What we learned from an Ohio State spring game rewatch
Ohio State learned a lot from its performance in the spring game, from the play of the defensive backs to the tandem behind TreVeyon Henderson at running back.
Here’s a look at what we took away after watching the spring game for a second time.
First quarter
Offense
From his first throw of the day, C.J. Stroud showed he was going to play extremely conservative football, which is what should be expected in a spring game.
His ability to take what the defense was giving him was actually a highlight for head coach Ryan Day postgame, seeing a quarterback quickly go through his reads and check down when he needs to check down instead of going for it all for the “sexy” pass play.
Bu t all in that conservative approach, there were glimpses of the quarterback that Stroud was in Pasadena, whether it was the roll out to the right, hitting Emeka Egbuka in stride for a 10-yard gain or moving the coverage with his eyes and finding the wide-open pocket for a 29-yard touchdown pass to Jaxon Smith-Njigba.
Typical Stroud.
Kyle McCord followed suit, starting his day at quarterback with a checkdown to running back Miyan Williams. And this begs the overreaction question: could this be how Ohio State’s offense would game plan against Jim Knowles’ defense? Could it be waiting for something to develop in the midst of confusion in the defensive backfield, but instead taking the more consistent approach down low for a short gain? Way too early and not enough of the scheme was played to tell, but it’s something to watch when Notre Dame comes to town Sept. 3.
But McCord’s day began eerily similarly to Stroud’s, following it up shortly with a play-action bootleg rollout to Joe Royer, before finding the tight end again for a touchdown, getting past that initial first-level defense of linebacker Chip Trayanum and going up and using his strength to bring down a beautiful throw, draped by Jyaire Brown.
When the Buckeyes reverted back to thud with Stroud back in the game, Evan Pryor showed why he could be special. On paper, it was a four-yard run, but he was weaving his way through the middle of the line, bouncing around and finding himself in the defensive backfield ready to burst forward. He’s elusive and is tough to bring down, something he was on countless runs Saturday afternoon.
Quick notes:
That Egbuka bobble catch was an NFL-level catch. That kid’s going to play a lot and could be extremely special come the fall.
Evan Pryor looks SOOOOOO much smaller than Ronnie Hickman, cradling the back after a four-yard rush during the thud period. But the size for Pryor really doesn’t matter here.
Davin Brown first impression: first throw to Xavier Johnson was a bit underthrown, but the right move, sitting in the screen, getting the daylight for a 23-yard gain.
Defense
That first touchdown play of the game was also the first play where Jack Sawyer got to show off his new position.
He wasn’t the first person to line up as the Buckeyes’ standing defensive end, with Zach Harrison coming in at that end spot and just rushing the backfield. But on Stroud’s 29-yard touchdown throw, Sawyer paused for a millisecond at the line of scrimmage and began to back up into coverage. Actually, by the end of the play, the window where Smith-Njigba caught the football was between Sawyer and JK Johnson.
To be clear, that was not Sawyer’s job, with Smith-Njigba moving across the defense with a quarterback looking safeties and corners away from the spot the receiver ended up in. But it’s a prime example of what Sawyer could be doing on a daily basis.
As the quarter continued, the pressure came.
The first sack of the day came from Jaden McKenzie bulldozing through Luke Wypler, shrugging him off and tagging McCord. Then offensive tackle Grant Toutant was called for a hold, trying to keep Mitchell Melton away from the quarterback after beating the redshirt sophomore.
On the broadcast, Knowles told the commentators before the game that his defense would be playing a “watered down version” of what the fall would bring, like what Day said earlier in the week. However, he said there would not be a lot of blitzing going on. However, the tackles-for-loss and sack numbers came with a combination of the talent and depth the Buckeyes have accumulated up front, the lack of depth on the offensive line and the play of the defensive backfield forcing the quarterbacks to hold the ball longer.
Progress was seen, even if Ohio State didn’t run everything.
Josh Proctor wasn’t running everything.
He was only taking the field during thud periods, working his way back from a compound fracture that ended his season against Oregon. But he was out in coverage Saturday, battling against Smith-Njigba, who tried to get a ball that was underthrown by Stroud with a pass interference call. But Proctor was a veteran. He didn’t turn around and look for the ball, instead keeping his position and forcing the ball away.
He’s going to be much needed for this defense. And even at 80-85%, he looked impressive.
Read the rest of the takeaways in The Horseshoe Lounge.