5 reasons Ohio State will route Purdue as Haskins’ Heisman case grows
By Alec Hartman
5. The Buckeyes’ rushing offense will be revived
One of the more glaring problems so far for the Buckeyes this year has been their inability to run the ball effectively on a consistent basis. This is a problem that many sweep under the rug as it’s been a strength of the Buckeyes in the last few seasons. It needs to be understood that this is rapidly becoming a major problem.
The Buckeyes came into this season with a couple of estimates on what their strengths will be offensively. It was known that first year starter Dwayne Haskins is a talented quarterback who can throw the ball but it was still unknown if he was for real or not. It was just his first year as an every game starter for the Buckeyes anyhow.
The aspect of the Buckeyes’ offense that everyone was almost certain would perform was the run game. The Buckeyes were returning third year running back Mike Weber and former true freshman J.K. Dobbins. Both running backs were coming off great seasons and it was surely going to be a fantastic year for the two of them. This thought wasn’t exactly wrong considering they are both having good seasons.
The duo is having a ‘good’ season but not a great season. This is a tad bit strange as the Buckeyes usually have a great running game with running backs that are far from average. Weber and Dobbins’ numbers have declined a bit from last season. Dobbins averaged a robust 7.2 yards per carry last season but is now averaging just 4.2 yards. Likewise, Weber was averaging 6.2 yards per carry and is now averaging 5.4 yards.
These backs are not missing their explosive attributes as they’ve broke off some good looking runs this season. It seems they are having a more difficult time finding room to run than before. The offensive line has received criticism this season for their lack of overall ability in some areas and this may have something to do with it.
The upcoming match up against Purdue does pose a great opportunity for the Buckeyes’ dynamic duo to get back into shape though. The Boilermakers are a mere 47th in the nation in rushing defense. The Bucks averaged a miserable 2.8 yards per carry against the Gophers. Once again, Haskins attempted to run the ball several times. Haskins rushed nine times for 0.7 yards per carry. These wasted plays need to come to an end.
The Buckeyes will need to up the ante in their run game if they want to be successful in the later games in their schedule. It’s gotten to be that time of the year when running the rock brings in the bread more often than not in the cold weather. They’ve been able to rely on their passing game thus far to bring home wins but now they need to prove they can still run the ball. Expect the Buckeyes to have an easier time running the ball this weekend.