Grading the Buckeyes--Toledo Yikes!

The Bucks of 2011 get their first real scare of the season against the Rockets and much of the worry can be attributed to the lines. There were a lot of injuries, but the Buckeyes let themselves get pushed around way too much. Toledo is much better than people think (Herbie even went as far to suggest that they may be better than the Hurricanes), but OSU shouldn't have to sweat that game out at home. That being said, I will say today that Toledo will finish with more wins than Wisconsin's first 2 opponents (UNLV and Oregon State) combined.

Offense: C+

Joe Bauserman took a lot of heat for the offensive struggles but I'm not convinced it was all deserved. The O-Line was getting routinely beaten up front by the smaller Rocket line which was the real scare. I would have liked Bauserman to look downfield a little more but he checked down to the running back routinely which led to many questions to the receivers separation (I couldn't see if the receivers got open or not on television). If Joe can hang in the pocket and give his receivers a bit more time, I think they'd be a bit more explosion. The running game also struggled with a low average yard per carry. Getting Jordan Hall back from suspension in Week 3 will certainly help but it also falls on the O-Line. The O-Line needs to get stronger and nastier and the backs need to hit the hole rather than the backs of the blockers. Carlos Hyde has been serviceable but the extremely costly turnovers of Rod Smith will definitely limit his playing time. No Braxton Miller is a topic for the coaching section.

Defense: B-

The Bullets were flying around like crazy in Week 1, knocking heads off while shutting out the hapless Zips. Week 2 brought a new beast and the Buckeyes looked a little stunned. The underneath routes were destroying the OSU defense and Eric Page couldn't be covered. The biggest disappointment were the D-Line (until John Simon went crazy at the end) and the failure to adjust to the underneath crossing patterns (Toledo couldn't throw downfield if their lives depended on it. I raised the grade to a low B due to the stop at the end but we saw the depth of the D-Line is not a deep as before. When Simon went out with cramps and Williams sidelined for bruises, no pressure was generated. Thankfully, John Simon showed why he's an All-American candidate by single handedly disrupting the Toledo upset bid. Getting Howard back at CB will help with depth issues in the secondary next week. The long run by Page was a combination of a great athlete and a bad angle by the safety. Those issues need to be fixed right away.

Special Teams: C

This unit would certainly deserve it's standard D or F rating if not for the punt return by our 3rd string punt returner Fields. The return by Fields was huge and well blocked which totally shifted the momentum going into halftime. The punt block was inexcusable with an unblocked defender coming off the edge. That is how upset bids are made and the Buckeyes allowed it. The kick coverage and return teams were so-so but the blocked punt laid the ground work for the potential upset. The other problem on special teams was the lack of a field goal made this year. Drew Basil is not a bad kicker, but he has been put in bad situations many times. His attempts have all been outside 40 and the kick Sat was 50+. When he can get some confidence on a shorter kick, he'll be fine. We always expect Nuge and Janikowski but that's not realistic. He'll get it together but definitely not there yet.

Coaching: C-

Fickell is getting a full dose of what it means to be the guy at OSU. A win is not enough. Let's give him credit because Tressel routinely had this close game in the opening weeks with a full complement of athletes (no suspensions), but OSU expects blowouts every week no matter the opponent (fair or not). The playcalling was pedestrian and the jet sweep was continually run even with little to no success. Bauserman wasn't looking down field and the adjustment was made on the sidelines. Defensively, the adjustments to the short hit passes weren't apparent and Page wasn't doubled on the crucial plays. The biggest question surrounded freshman Braxton Miller. Everyone expected the peppering of Miller throughout but he never entered the game. I'll be honest, I like Bauserman. I think he's paid his dues and is more mentally prepared and unflappable than Miller. I would start Joe B. without a doubt and give him 80% of the snaps. That being said, the coaches showed in Week 1 that Miller will see time but refused to pepper him in for a change of pace. I would have given a play here or there just to keep Toledo guessing (more specifically, I might have let him run the 2-pt conversion to totally mess with them). Use him or don't. He's not the starter or even your QB, but he is a weapon.

Toledo projected win total: 10 (MAC champions)