vs.

Battle of Ohio? Football powerhouse vs. Club Hockey powerhouse…Ohio U. may just be too small (see logos above).

It’s the state of Ohio’s first public university vs. its flagship when the two teams hit the gridiron on Saturday.

Here’s a breakdown of which team has the advantage position by position.

Quarterbacks
6th year senior Todd Boeckman demonstrated tremendous experience and was somewhat poised (made some interesting decisions) in the pocket vs. Youngstown State. Ohio junior Theo Scott played above average in a loss to Wyoming recording over 200 yards through the air and a touchdown (1 INT). Scott is somewhat agile and can beat slower defensive lineman in the backfield. Scott is almost a poor man’s Terrelle Pryor; if you take away the 4.45 speed, make it 4.6, take away the pure athleticism, size, strength, and accurate arm…then you have Theo Scott. Oh wait, Ohio State also has Terrelle Pryor.

Advantage: Buckeyes

Running backs
Beanie, Beanie, Beanie… With the most likely scenario being Chris Wells in street clothes on the sideline come Saturday, underclassmen Daniel Herron and Brandon Saine (with some help from Mo Wells) will carry the load. Beanie’s backups have all been solid contributors to the offense. Ohio struggled to rush the ball against Wyoming. Starting running back Chris Garrett was held to 2.5 yards per carry and only 30 total yards. This is an easy choice.

Advantage: Buckeyes

Offensive Line
The Bobcat offense only put up 55 total yards of rushing against Wyoming but allowed only 1 sack. However, Theo Scott will have much less time in the pocket and will be forced to scramble where he tends to make bad decisions (i.e. turnovers). The Buckeye line gave Todd Boeckman an outstanding average of 4.9 seconds in the pocket and allowed Beanie to rush for 100+ yards early on in the game. The Buckeye lineman outweigh the opposing Bobcats by about 16 pounds. I guess it’s just the difference between the Big Ten and the MAC.

Advantage: Buckeyes

Wide Receivers/Tight Ends
Bobcat wide-out Taylor Price seems to be the only major aerial threat for the Bobcats..that’s until he meets OSU corner Malcolm Jenkins. Price had 139 yards receiving and 2nd option LaVon Brazill had 48 yards versus Wyoming. Ohio’s receiving crew is very 1-dimensional and that will hurt them. Brian Robiskie alone gives the Buckeyes the nod for this matchup. Then you have the sure-handed Brian Hartline, Dane Sanzenbacher, Taurian Washington, Ray Small, DeVier Posey, Lamaar Thomas…and the list goes on. Jake Ballard and Rory Nicol aren’t to shabby either.

Advantage: Buckeyes

(click ‘continue reading this post’ for defense and special teams)

Defensive Line
This Bobcat line was ranked in nearly the bottom percentile in rushing yards allowed (106 out of 119 D-I teams) in 2007. They gave up as many rush yards per game as the Buckeyes did in 4 games. Senior Jameson Hartke anchors the line at defensive end. Lawrence Wilson, however, stomps Hartke miserably beating him in almost every athletic category (bench reps/weight, 40-time, vertical leap). As statistics matchup on paper showing that Ohio State is solid against the run puts them way over the top in this category. No need to talk about the pass-rush.

Advantage: Buckeyes

Linebackers
James Laurinaitis and Marcus Freeman are rated as 2 of the top few linebackers in the country and will play many years at the next level. Bobcat LB Noah Keller did record 15 tackles against Wyoming and is projected to be a top linebacker in the MAC, but how can you compare him the OSU core? Next…

Advantage: Buckeyes

Cornerbacks
Malcolm Jenkins and Chimdi Chekwa are both shutdown corners that will only allow the most precise pass plays. Big pass plays are almost unheard of against this secondary. Bobcat Julian Posey will turn some heads in the MAC, but with Malcolm we’re talking All-America and getting his name called within the first few picks of the draft by NFL commissioner Roger Goodell. Donald Washington is out indifinitely (suspension).

Advantage: Buckeyes

Safeties
Kurt Coleman should be back this week although Jermale Hines filled in brilliantly. Hines will still see a tremendous amount of playing time in the upcoming weeks. Anderson Russell is an All-Big Ten contender along with Coleman. Jamario O’Neal is out indefinitely (suspension). Ohio’s Neil Jereb had some preseason hype and was in preseason All-MAC discussion along with Michael Mitchell. Mitchell had a solid game vs. Wyoming recording 8 tackles (although a few tackles were made due to his blown coverage).

Advantage: Buckeyes

Special teams: Return Game
Ohio State has been miserable in the category. Ray Small has said he has perfected his reaction time and can turn up the field very quickly on the punt return. Our kick-off returns have been fairly average with a starting spot around the 30. The Bobcats (Donte Harden) were able to take a kick 100 yards to the house against Wyoming showing they can get their return game together. However, the athletes OSU has makes it impossible to give OU the advantage in this category and we’ll see how they can do against the Buckeye special teams.

Advantage: Tie

Special teams: Kicking
Ryan Pretorious and Aaron Pettrey both made 50+ yard field goals versus YSU. Bobcat Wayne Barrett is 2/2 from 30+ yards as well this year. The Buckeye kickers have been much more consistent however. Haven’t seen much of A.J. Trepasso minus a few FG holds.

Advantage: Buckeyes

Just too much Ohio State talent in this battle. The Buckeyes dominate in every category. Hopefully the Bucks aren’t looking too far ahead to September 13th’s matchup vs. now #1 USC.

Buckeyes 37 Bobcats 6

Projected stats:
Passing: Boeckman 12-16 220 yds 2 TD, Pryor 8-12 90 yds 1 TD, Bauserman 3-6 31 yds 1 INT
Rushing: Herron 14 carries 82 yds 1 TD, Saine 8 car 55 yds, M. Wells 3 car 9 yds, Pryor 3 car 40 yds, Boeckman 1 car 6 yds
Receiving: Hartline 5 rec 88 yds 1 TD, Washington 5 rec 50 yds, Posey 4 rec 31 yds, Robiskie 3 rec 27 yds 1 TD, Small 6 rec 90 yds 1 TD, Sanzenbacher 2 rec 11 yds
Kicking: Pretorious 2/2 FG Pettrey 1/1