Dobbins, RB- Ohio State’s top running back is redshirt sophomore Mike Weber, but teams will use more than one back in conference games. Dobbins was a U.S. Army All-American and a top-50 recruit in the nation. He missed basically his entire senior season with a broken leg, but turned heads in Columbus during spring practice earning the number two running back spot.
2. Kendall Sheffield, CB- Ohio State lost three starting defensive backs to the NFL and have brought Sheffield in to fill some of that void. Sheffield was ranked the number one corner at the JUCO level and the 4th best JUCO prospect overall. Last season at Blinn College he recorded 31 tackles, two interceptions, and 11 pass deflections. He will likely start at one of the corner positions for the Buckeyes on opening night.
3. Jeff Okudah, CB- As we said above, OSU will be relying on new blood in the secondary. Okudah is yet another highly regarded recruit, five-stars and a top 10 prospect that was in for spring practice. At 6’1”, he is one of the taller players in the secondary, which should be needed, as Indiana will throw some taller receivers out on offense.
4. Shaun Wade, CB- Wade is another early enrollee for the Buckeyes. There’s a theme here, top-25 prospect in the secondary. The Florida native could also be of value against IU with his 6’1” frame. He finished his senior year with 63 tackles and seven interceptions.
Coaching Staff Changes
IN: Kevin Wilson and Ryan Day
Every Indiana fan knows that August 31st has been labeled Kevin Wilson’s revenge game. Wilson resigned from Indiana on December 1st amid allegations of player mistreatment. Soon there after he found a new home in Columbus directing the Buckeye offense and trying to wake up that side of the ball.
Ryan Day is the co-offensive coordinator along with Wilson as well as the quarterbacks coach. Day spent 2016 as the last two seasons in the NFL as the quarterbacks coach with the San Francisco 49ers and the Philadelphia Eagles and has 16 years of coaching experience.
They will be charged with fine-tuning an offense that averaged just 15.7 points per game over the final three contests.
OUT: Luke Fickle
Ohio State lost one of its defensive coordinators in Luke Fickle, who left to become the head coach at Cincinnati. The good news for the Buckeyes is that Greg Schiano will take over at the sole defensive coordinator, after serving as co-defensive coordinator and associate head coach in 2015 and 2016.
Why The Buckeyes Will Win
Ohio State will probably be a top five, if not higher, coming into Memorial Stadium on August 31st. They return a senior quarterback that is looking for redemption, a stud running back, and have recruited extremely well to fill the holes they have at receiver, along the offensive line, and in the secondary.
They have the best front seven in the Big Ten, which will be a huge challenge for a young Indiana offensive line, that hasn’t played a lot of ball together.
Adding fuel to the fire is that former Indiana head coach Kevin Wilson will be making his first trip back to Bloomington and you know he will want to drop 50+ on the program that kicked him to the curb.
Ohio State knows Indiana has given them fits since 2011, so they will not take the Hoosiers lightly. When Ohio State is expected to be great, the Buckeye fans take over Memorial Stadium and turn a road game into, at worst, a neutral site game. All these factors point to an Ohio State blow out win.
Why The Hoosiers Will Pull Off The Upset
This is the biggest home opener in Indiana Football history and that should help stop the Buckeye fans from taking over Memorial Stadium. However, this Indiana team is no push over who will have to rely on just luck and fans in the stands to win.
New Hoosier head coach Tom Allen has his guys bought in and they return a lot of talent on both sides of the ball.
On defense, the Hoosiers return nine of 11 starters including All-American linebacker Tegray Scales and All-Conference corner Rashard Fant. The secondary is loaded as safety Jonathan Crawford is turning into a star while Husky Marcelino Ball was impressive as a 17-year old in 2016. The defensive line loses Ralph Green and Pat Dougherty, but there is a good group of freshman ready to take over in those spots. This may be the best IU defense since the mid-1980’s.
On the offensive side of the ball, IU has arguably the best receiving corps in the conference, a senior quarterback with Richard Lagow, and a budding star at tight end in Ian Thomas. If the Hoosiers can get running back Camion Patrick back healthy, this offense should be one of the best in the conference, if not the country.
However, there are some question marks with the IU offense. Can the offensive line gel and avoid a major step back after losing All-American Dan Feeney to the NFL? Is there enough running back depth for the ground game to be successful? And finally, what will a revamped offensive staff’s product on the field actually look like?
If the Hoosiers can be solid in the grey areas, live up to expectations in the passing game, and make the plays they need to on special teams, they’ll be right there to win this one and send Bloomington into a frenzy.
Final Analysis:
Indiana could be catching Ohio State at the right time. The Buckeyes have tremendous weapons and have done an unbelievable job in recruiting to fill their needs.
However, it’s game one. I’d much rather play this OSU team first than have to play them later in the season when they will be clicking on all cylinders. Both teams will have to avoid putting too much weight on the return of Kevin Wilson. For Indiana, playing the Buckeyes at home should be enough motivation and for Ohio State, this could be the first step to another College Football Playoff appearance.
The Hoosiers won’t back down in this one, but will have to have everything go right for them to pull of the monumental upset. That means taking care of the ball, getting stops and takeaways on defense, and playing flawlessly on special teams. Do all that and it still may come down to a funky bounce of the ball.