Life After Beanie? Sure….
I make it no secret: Beanie is my favorite Buckeye. I’m not supposed to say things like that… but he’s a wonderful young man. From a good home with a great mom and dad…. incredibly devoted but tragically let down by his body at times. His attitude and smile make it easy to cheer on Wells.
But is Ohio State lost without him? Nay.
You know what it takes to run the football? Linemen. Ohio State’s got plenty of those. Good ones, too. If I got Alex Boone in front of me, chances are I’m gonna get where I want to go.
But Beanie’s backups aren’t exactly slack. At nearly any other school they’d be the starter. Does anyone remember Brandon Saine is the fastest player in the history of the OSU program? It’s true… look at his high school 100 meter time (10.34 btw)! And I’m sorry—-but he looks amazing when I watch him run. Saine can run between the tackles just fine—he weighs nearly 220lbs. But in the open field he’s a star—-an impressive cut and run player—-and diffiicult to tackle. He can also catch the ball well, further stretching a defense.
But in the week one depth chart, Saine wasn’t even 2nd team at running back. That job went to Boom Herron, who redshirted last season but was a high school star in NE Ohio… He’s smaller than the other two backs but runs with a purpose and has a remarkable burst from the snap. He didn’t really show that against YSU, but it’s in there… and he’ll more than get his chance Saturday against the Bobcats.
And if you want to go past them…. did everyone completely forget about Maurice Wells??? I thought he looked outstanding against YSU, and he’s always been a valuable back, especially as a receiver and getting to the edge. He is incredibly quick and draws as little praise for as much work as any player i can remember.
All is not lost, even with, arguably, the nation’s best player watching on the sideline. IMO, Ohio State can achieve every goal it has set this season if Wells never plays another snap. But I know Beanie… they won’t have to worry about that.
