[ad_1]
For a game that ended in a 21-point victory on Saturday, there were certainly plenty of pressing questions surrounding an Ohio State performance that would accurately qualify as a mixed sack in more than one title.
Buckeye head coach Ryan Day and six of his notable players in Saturday’s 41-20 win over Tulsa took the time to answer many of these questions after the contest in Columbus, and many of their responses deserve to be highlighted.
One of those sound bites came from first-year starting quarterback CJ Stroud, who had his worst performance of the first three games of the season on Saturday, completing just 15 of his 25 passing attempts for 185 yards with one touchdown and one. interception. In his post-game interview, Stroud reminded critics and members of the media of his age and hinted at a lingering shoulder injury for the second week in a row.
“Every game is a learning aspect for me. I’m only 19 as a redshirt rookie. It’s no excuse, but I still have a lot of football to learn, “said Stroud.” I feel like I’m getting better every week. I know a lot of people disagree with this, but it’s okay. I have a talent given by God, and every time I go I give it my blood, I swear it and my tears. If it’s a problem with the media or whatever, whoever it is, I mean it is. I’m going to keep my faith in God and my teammates, and they have their faith in me, and I’m going to keep going. I don’t worry about negativity, I want to be positive. And I feel like a great player. Of course everyone has mistakes, but I know I’m a great player.
Stroud said he was not injured enough to be excluded from the game, but admitted he is not performing at peak capacity at the moment. Stroud was seen favoring his shoulder during warm-ups.
Stroud definitely seems to favor that shoulder a bit, let it hang down after that warm-up throw. pic.twitter.com/zpWs3WS5xU
– Griffin Strom (@ GriffinStrom3) September 18, 2021
“I was healthy enough to play. Certainly not 100%, but who is 100% at this time? We have a job to do, we certainly have to work things out on offense, but overall winning is not easy. Especially when everyone has a big target on their backs. I absolutely need to improve, but I was healthy enough to play, so thank goodness.
Stroud’s performance may have been mediocre by recent Ohio State standards, but the defensive scenarios were circled in permanent ink ahead of Saturday’s game due to the Buckeyes’ Oregon loss he a week ago. Secondary coach Matt Barnes took over the call duty from defensive coordinator Kerry Coombs, who was transferred from the field to the box before the game, and Day seemed to like the way those two changes played out against Tulsa.
“We’re going to watch the film and evaluate it and go back to it. It’s kind of how I see it going right now as I sit here, ”Day said. “Larry Johnson is obviously very, very involved and also has a lot of influence on the game plan. So it’s a team effort there. But I think the way things went today went pretty well, and hopefully we can build on that. ”
Regarding Coombs’ reaction to seeing his responsibilities reduced this week, Day said his coordinator had taken it over.
“He’s a professional. He’s a guy from Ohio, he’s from Ohio state, he’s got a lot of pride and he just wants to win. So he’s still a big part of that defense and a big part of Ohio State. ”
Any discussion of the history of Saturday’s game, however, must begin and end with real running back TreVeyon Henderson, as the Virginia native ran for a new freshman record of 277 yards against the Golden Hurricane. Henderson also scored three touchdowns, and did we mention this was just the first start of his career?
Henderson said he didn’t learn he would start for Ohio State until shortly before kickoff on Saturday, but the former five-star rookie clearly took the opportunity.
“I’m excited right now, but at the same time, I have to keep going like this,” said Henderson. “I can’t let this be a unique thing. I have to stay hungry, go back to train this week, work hard again and start again next Saturday.
Henderson’s blockers were especially proud of him after the game, and left tackle Nicholas Petit-Frere couldn’t help but smile when asked which player took the Buckeyes as a running back. against Tulsa.
“TreVeyon obviously had an amazing day. I couldn’t be more proud of him, ”said Petit-Frère. “He’s probably one of the best players we’ve had here, and he’s worked so hard from the start until now. Everything is going well for him, and he shows himself.
Henderson’s spectacular display undoubtedly led the Buckeyes to victory, but the Ohio State defense managed to put together an impressive six-save streak midway through the game and finished with two interceptions on the night. Buckeye’s defense said they didn’t notice much change with Coombs not calling the games on Saturday, adding that communication between the coaching staff and the players was on point throughout. throughout the game.
“No, not really,” said third-year safety Ronnie Hickman when asked if he noticed a difference between Coombs and Barnes in the play calls department. “I think the coaches made a point. good job communicating through the headsets so I wouldn’t. I’m not saying it was so much of a change. ”
However, there have been some obvious changes to the Ohio State defense, although not all have paid as much as the Buckeyes would have hoped. Ohio State has played with blitz looks and two-level safety formations, and despite free safety Josh Proctor leaving for the season, Hickman said he and Bryson Shaw were comfortable making adjustments to the season. the fly.
“To play college football on a large scale you have to be able to adapt to new things,” Hickman said. “I think Bryson and the rest of the security guys did a good job today. We just need to do better.
Among the bright spots for Buckeye’s defense, several are the emergence of freshmen or sophomores who contributed earlier than expected for Ohio State in the opening games. Starting cornerback Denzel Burke continued to show he could be Ohio State’s best high school player overall, and red-shirted first-year defensive back Cameron Martinez returned an interception for a touchdown in the fourth. quarter while seeing his first pictures of the season.
“It’s something we’ve always talked about,” Martinez said. “The three of us is something we always talk about too. We see ourselves in the game and we always imagine what games we can do and what we can do. We have a lot of confidence and we were able to do it. C so is a good time to be there with my guys.
After claiming their second win of the season on Saturday, Ohio State will face a State opponent next week with a 7:30 p.m. kickoff against Akron on the schedule in Columbus.
[ad_2]
Source link