The Buckeyes finished their non-conference schedule with a record of 4-0 and they stand as the number one team in the country. Western Michigan was the latest victim, falling 38-12 yesterday in The Horseshoe (or the Bronco Hoof, if you prefer). Here are some takeaways from yesterday's game:
1. Facing the 109th ranked run defense in FBS, the offensive staff did a better job of getting the ball to their tailbacks. Ezekiel Elliott had 16 carries for 124 yards and a touchdown and Curtis Samuel had 2 carries for 55 yards and a touchdown. Elliott had long runs of 15, 20, and 26 yards, while Samuel's runs went for 15 and 40 yards.
2. As noted in the pre-game report, Zeke broke off an 80-yard touchdown run on his first carry of the season. After that great start, he managed to gain only 251 yards on his next 60 carries (4.2 yards per carry) with a long run of just 13 yards. On his first run yesterday, Zeke broke out of his little slump by going for 26 yards. He also added a 20-yard run late in the third quarter.
3. Last season, Elliott rushed for 1,878 yards (125.2 per game; 6.88 per carry) and 18 touchdowns (1.20 per game). So far this season, Elliott now has 455 yards (113.8 per game; 5.91 per carry) and 5 TDs (1.25 per game). The big difference is in the yards per carry, which is down almost 1.0 yard this year compared to last year.
4. If Elliott were averaging 6.88 yards per carry this year instead of 5.91, he would have 530 yards rushing (+75 total yards) for an average of 132.5 yards per game (+18.7 yards per game).
5. With his 124 yards rushing against WMU, Elliott now has 2,595 career rushing yards. Yesterday he moved past Jim Otis (2,542 yards) and Cal Murray (2,576 yards) into 13th place on the list of Buckeye career rushing leaders. Next up on the list is Raymont Harris (2,649 yards).
6. With his 288 yards passing, Cardale Jones now has 1,485 career passing yards. Cardale moved into 23rd place on the list of Buckeye career passing leaders, jumping past Pandel Savic (1,260 yards) and Rod Gerald (1,273 yards) and Greg Hare (1,338 yards).
7. Cardale's 288 yards passing was a career high. The Buckeye record for passing yards in one game is 458 by Art Schlichter against Florida State in 1981, which is the only time that a Buckeye quarterback has ever cracked the 400-yard barrier. Jones under threw several deep passes to open receivers. If he would've had better timing on his deep routes then he might have become the second Buckeye to enter the 400-yard club.
8. Cardale had a tendency to under throw deep routes last season as well, but Devin Smith was almost always able to bail him out. During the Buckeyes' 2014 championship run, Smith had 7 receptions for 269 yards for a ridiculous average of 38.43 yards per catch; six of Smith's receptions went for 39 yards or more. Smith had excellent body control and knew how to shield defenders from the ball; the current crop of receivers simply don't know how to get into position and fight for the ball the way Smith did. I'd be willing to bet that Smith would have come up with a couple of Cardale's poor throws yesterday.
9. Besides under throwing receivers, Cardale has a tendency to retreat in the pocket when he is under pressure. That is almost always a recipe for a huge negative play for any quarterback and yesterday was no exception. Under an intense rush late in the second quarter, Cardale drifted back in the pocket and was grabbed by a defender. He attempted to throw the ball away as he was being spun to the ground, but the "pass" turned out to be a lateral. Instead of an incompletion the play was a fumble that resulted in a 14-yard loss for Ohio State.
10. Michael Thomas had 6 receptions for 80 yards and a touchdown. Thomas now has 1,059 career receiving yards for Ohio State. He needs just 59 yards to move into the top 25 at Ohio State (Billy Anders, 1118 yards).
11. Last season, Thomas had 54 receptions (3.6 per game) for 799 yards (53.3 per game; 14.80 per reception) and 9 TD (.60 per game). This season, Thomas is slightly ahead of last year's pace: 16 receptions (4.0 per game) for 238 yards (59.5 per game; 14.88 per reception) and 3 TDs (.75 per game).
12. I define a "big scoring play" as an offensive play of 20+ yards or any defensive or special teams touchdown. Last season, Ohio State scored 90 total touchdowns, with 37 of those (41.1%) coming on big plays (30 on offense, 6 on defense, 1 on special teams). This season, Ohio State has scored 18 total touchdowns, with 12 of those (66.7%) coming on big plays (9 on offense, 3 on defense). On the one hand, it is great that the Buckeyes have even more big play ability this season; on the other, it would be nice if they could sustain drives better. They will need to do so when the level of the competition improves.
13. As evidence of the Buckeyes' inability to sustain drives: Last season, Ohio State punted 48 times in 15 games, for an average of 3.2 punts per game. This season, the Buckeyes have punted 18 times in 4 games, for an average of 4.5 punts per game.
14. Another reason that the Buckeyes are having difficulty sustaining drives is turnovers. The Buckeyes were not particularly careful with the football last season, committing 26 turnovers in 15 games (1.73 per game). This season they are even worse, with 10 turnovers in 4 games (2.50 per game). The Buckeyes were able to survive sloppy play against MAC patsies (7 total turnovers vs NIU and WMU), but they won't be able to do so against the better teams on their schedule.
1. Facing the 109th ranked run defense in FBS, the offensive staff did a better job of getting the ball to their tailbacks. Ezekiel Elliott had 16 carries for 124 yards and a touchdown and Curtis Samuel had 2 carries for 55 yards and a touchdown. Elliott had long runs of 15, 20, and 26 yards, while Samuel's runs went for 15 and 40 yards.
2. As noted in the pre-game report, Zeke broke off an 80-yard touchdown run on his first carry of the season. After that great start, he managed to gain only 251 yards on his next 60 carries (4.2 yards per carry) with a long run of just 13 yards. On his first run yesterday, Zeke broke out of his little slump by going for 26 yards. He also added a 20-yard run late in the third quarter.
3. Last season, Elliott rushed for 1,878 yards (125.2 per game; 6.88 per carry) and 18 touchdowns (1.20 per game). So far this season, Elliott now has 455 yards (113.8 per game; 5.91 per carry) and 5 TDs (1.25 per game). The big difference is in the yards per carry, which is down almost 1.0 yard this year compared to last year.
4. If Elliott were averaging 6.88 yards per carry this year instead of 5.91, he would have 530 yards rushing (+75 total yards) for an average of 132.5 yards per game (+18.7 yards per game).
5. With his 124 yards rushing against WMU, Elliott now has 2,595 career rushing yards. Yesterday he moved past Jim Otis (2,542 yards) and Cal Murray (2,576 yards) into 13th place on the list of Buckeye career rushing leaders. Next up on the list is Raymont Harris (2,649 yards).
6. With his 288 yards passing, Cardale Jones now has 1,485 career passing yards. Cardale moved into 23rd place on the list of Buckeye career passing leaders, jumping past Pandel Savic (1,260 yards) and Rod Gerald (1,273 yards) and Greg Hare (1,338 yards).
7. Cardale's 288 yards passing was a career high. The Buckeye record for passing yards in one game is 458 by Art Schlichter against Florida State in 1981, which is the only time that a Buckeye quarterback has ever cracked the 400-yard barrier. Jones under threw several deep passes to open receivers. If he would've had better timing on his deep routes then he might have become the second Buckeye to enter the 400-yard club.
8. Cardale had a tendency to under throw deep routes last season as well, but Devin Smith was almost always able to bail him out. During the Buckeyes' 2014 championship run, Smith had 7 receptions for 269 yards for a ridiculous average of 38.43 yards per catch; six of Smith's receptions went for 39 yards or more. Smith had excellent body control and knew how to shield defenders from the ball; the current crop of receivers simply don't know how to get into position and fight for the ball the way Smith did. I'd be willing to bet that Smith would have come up with a couple of Cardale's poor throws yesterday.
9. Besides under throwing receivers, Cardale has a tendency to retreat in the pocket when he is under pressure. That is almost always a recipe for a huge negative play for any quarterback and yesterday was no exception. Under an intense rush late in the second quarter, Cardale drifted back in the pocket and was grabbed by a defender. He attempted to throw the ball away as he was being spun to the ground, but the "pass" turned out to be a lateral. Instead of an incompletion the play was a fumble that resulted in a 14-yard loss for Ohio State.
10. Michael Thomas had 6 receptions for 80 yards and a touchdown. Thomas now has 1,059 career receiving yards for Ohio State. He needs just 59 yards to move into the top 25 at Ohio State (Billy Anders, 1118 yards).
11. Last season, Thomas had 54 receptions (3.6 per game) for 799 yards (53.3 per game; 14.80 per reception) and 9 TD (.60 per game). This season, Thomas is slightly ahead of last year's pace: 16 receptions (4.0 per game) for 238 yards (59.5 per game; 14.88 per reception) and 3 TDs (.75 per game).
12. I define a "big scoring play" as an offensive play of 20+ yards or any defensive or special teams touchdown. Last season, Ohio State scored 90 total touchdowns, with 37 of those (41.1%) coming on big plays (30 on offense, 6 on defense, 1 on special teams). This season, Ohio State has scored 18 total touchdowns, with 12 of those (66.7%) coming on big plays (9 on offense, 3 on defense). On the one hand, it is great that the Buckeyes have even more big play ability this season; on the other, it would be nice if they could sustain drives better. They will need to do so when the level of the competition improves.
13. As evidence of the Buckeyes' inability to sustain drives: Last season, Ohio State punted 48 times in 15 games, for an average of 3.2 punts per game. This season, the Buckeyes have punted 18 times in 4 games, for an average of 4.5 punts per game.
14. Another reason that the Buckeyes are having difficulty sustaining drives is turnovers. The Buckeyes were not particularly careful with the football last season, committing 26 turnovers in 15 games (1.73 per game). This season they are even worse, with 10 turnovers in 4 games (2.50 per game). The Buckeyes were able to survive sloppy play against MAC patsies (7 total turnovers vs NIU and WMU), but they won't be able to do so against the better teams on their schedule.