 |
Ohio State vs. Illinois Preview By Tony Gerdeman |
 |
Illinois (1-1) and #13 Ohio State (2-1) met for the very first time back in 1902. That game finished in a 0-0 tie, and it wasn’t until the fourth meeting in 1915 that the Buckeyes finally scored their first points against the Illini. Since then, however, things have eased up a bit for the Buckeyes.
Ohio State owns the all-time advantage in the series with a 61-30-4 record, including 26-18-4 at home.
Illinois, however, has won three of the last four in Columbus and seven of the last ten. Over the last 19 meetings, Ohio State is barely above water with a 10-9 record against the Illini.
Ohio State Head Coach Jim Tressel, however, is 4-2 against Illinois, but both losses have come in Ohio Stadium.
Illini Head Coach Ron Zook is only 1-3 against Ohio State, with his lone win coming against the top-ranked Buckeyes in 2007. Interestingly, while Ron Zook was an assistant coach with the Buckeyes from 1988-1990, Ohio State went 0-3 against Illniois.
When the Illini and the Buckeyes get together, that also means the “Illibuck” trophy is up for grabs. Dating back to 1925, Ohio State owns the series mark here as well with a 57-23-2 record.
Ohio State is 69-23-4 in conference openers and 7-1 under Jim Tressel.
This is the third consecutive week the Buckeyes have faced an opposing head coach who used to be an assistant at Ohio State.
Saturday will mark Jim Tressel’s 300th game as a head coach. He is currently 85-20 at Ohio State and 220-77-2 overall.
When Illinois Has The Ball
Illinois’ chances of success will likely mirror the day that quarterback Juice Williams is having on Saturday. If he is playing well, then the Illini could be in this game for all four quarters. If he is not, then his defense is going to have a rough time keeping Illinois in this one.
Williams is coming off of a quadriceps injury two weeks ago against Illinois State, but appears now to be fine. He is looking to pick up where he left off last season, when he averaged 264 yards passing per game. However, against a suspect Missouri defense to open the season, Williams only threw for 179 yards on 28 attempts.
Right now it appears as though the Illini are much more intent on running the ball, and their 247 yards rushing per game, which is second in the conference and thirteenth in the nation, seems to be suiting them well. So far this year, the Illini quarterbacks have been running the ball more than any one particular running back. This is mainly due to Illinois going to the old “running back by committee” and not anointing any one tailback. The Illini will use four or five different running backs throughout the game on Saturday and will be looking for somebody to rely upon.
One tailback that they may turn to is Daniel Dufrene, who made his season debut last week rushing for 61 yards on just five carries. But that 12.2 yard per carry average from last week shouldn’t seem all that unfamiliar to Buckeye fans, because in his two games against Ohio State, Dufrene is averaging 11.6 yards per carry.
The tailback situation is so murky (in a good way) that the depth chart lists four starting running backs via the “or” system. i.e. The starting running back is Daniel Dufrene or Jason Ford or Mikel Leshoure or Troy Pollard. And amazingly, the player that the coaches may like the most is true freshman Justin Green. Green, who originally committed to Ohio State last year to be a cornerback, impressed the staff all throughout summer practices. Last week against Illinois State, he got his first extensive playing time and carried the ball seven times for 56 yards, including a 22-yard touchdown run. He is the fastest running back on the team, but it’s going to be hard for him to get too involved in this game on Saturday.
Illinois will run quite a bit of the speed option, where Juice Williams or back-up Eddie McGee will head down the line of scrimmage looking for a hole to turn up into, or looking to pitch the ball. The will also run plenty of zone read, where Williams will decide what to do with the ball based on what he sees from the edge rushers. Assignments on defense will be critical this week, much like they were against Navy to open the season. To this point, however, both Illini quarterbacks have been keeping the ball more than they’ve been giving it up.
Even though Illinois has shown themselves to be a running team, don’t be surprised if the Buckeyes show quite a bit of the nickel package due to the Illini’s speed and ability to turn the corner.
Defensive lineman Cameron Heyward has been nearly unblockable the last two weeks and there’s no reason this shouldn’t continue against Illinois. Whether he’s disrupting the middle of the line, or coming from the outside, Juice Williams is going to have to be aware of him at all times. And if he’s worrying too much about Heyward, his concentration isn’t going to be where it needs to be.
While he’s worrying about Heyward, he better hope that somebody is containing defensive ends Thaddeus Gibson and Nathan Williams. People are waiting for a breakout game from Gibson, but the coaches have him doing more than just rushing the passer. Against Juice Williams, it’s not always a good idea to force him out of the pocket. But if somebody on the Ohio State defense can chase him into the waiting arms of Gibson and Nathan Williams, then it’s doubtful that anybody will really mind.
Another reason the Buckeyes might want to open with the nickel is because of the number of weapons at receiver for the Illini. Everybody knows Arrelious Benn, but Benn only has one reception to this point due to injury. He is expected back against the Buckeyes and is going to prove a very tough matchup for cornerbacks Chimdi Chekwa and Devon Torrence. He will also line up in the slot at times, so it’s likely that either Anderson Russell or Jermale Hines will get a few cracks at him as well. The Buckeyes would be well to give the safeties a bit of help when Benn is lined up in the slot.
Florida transfer Jarred Fayson leads the team in receptions with eight, but is only averaging 11.1 yards per catch. Right now, the entire receiving corps is struggling to get downfield, exhibited by the fact that the longest completion of the season so far is just 27 yards. That should change this week simply due to the amount of talent in the Illinois passing game. They can’t struggle forever. And if the running game is having issues on Saturday, the passing game will become an even larger part of Illinois’ offense.
Much like the rest of the team, the special teams have also yet to hit their stride. Place-kicker Matt Eller is 2-3 on field goals so far, missing a 45-yarder last week. He has also missed an extra point. Punter Anthony Santella has punted seven times, but only has a long of 43 yards. They have done well defending returns, but have yet to break any of their own. However, with the speed and athleticism that Illinois employs in the return game, they are definitely capable of some damage in this area.
When Ohio State Has The Ball
Last week against Toledo quarterback Terrelle Pryor threw for 262 yards and rushed for 110 yards. His 372 yards of total offense was the fifth-best mark in Ohio State history. The game was also Pryor’s second career 100-yard rushing effort. The first, coincidentally, came last year against Illinois. In that game, the Buckeyes rushed for 305 yards and only threw the ball ten times.
This year, however, throwing the ball might be advised. The Illini defense is ranked 119th in the nation (second to last) in pass defense, allowing an astounding 339.5 yards passing in their two games so far. And this isn’t just from their blowout loss to Missouri, because Illinois State actually threw for more yards than Missouri did. It’s really quite puzzling as to why the numbers are what they are. The Illini have a fairly experienced secondary, but the lack of a consistent pass rush has hurt them. Cornerbacks Dere Hicks and Tavon Wilson have a ton of ability, but they’re not always helped out by safeties Donsay Hardeman and Garrett Edwards. Hardeman and Edwards are more geared toward run support than pass coverage, which has been an issue that goes back further than just this season.
Like last week, the Buckeyes will continue to tinker with their offensive line until they find a lineup that works best for them. And then they will probably continue to tinker some more. The coaches would definitely like to see entire drives not bogged down by a false start here and there. This Illinois defense doesn’t really provide too many speed issues at the line of scrimmage, so there’s really no need to try and get an extra headstart.
Terrelle Pryor will have time to throw on Saturday, but that doesn’t mean he should abandon his running ability that proved so successful against Toledo. Illinois won’t necessarily have the ability to keep Pryor from getting to the edge, and after the way he ran between the hashes against Toledo, perhaps more of the Illini’s attention will be focused up the middle. With Pryor getting back out on the edge, expect to see the tight ends re-involved in the passing game again this week.
This will also be another opportunity for the Buckeyes to pit slot receiver Dane Sanzenbacher against bigger, slower safeties and see what happens. It will probably end up positive for the Buckeyes.
Where this game may get very interesting—or frustrating if you’re a Buckeye fan—is in the running game. Part of the reason it will be important for Pryor to gain yards on the ground is because Illinois has been fairly stout against the run, allowing just 80.5 yards per game. Of course, you can chalk that up to offenses deciding not to run the ball because passing it is so much easier, but the Ohio State running game hasn’t exactly been adequate. Yes, last week they rushed for 247 yards against Toledo, but the Rocket defense is a measuring stick for nothing.
The Buckeyes are going to have to be much more assertive on the ground this week if they want to move the ball. And running back Boom Herron is going to have to start breaking some tackles and getting to the second level for a change. He is due to break a big one and that may go a long way in building some confidence that is sorely needed for this running game.
Brandon Saine will continue to get snaps as well and it may not be a bad idea to involve him in the passing game again. The Illini’s starting middle linebacker Martez Wilson is out for the year due to a neck injury and right now, it looks like redshirt freshman Evan Frierson will start in his place. If the Buckeyes can get Saine matched up with Frierson, the freshman may get caught doing too much thinking and not enough playing.
The Ohio State special teams continue to be solid. Last week, starting punter Jon Thoma stayed home to deal with an illness, and redshirt freshman Ben Buchanan stepped up and averaged 42.8 yards per punt. The Buckeyes have still only allowed one punt return this season and would be smart to continue that practice this week.
It seems every week fans brace themselves for something out of the return game, but maybe this watched pot isn’t going to boil. Perhaps if it is just ignored, something good will happen for the Buckeyes.
How It’ll End Up
Illinois has rushed for over 200 yards each of the last two meetings with the Buckeyes. That streak will end on Saturday.
The Ohio State defense is going to attack Juice Williams until they can attack him no longer. They have been able to get pressure on quarterbacks by just rushing four so far this season, and that will probably continue this week as well. However, where those four rushers will be coming from is going to be anybody’s guess.
That doesn’t mean the Buckeyes won’t blitz Williams, it just means they might not need to as much as one may think.
Until the Buckeyes show a consistent running game, expecting them to run the ball with considerable success from the tailback position this week would probably be foolish. But this is Ohio State and the Buckeyes will still run the ball. Don’t be surprised if we see more speed option and hopefully even some zone read, which proved very successful last week. Both of these “options” should allow the tailbacks greater success than they’ve had so far this season.
For the second week in a row, the passing game will be going against a suspect opponent. Expect the Buckeyes to attack downfield like they did last week. But also expect another Terrelle Pryor interception. He’s been given more freedom to throw this season and he’s still learning what he can’t get away with.
In the end, however, Boom Herron and Dane Sanzenbacher will each find the endzone again this week, which should surprise no one.
This isn’t going to be a pretty game, but it should be a classic “Jim Tressel Blowout”.
Ohio State 27 – Illinois 16
Return to the-OZone Front Page
(c) 2009 The O-Zone, O-Zone Communications, Inc. All rights reserved.
This material may not be published, rebroadcast,rewritten, or redistributed.