Something that we have all noticed from Ohio State in the last few years is the lack of rotation among players at certain positions. Wide Receiver, Defensive Line and Linebacker more so than the other positions. Granted, the coaching staff doesn’t rotate the Quarterbacks or the Offensive Lineman but that is to be expected. The biggest question is why? According to our recruiting rankings, we have talented players in the 2-deep and even in the 3-deep so we should be able to play more players. But, bitching and complaining is not the point of this thought.
What I want to do is play the what-if game, because fuck it. It’s June and we ain’t got shit else to talk about. Let’s pretend that the coaching staff likes to create specific packages for certain types of personnel that puts the players in optimal positions and maximizes their strengths. (Maybe I am being a little sarcastic and calling out this staff.) You’re going to see a trend with what I am putting out here. Let’s start with the offense.
4 WR/1 RB – Emeka, Carnell, Jeremiah, Brandon, Trey
If our Wide Receiver room was the deepest room on offense, why wouldn’t we want to feature that? I know it limits the run game, but we’ve all seen how good Ryan is when he says “fuck it, let’s chuck it” – i.e. – Georgia in the playoffs. Trey has proven to be a capable throw game option out of the backfield and as a blocker. Five of the best athletes on the offense all on the field together. Can’t hurt right?
2 RB – Trey and Quinshon
I think this one is obvious here. Our two most proven and talented players on offense. Put them on the field together and make the defense make decisions. In a run situation, having 2 elite RB’s and a QB who can run can only put the offense in an advantage correct? If the defense doesn’t know where the ball is going, advantage offense. Also, it’s not like Trey and Quinshon have proven that they can’t catch the ball out of the backfield. You could even motion them both out and go empty. Imagine forcing a defense to spread themselves out with LB’s trying to cover those two freaks in space.
3 WR Bunch Sets
I don’t really care who the three WR’s are, Ryan Day made Michigan run and hide in 2020 with the COVID excuse because of what he did to them with WR bunch sets in 2018 and 2019. I want to see more of them.
Rushmen Package – JTT, Jack, Kenyatta, Tyleik
WHERE THE HELL HAS THIS BEEN. I thought Larry Johnson was the greatest coach ever when I watched him do this when we had Chase Young and the Bosa brothers. I can’t even imagine how free those guys would feel when they only have one job. All fast. All big. All strong. All freaks.
Speed, Speed, Speed – Jack, Kenyatta, Tyleik, Ty, CJ, Sonny, Denzel, Davidson, Jordan, Jermaine, and Caleb
Before you freak out, I understand that Lathan Ransom is really good. But he also gets hurt so him coming off the field every once in awhile can only help him stay healthy. Anyways, this is the one I want to see the most. I can only imagine how excited this lineup would make Urban, who was obsessed with speed. All of those DB’s love to hit in run support, both of those LB’s are capable of covering TE’s – which we have been so good at recently… - and that DL can get after the QB. All the freaks.
Moral of this story. Find the freaks. Keep it simple. Put them on the field. But, I am sure our coaching staff has already thought about these…right?
