Despite defeat, Ohio St. has hope in Miller

Photo by: Nati Harnik

ASSOCIATED PRESS

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Ohio State quarterback Braxton Miller (5) is upended by Nebraska's Lance Thorell in the first half of an NCAA college football game in Lincoln, Neb., Saturday, Oct. 8, 2011. (AP Photo/Nati Harnik)

By Doug Lesmerises

Cleveland Plain Dealer

COLUMBUS

Sifting through the wreckage of an Ohio State game gone wrong, it didn’t take much to find the future. If the future is healthy.

Just a week after trotting out an invisible offense in a loss to Michigan State, the Buckeyes felt like they found some form of an attack Saturday night that might fit freshman quarterback Braxton Miller.

“I don’t want people to take this the wrong way,” senior center Mike Brewster said Saturday night in the immediate aftermath of a second-half collapse that gave Nebraska a 34-27 win over the Buckeyes. “But after a game like this, I can sleep better. It still hurts, but last week I felt like we didn’t do anything. ... At least we’re going in the right direction. It’s just too bad Braxton twisted his ankle. After that it was downhill.”

Miller left Saturday night’s loss with a right ankle sprain, and there was no official word on Sunday about his prognosis. Miller walked to the locker room under his own power, the last Buckeye off the field in Lincoln, and he posted a message about cold tub therapy on Sunday. It might be unwise to just assume Miller will be ready for Illinois on Saturday, but it would be just as unwise to write him off.

Indications are he could be back. If so, he could be ready to continue what he showed Saturday, when he seemed relaxed enough to make some plays and the game-planners were comfortable enough to let him go. Offensive coordinator Jim Bollman agreed it was a step forward for Miller, but said it just followed what Miller had shown in practice.

“I thought he made a lot of big plays,” Bollman said, citing in particular some runs on quarterback draws. “But he threw some good balls, too. He really did a good job hitting some key passes.”

Miller finished 5-of-8 for 95 yards and a touchdown, while running 10 times for 91 yards. After he went out, backup Joe Bauserman was 1-of-10 for 13 yards. Yet the game plan in Miller’s absence relied on Bauserman’s arm.

With Miller behind center, Ohio State ran 41 plays and gained 312 yards, an average of 7.6 yards per play. With Bauserman, Ohio State ran 18 plays and gained 39 yards, an average of 2.2. Too many plays were throws Bauserman had little chance to complete.

“You can’t blame that on Joe,” Bollman said. “It’s a tough situation for anybody to go in there.”

The play calls made it tougher. Bauserman’s 10 passes compared to only eight runs. This was with Bauserman entering with a 14-point lead. Asked why the Buckeyes didn’t pound the run in Miller’s absence, OSU coach Luke Fickell said, “I think we still did go out and try to run the football.”

Not really. It was less than half the time. Maybe run plays were called, but at least once Bauserman read that the defense was playing the run and checked to a pass. It came after the Buckeyes had gained 12 and four yards on consecutive runs with the game tied at 27 and resulted in the deep interception that set up Nebraska’s winning drive.

By the end, Bollman admitted No. 3 quarterback Kenny Guiton was warming up and prepared to go into the game if the Buckeyes got the ball back for a final possession. Bollman said he did not consider replacing Bauserman with Guiton before then.

If Miller is unavailable, Guiton will be in the mix for playing time, along with Bauserman, according to Bollman. What the 3-3 Buckeyes really need is Miller. Throw in the expected return of running back Dan Herron, and Ohio State might have more to show as an offense.

“We got our confidence up a lot,” said receiver Corey ‘Philly’ Brown, who returned from an ankle injury to play Saturday. “I know next week, you can expect to see the same offense.”

The Miller version, the Buckeyes hope.