Football
By the Numbers
By Jeff Amey
The Iowa Hawkeyes came to Columbus as the last of four home games for the Ohio State Buckeyes to start the season this past Saturday, and left on the losing end of a 31-6 blowout that could've actually been much worse. The offense had their best yardage output in a very long time, and the defense once again played lights out for four quarters.
Before we get into talking about the offense, let's take a look at the statistics.
Run/Pass Breakdown
80 Total Plays--536 yards--6.7 ypp
21 pass (26%)--14/21 for 217 yards 2 TD
59 runs (74%) for 319 yards 2 TD--5.4 ypc
12 Total Drives
ave. of 6.7 plays--44.7 yards
ave. start--OSU 27
1st Down--35 plays (44%) for 197 yards
4 pass (11%)--1/4 for 29 yards 1 TD
31 runs (89%) for 168 yards 1 TD--5.4 ypc
ave. gain of 5.6 yards
2nd Down--26 plays (33%) for 164 yards
6 pass (23%)--4/6 for 74 yards
20 runs (77%) for 90 yards 1 TD--4.5 ypc
ave. of 8.6 yards to go
ave. gain of 6.3 yards
3rd Down--18 plays (23%) for 173 yards
11 pass (61%)--9/11 for 114 yards 1 TD
7 runs (39%) for 59 yards--8.4 ypc
ave. of 6.3 yards to go
ave. gain of 9.6 yards
conversions--13/18 (72%)
4th Down--1 play (1%) for 2 yards
1 run (100%) for 2 yards--2.0 ypc
ave. of 12.0 yards to go
ave. gain of 2.0 yards
conversions--0/1
Playaction Passing
0/2 for 0 yards
First Downs--23
8 by pass
14 by run
1 by penalty
FORMATION BREAKDOWN
Two back formations--27 plays (34%)
2 pass (7%)--0/2 for 0 yards
25 runs (93%) for 107 yards--4.3 ypc
Shotgun formations--47 plays (59%)
18 pass (38%)--14/18 for 217 yards 2 TD
29 runs (62%) for 186 yards 2 TD--6.4 ypc
One back/empty formations--6 plays (8%)
1 pass (17%)--0/1 for 0 yards
5 runs (83%) for 26 yards--5.2 ypc
RUN TYPE BREAKDOWN--59 attempts
counter/trap--10 (17%) for 15 yards--1.5 ypc
draw--14 (24%) for 86 yards--6.1 ypc
sweep--0 (0%) for 0 yards
base/iso--11 (19%) for 36 yards--3.3 ypc
end around--0 (0%) for 0 yards
power--1 (2%) for 5 yards--5.0 ypc
QB run/scramble--11 (19%) for 72 yards--6.5 ypc
option--8 (14%) for 54 yards 2 TD--6.8 ypc
stretch--4 (7%) for 51 yards--12.8 ypc
Other Stats of Note
* 8 penalties (3 offensive) for the game
* OSU started on Iowa side of 50 once--7 points
* 3 for 5 in red zone scoring (3 TD, 2 fumbles)
* 44 of 80 plays were on Iowa side of the 50
* 18 of 80 plays went for no gain or loss (23%)
* no sacks and 2 turnovers (2 fumbles)
* 50 of 80 plays had 3 or more WR's lined up (63%)
* 14 of those 50 plays ended with the ball in a WR's hands (28%)
* Offensive yardage for both teams with 9:59 left in 3rd quarter--Ohio State 416 Iowa 13
There has been a lot of criticism directed at the Ohio State offense the past two weeks, and it looks as if the offense finally took it personally. The Buckeyes came out and physically dominated the Hawkeyes in much the same way Iowa dominated last year's game between these two schools. Since the beginning of the 2004 season, there has been a lot of talk about potential. This game shows what happens when 22 different potentials come together at the same time and play one great game.
Looking first at the playcalling, the Buckeyes didn't really do all that much different than they have so far this season. There was a more concerted effort to establish a power running game out of the I formation, with mixed results. There also seemed to be a bit more concentration on intermediate route combinations rather than the 3-5 yard combinations of the previous three games. Other than that, it was much of the same playcalling as we've seen since Troy Smith took over the reigns of the offense. The Buckeyes just executed the offense better.
We have been pretty critical of Troy Smith so far this season, but there is little to be critical of this week other than putting the ball on the ground four times. It looks as if Troy settled into his role somewhat this week and played within himself and the offense. He scrambled several times and ended the game with over 100 yards rushing, but never seemed to be trying too hard to make things happen by himself. This was probably his best game as far as going through progressions and making reads in the defense after the snap as a Buckeye.
It wasn't a perfect game, 4 fumbles are 4 fumbles too many, but it was a huge step in the right direction. At least the quarterback controversy seems to be put to rest...for the time being.
Antonio Pittman also may have answered some questions this week about the stable of running backs the Buckeyes have this year. It looked as if the Buckeyes weren't going to be able to run the ball this year without Troy Smith handling the ball, but Pittman stormed through the Hawkeye defense on the first drive of the game for 46 yards on 7 carries on his way to a 170 yard game on 26 carries. The real question is whether he will be able to stay healthy this season. There wasn't much production out of the halfback position when he wasn't in the game.
The offensive line put together a great performance this week. Anytime the offense is able to gain 319 yards on the ground in a game, you know the big guys up front are dominating the action. Iowa's front seven, including the much heralded linebackers, were for the most part neutralized in this game. This might be the best offensive line the Buckeyes have put together since the mid to late 90's.
The matchup problems opposing teams have with Ohio State wide receivers finally showed signs of fruit with a two touchdown game for Anthony Gonzalez. Santonio Holmes and Ted Ginn get most of the publicity, but Gonzalez is quietly putting together a good start to this season. If he can start to draw some of the attention, it might help to open up Ted Ginn, who has been bottled up by opposing defenses so far this season.
Lost in all of the criticism of the offense this season has been the play of the Ohio State defense. It's still early in the season, but this could be one of the most dominating groups to ever don the Scarlet and Grey. We don't think we've ever seen a linebacking corps as dominating as A.J. Hawk, Anthony Schlegel, and Bobby Carpenter. Mike Kudla is really coming on at his defensive end spot this season and the rest of the line has enabled the linebackers to roam free. With the emergence of true freshman Malcolm Jenkins, the defensive backfield is quickly becoming a strength as well.
It was almost as amazing to see that Iowa only had 13 yards of offense and 2 first downs midway through the third quarter as it was to see that Ohio State had 416 yards and 19 first downs. It was fun to see a quarterback as good as Iowa's Drew Tate get frustrated due to the constant Buckeye pressure and inability to move his offense.
Now we've had a taste of what this offense is capable of when it's firing on all cylinders. Finally the Buckeyes were able to meet and probably exceed expectations. Now it's time to find some consistancy. The Buckeyes don't need to put up 536 yards every week, or hold the opposing team to 6 points and less than 200 yards of offense, or win by 25 points. They just need to consistantly live up to the potential nearly everyone can see when they look at this Buckeye team. People see great things in their head when they think about this offense. We just want to see those great things on the field, too.
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