Inside Buckeye Spring Practice
Mine eyes have seen the glory of an immensely talented Buckeye team. Consider this… 5 offensive linemen are missing the spring with injuries. Top running back, Beanie Wells, and top receiver, Brian Robiskie, are sitting out. The offense is replacing its top 3 fullbacks. Somehow, the OSU offense looks somewhat together.
During the 30 minutes of practice we saw Friday and the entire Jersey scrimmage Saturday morning, I noticed the defense was making consistent plays and tackling moderately well. However, they’ve been prone to the big play. Todd Boeckman burned the defense 3 times the past 2 days for long touchdowns. And hats off to Brandon Saine. He’s getting most of the 1st team reps during full contact drills this spring, and Jim Tressel says Saine’s developing into an incredibly well rounded backfield player. He catches the ball well out of the backfield, and at 220 lbs he runs with power.
A couple notes on defense: Cameron Heyward is a monster! He’s been going head-to-head mostly against new right tackle Bryant Browning, and Cam’s handled that matchup with relative ease. They’ve also had some pushing matches.
At the other defensive end, Lawrence Wilson looks close to full speed to me. After his broken leg a year ago, Wilson’s hustled in practice and saw significant time in the jersey scrimmage.
Here’s a name to watch as a true freshman who may see the field: linebacker Etienne Sabino (he wears #6). I saw him make several plays during the jersey scrimmage just from natural instinct and talent. Tressel says Sabino may not know where he’s lining up as an 18-year-old who enrolled early at OSU. But the coach likes Sabino’s instincts and intensity.
And don’t be surprised if senior Curtis Terry ends up switching sides of the ball this fall. He’s taken significant snaps at fullback (converting from linebacker). Terry says while he’s still adjusting from tackling to blocking, Curtis adds he’s excited for any chance to play.
That’s what mine eyes have seen so far…
peace
jrod
