For the second time this spring it was “winners, losers” for the Ohio State football team.
And for the second time, the defense won.
Though, with his offense trying to comprehend an entirely new playbook, seeing the defense win is something that coach Urban Meyer said he expected to see.
“They better win,” he said.
Senior defensive lineman John Simon created havoc all afternoon long, forcing sophomore quarterback Braxton Miller to either scramble outside the pocket or make forced, erratic throws.
Behind Simon and a stingy defense that forced two fumbles, Meyer said the Buckeye offense started out awful before managing to regroup and battle back.
Still, Meyer said the offense hasn’t been performing to the level he wanted to see by now.
“We’re not where we need to be,” he said. “I wish we grasped it a little faster.”
It’s not the first time he’s been in this situation. Meyer said he had similar problems trying to install his offense at Utah and Florida before coming to OSU.
Some of those pressures of helping Meyer effectively establish his offensive scheme has inevitably fallen on the shoulders of Miller, who started as quarterback for the Buckeyes in 2011.
Miller, who had an up-and-down day on most accounts, still seemed uncomfortable at times.
That, coupled with an offensive line that Meyer called “adequate,” is why he said they might need to adjust some things.
“We might even slow down the installation a little bit,” Meyer said.
But it’s not just an issue with Miller, he said.
Rather, he said far too much credit and blame go to quarterbacks while, sometimes, Miller is a “product of what’s around him.”
Despite those troubles, Meyer said the team is continuing to improve each practice.
“We’re a lot better today than we were yesterday,” he said.
