Buckeyes must be wary of RedHawks’ spread

Associated Press

COLUMBUS

Years ago when Woody Hayes prowled Ohio State’s sideline, the Buckeyes would line up against some overmatched, undersized team and thick-necked farmboys would open up gaping holes for speedy backs.

Six or eight or even 10 touchdowns later, Hayes would call off the dogs and start gameplanning for the next victim.

But the man who holds Hayes’ job now says that era of physical domination by teams is all but over.

“The days of anybody really just rolling over someone is more and more difficult than it ever has been,” said Urban Meyer, who makes his debut as Ohio State’s 24th head coach today against Miami (Ohio). “Because there is parity in college football.”

There are a lot of reasons that teams don’t run up lopsided scores like Ohio State did in beating TCU 62-0 in 1969, Wisconsin 56-0 in 1975 and 56-7 over Minnesota in 1973.

— Scholarship limits have flattened and spread the talent levels in what is now called the Football Bowl Subdivision.

— Conditioning, weight-training and nutrition are practiced everywhere, narrowing the gap in size and speed.

— Innovative offenses have allowed smaller, more mobile teams to compete with teams stocked with behemoths.

Meyer has had a hand in leveling the playing field, favoring a fast-paced, pass-oriented spread attack that has been adopted by dozens of teams who can score on one play from anywhere while a more talented opponent strings together a punishing 12-play, 80-yard drive.

“The Wishbone is probably the No. 1 equalizer. That’s why you see a lot of the service academies do it,” Meyer said this week. “Then, throwing the ball is the second equalizer because you can kind of throw it around a little bit and create matchup issues.”

How ironic that the Buckeyes, who now embrace multiple-receiver sets and the no-huddle, will be tested in their opener by a team that does the same with the hope of negating any talent differential by running its own spread offense.

RedHawks coach Don Treadwell, a former assistant to deposed Ohio State coach Jim Tressel at Youngstown State, isn’t so sure that theory works. He’s says schools from power conferences have seen just about everything a team can throw at them.

“I don’t know that it matters as much what type of offense is coming in because nowadays so many more teams are running similar style of offenses,” said Treadwell, 4-8 a year ago in his first season in Oxford. “Most things have been seen and practiced against.”

Zac Dysert is a big, strong-armed and yet mobile quarterback who passed for 293 yards a game last season while tossing 23 touchdown passes. His favorite target is Nick Harwell. All Harwell , who had 97 receptions for 1,425 yards and nine TDs.