Two Ohio State beat writers reached out to me for a five questions feature, so I did both. The one with Kevin Noon, the publisher of the Rivals site BuckeyeGrove.com, is on the front page of this site. Here's the one with Alex Gleitman of 247 Sports:
1) Wave Report: Will Urban Meyer's return be an emotional boost or a potential distraction for a game the Buckeyes could overlook as a whopping 34-point favorite a week before traveling to Penn State? Tulane was not only an afterthought at his Monday presser. It was a non-thought.
Alex Gleitman: Tulane was definitely a non-thought in Monday's press conference, as most of the conversation revolved around the Zach Smith situation, as expected. That said, I think that is pretty much the end of hearing about that from Urban Meyer, and I can guarantee you his focus, and the team's focus, is on beating Tulane this week. I don't see Meyer's return as a distraction, because he's been with the team in practice the last two weeks, so it will be much of the same there. On game day, yeah it could give the team a little extra juice, having their guy back on the sidelines. I think looking ahead to Penn State the following week can be more of a distraction than Meyer returning to his coaching duties.
2) Wave Report: Nick Bosa is out, but Dre'Mont Jones is coming off a spectacular game against TCU. Who are the key players to watch on the Ohio State defense?
Alex Gleitman: You mentioned Jones, so I will go outside of him when it comes to players to watch on defense. Let's start with Jonathon Cooper and Chase Young, who will be the guys at defensive end getting most of the snaps in Bosa's absence. These are two highly recruited, yet inexperienced players, so OSU will definitely need them to elevate their game. Additionally on the line, Robert "B.B." Landers is the other starting defensive tackle next to Jones, and has been disruptive, despite his lack of size.
At linebacker, Tuf Borland continues to bounce back from an Achilles injury suffered in the spring, and got his first start of the season last week against TCU. Ohio State needs the middle linebacker to solidify that unit, so watch for him to try and do that this week.
Finally, in the secondary, safety Jordan Fuller is a star. This could very well be his last year in Columbus, as the talented junior should be highly regarded by NFL teams. He is a captain and leader of the defense, and his return in week two, after sitting out week one with a hamstring injury, gave an obvious boost to the defense overall.
3) Wave Report: Dwayne Haskins' passing numbers have been terrific through three games. How does his skill set compare/contrast to his predecessors?
Alex Gleitman: His skill set is completely different, as he is a pocket passer with a canon for an arm, versus the more mobile signal callers of the past in J.T. Barrett and Braxton Miller. While those guys won a ton of games and brought their own set of skills and intangibles to the table, the ceiling for the offense is much higher with Haskins at the helm, because he can make every throw on the field with tremendous strength and accuracy, making defenses cover the entire field, both horizontally and vertically, against the Buckeyes.
4) Wave Report: After destroying Oregon State and Rutgers and rallying past TCU for a comprehensive double-digit victory in Texas, how does this team appear to stack up with Urban Meyers's previous teams?
Alex Gleitman: I think Urban Meyer has set the bar high for the expectations at Ohio State, and this team is right in line with those expectations. There are certainly some holes that need to be filled up, namely at linebacker and a couple in the secondary, but early on this team has the look and feel of one that can win the Big Ten championship, make the College Football Playoff, and compete for a national title. If they achieve those feats will depend on how the team continues to develop and grow throughout the season, but the talent and potential is absolutely there for this to be a championship team.
5) Wave Report: What is your predicted score and why?
Alex Gleitman: I think Ohio State could get caught looking ahead to Penn State a little bit, but the talent gap is so wide between these teams, that I don't think it will matter much. Add in Meyer returning to give the team a little bit of a boost, and I can see things getting out of hand quickly, with the back-ups playing most of the second half, to prevent any key injuries before the team heads to Happy Valley. I will say Ohio State wins by a score of 52-10.
1) Wave Report: Will Urban Meyer's return be an emotional boost or a potential distraction for a game the Buckeyes could overlook as a whopping 34-point favorite a week before traveling to Penn State? Tulane was not only an afterthought at his Monday presser. It was a non-thought.
Alex Gleitman: Tulane was definitely a non-thought in Monday's press conference, as most of the conversation revolved around the Zach Smith situation, as expected. That said, I think that is pretty much the end of hearing about that from Urban Meyer, and I can guarantee you his focus, and the team's focus, is on beating Tulane this week. I don't see Meyer's return as a distraction, because he's been with the team in practice the last two weeks, so it will be much of the same there. On game day, yeah it could give the team a little extra juice, having their guy back on the sidelines. I think looking ahead to Penn State the following week can be more of a distraction than Meyer returning to his coaching duties.
2) Wave Report: Nick Bosa is out, but Dre'Mont Jones is coming off a spectacular game against TCU. Who are the key players to watch on the Ohio State defense?
Alex Gleitman: You mentioned Jones, so I will go outside of him when it comes to players to watch on defense. Let's start with Jonathon Cooper and Chase Young, who will be the guys at defensive end getting most of the snaps in Bosa's absence. These are two highly recruited, yet inexperienced players, so OSU will definitely need them to elevate their game. Additionally on the line, Robert "B.B." Landers is the other starting defensive tackle next to Jones, and has been disruptive, despite his lack of size.
At linebacker, Tuf Borland continues to bounce back from an Achilles injury suffered in the spring, and got his first start of the season last week against TCU. Ohio State needs the middle linebacker to solidify that unit, so watch for him to try and do that this week.
Finally, in the secondary, safety Jordan Fuller is a star. This could very well be his last year in Columbus, as the talented junior should be highly regarded by NFL teams. He is a captain and leader of the defense, and his return in week two, after sitting out week one with a hamstring injury, gave an obvious boost to the defense overall.
3) Wave Report: Dwayne Haskins' passing numbers have been terrific through three games. How does his skill set compare/contrast to his predecessors?
Alex Gleitman: His skill set is completely different, as he is a pocket passer with a canon for an arm, versus the more mobile signal callers of the past in J.T. Barrett and Braxton Miller. While those guys won a ton of games and brought their own set of skills and intangibles to the table, the ceiling for the offense is much higher with Haskins at the helm, because he can make every throw on the field with tremendous strength and accuracy, making defenses cover the entire field, both horizontally and vertically, against the Buckeyes.
4) Wave Report: After destroying Oregon State and Rutgers and rallying past TCU for a comprehensive double-digit victory in Texas, how does this team appear to stack up with Urban Meyers's previous teams?
Alex Gleitman: I think Urban Meyer has set the bar high for the expectations at Ohio State, and this team is right in line with those expectations. There are certainly some holes that need to be filled up, namely at linebacker and a couple in the secondary, but early on this team has the look and feel of one that can win the Big Ten championship, make the College Football Playoff, and compete for a national title. If they achieve those feats will depend on how the team continues to develop and grow throughout the season, but the talent and potential is absolutely there for this to be a championship team.
5) Wave Report: What is your predicted score and why?
Alex Gleitman: I think Ohio State could get caught looking ahead to Penn State a little bit, but the talent gap is so wide between these teams, that I don't think it will matter much. Add in Meyer returning to give the team a little bit of a boost, and I can see things getting out of hand quickly, with the back-ups playing most of the second half, to prevent any key injuries before the team heads to Happy Valley. I will say Ohio State wins by a score of 52-10.