By Anthony Ventura | West Virginia University
After that 31-0 embarrassment at the hands of Deshaun Watson, Ben Boulware and the entire Clemson team, it’s hard to find much positive in that game. It was the first time in his career that Urban Meyer was shutout and the first time since 1993 that Ohio State was shutout. They just got totally outplayed in every single facet of the game. Changes need to be made going forward. Absolutely, step one, change the offensive staff. Buckeyes 1,000-yard freshman running back Mike Weber finished the Fiesta Bowl with 5 carries for 24 yards and “dual threat” quarterback J.T Barrett had 11 rushes for -2 yards. This play calling was putrid at best. Building on this from the play calling last year against the Michigan State Spartans, this is now 2 years in a row that the offensive play calling of Tim Beck and Ed Warriner cost the Buckeyes the shot at a national championship. Rumors swirl that former Indiana headman Kevin Wilson will be brought onto the Buckeyes staff. The dream hire would be to bring in former NFL head coach Chip Kelly to run our offense with former NFL head coach Greg Schiano taking on a larger role as defensive coordinator as Luke Fickell moves on to be the head coach at Cincinnati. Urban Meyer needs to revamp the entire staff and add some sort of a passing element going into next year. As the great former Ohio State coach Woody Hayes once said, “There’s nothing that cleanses your soul like getting the hell kicked out of you.” Urban Meyer will need to hope that Woody was right for success next year.
From a player standpoint Ohio State is in amazing shape. Outside of a possible J.T Barrett transfer they would bring back their quarterback, running back, 3 or 4 of their starting offensive lineman and many good receivers. Billy Price at right guard has already announced a return to OSU for his senior season, and Curtis Samuel has indicated he will speak to his family before deciding. In a dream world where he, as well as J.T return, Ohio State will likely return 10 of 11 starters on the offensive side of the ball. Throw in a great recruiting class including likely freshman starter Trevon Grimes at wide out and Gatorade National Offensive Player of the Year Tate Martell, who will hopefully have an open QB competition with J.T Barrett, Dwayne Haskins Jr, and himself. With the new staff and a whole offseason to prepare it is likely they will even improve on their top 10 scoring offense from this year. On the defensive side, Ohio State was outstanding all year. Apart from the offense that had its down points, the defense stayed strong all year. They have 3 probable first round picks in the secondary and almost certainly will lose 2 (Gareon Conley and Marshon Lattimore) while hopefully returning Malik Hooker. Damon Webb will be returning for the defense after a solid year playing as the third cornerback spot for the Buckeyes. Ohio State brings in a great defensive recruiting class including Gatorade National Defensive Player of the Year in cornerback Shaun Wade. They will return likely 2 linebackers from this year, assuming stud linebacker Raekwon McMillan is leaving for the NFL. However, one of their probable starters from week 1 who was injured in that first week will return in 2017. On the defensive line, Sam Hubbard has already announced he will return, and the only lineman who will leave would possibly be Tyquan Lewis, but even he might stay. They bring in a great class at defensive line to join Lewis, Hubbard, Dre’Mont Jones, Michael Hill, as well as rush men Jalyn Holmes, Nick Bosa and a 5-star recruit who was redshirted this year in Jonathan Cooper. The Buckeyes defense will be scary good next year to join a new and improved offensive system to make the Buckeyes primed for a return to the College Football Playoff in 2017.
The Buckeyes will likely be a top 5 team in the preseason and has a very favorable schedule next year in comparison to this year. They have home games next year against the Oklahoma Sooners, the Penn State Nittany Lions, and the Michigan State Spartans. They have a road game at Memorial Stadium in Lincoln to face Nebraska. They travel to Kinnick Stadium to face the Hawkeyes, who used that home field to upset Jim Harbaugh and the Wolverines this year. And they have the always tough Wolverines in the last game of the year on the road. The Wolverines will likely be down next year compared to this year, and while that will be tough, it will be very winnable for the Buckeyes. Penn State will likely be the second-best team in the Big Ten next year, and the Buckeyes get them at home. Ohio State will most likely be favored in every game in 2017. Oklahoma will be, in my opinion, the toughest game next year, as they return quarterback Baker Mayfield in 2017, and Ohio State has a history of losing big games at home (see VT 2014 and MSU 2015). I predict the Buckeyes will finish 11-1 with a loss to Oklahoma and tough wins against Penn State, Michigan State, and Michigan. I predict they will win the Big Ten, win the conference championship over the perennial Big Ten West champion Wisconsin Badgers, and the Buckeyes will return to the playoff in 2017. At the beginning of the year, the entire country thought they were still a year away, in the Fiesta Bowl, they proved everyone right. Next year should be a fun year in Columbus, Go Buckeyes! O-H