The Buckeyes have plenty of options on offense, and receiver DeVier Posey knows that.
View full sizeReceiver DeVier Posey knows there are plenty of options on offense for the Buckeyes, so he's not going to complain if he doesn't get the ball a lot in some games.1. Ohio State's offensive distribution
Receiver DeVier Posey didn't need a sit-down with Ohio State quarterback Terrelle Pryor after he caught just two passes last week, while OSU receiver Dane Sanzenbacher grabbed a career-high nine passes, four of them touchdowns. Posey knows his day will come again, though he doesn't know when.
"When I look at our offense, I always say pick your poison," Posey said. "You've got Brandon Saine, Boom Herron, Jordan Hall and Jaamal Berry, and you got to see flashes of him last week. That kid can definitely do something with the ball in his hands. Then you have Dane, you have Jake Stoneburner, you have me and Taurian Washington and Chris Fields and Grant Schwartz, and I haven't even mentioned No. 2's name. So it's really amazing the options we have this year."
The offense starts with No. 2, Terrelle Pryor, but they all play off each other. Trusting their line, and their pass protection, the Buckeyes can throw five legitimate receiving threats against a defense, when, for instance, Posey, Sanzenbacher, Stoneburner, Saine and fullback Zach Boren are all running routes. Last week, Posey helped create opportunities for Sanzenbacher.
"When you have so many different guys, you have to figure out who you're going to try to stop," OSU receivers coach Darrell Hazell said. "Last week, they doubled DeVier quite a bit, and Dane wound up catching all those balls."
But tight end Stoneburner is out this week, left in Columbus with an ankle injury. Reid Fragel isn't as much of a threat in the passing game, so that will change the way Illinois defends everyone. The coaches talked up the idea that in the blowout of Eastern Michigan last week, 12 Buckeyes caught passes. But the talent isn't really that deep.
Posey said there are more offensive options than in either of his two previous seasons. With a man down, it won't quite be the same.
2. Punter vs. Punter
What a surprise, another issue involving the Ohio State special teams. While OSU coach Jim Tressel saw improvement in the kickoff coverage a week ago, he didn't like what he saw on the Buckeyes' only punt of the game, a 39-yarder from Ben Buchanan that Eastern Michigan returned 27 yards through several missed tackles.
While Illinois, with punter Anthony Santella, ranks fourth in the nation in net punting at 43.3 yards, Ohio State ranks dead last, 120 out of 120, with an average net punt of 26 yards. So take note of the field position shifts if the teams start trading punts at any point. That's an edge of 17 yards per punt for the Illini, so if Illinois can put together a couple decent defensive series, they could gain a big advantage.
3. The almost-Buckeye
Justin Green gave an oral commitment to Ohio State before deciding to sign with Illinois in 2009, in part because he wanted to play running back and the Buckeyes saw him as a defensive back. Now, Green is starting at cornerback for the Illini after volunteering to switch positions before this season after several injuries in the defensive backfield.
"It's sort of not fair, is it?" Tressel said. "He's supposed to be playing corner for us. He's a great kid. What are you going to do? You make decisions and handle the adversity and deal with what comes your way, and that's obviously what he's doing, and he's got great speed out there. He's got all the things that you would love to have in a corner."
Check out Green's play and see how he'd fit onto the OSU roster at cornerback, probably in the mix with No. 3 corner Travis Howard and younger corners Corey Brown and Dominic Clarke.