Caleb Troop

-  Apologies for the tardiness on the blog.  On to business about the Bobcats.

-  34 percent.  That is Ohio’s touchdown percentage inside the Red Zone, good for second worst in all of college football.  Ick.

-  Not much better: the ‘Cats have five rushing touchdowns (114th nationally).

-  Let’s break it down a bit by using Ball State as an example of the red zone woes.  Second quarter, Ohio has first and goal at the 10 of Ball State—pass incomplete intended for Price; drive ends with Weller chip shot field goal.  Third quarter, first and goal at the four yard line, Chris Garrett run to the line of scrimmage (ends in Theo Scott INT).  The third first-and-goal situation for Ohio comes in the fourth quarter, when the ‘Cats pound Garrett for a 2-yard loss on first down.  Eventually Scott finds Terrence McCrae for the game-winning touchdown.  But on three first-and-goal situations against Ball State, Ohio netted a loss of two yards.  Ohio has to get positive yardage on play one inside the 10 to get these red zone numbers up.

-  It also doesn’t help that the ‘Cats have thrown three red zone interceptions in the last four games.

-  The ‘Cats punted just one time against the Cardinals, a season low.

-  So what’s the solution?  Frank Solich hinted the team is trying to find a bigger back, such as a lineman or linebacker to help solve the interior running problems.

-  Whom will it be?  My first guess would be Lee Renfro, who starred as a running back in high school and at 5-10, 215 pounds would fit the mold.  But Ohio probably does not want to risk a starter on both ends.

-  Ohio won the special teams game against Ball State, a phase the ‘Cats did not win versus Kent State.  Four field goals by Matt Weller, and average starting field position at Ohio’s own 40.  The ‘Cats have a chance to really dominate Buffalo in special teams Tuesday night—the Bulls are in the bottom third in the MAC in net punting, punt returns and kick returns.  Bulls kicker A.J. Principe has made just six field goals this year, including one the last four games.  His long is 36.

-  In the first quarter against BSU, Ohio ran the ball on 14 of 19 plays and held the ball for 10:02 minutes.

-  Don’t forget, the loss of field goals long snapper Jeremy LaVoie (concussion) hurt Ohio against Kent State.  The ‘Cats botched an extra point attempt in the fourth quarter and Kyle Robbins had a few bad snaps, including a punt snap that punter Matt Schulte barely got off before being drilled.

-  Injury news:  Punter Matt Schulte (concussion), OL John Flowers (ankle), and LB Melvin Payne (unknown) did not travel to Ball State.  The flu bug kept a few players out of practice during the week leading up to the BSU game, but it has dissipated lately.  WR Taylor Price (leg) did not return in the fourth quarter after suffering an injury but appears to be fine for Buffalo.  Schulte and Payne will play versus Buffalo.

-  There are three teams on Ohio’s 2009 schedule that have an above-.500 record right now.  Two of them (NIU and Temple) come to Peden Stadium this month.

-  How about the tough luck Connecticut Huskies.  UConn has lost five games by a total of 15 points.

-  In a recent article in The Post, McCrae said he runs a 4.41 40-yard dash.

-  Indianapolis Colts President Bill Polian was at the game in Muncie checking out Price among other players, I’m sure.  A representative from the New Orleans Saints was in the house as well.

-  Ohio put up more total offensive yards versus Tennessee (340) than Akron (292), Kent State (164) and Ball State (316).  You try to explain that.

-  Cardinals RB Miquale Lewis: 20 carries, 45 yards (2.2 ypc) with a long of seven yards.  Great work, Ohio defense.

-  Good to see LB Noah Keller bounce back from a sub-par effort versus Kent State (4 assisted tackles) with a game-high 13 stops against BSU.  A thigh bruise limited Keller versus the Golden Flashes.

-  Redshirt freshman Gerald Moore has started the last three weeks over Donovan Fletcher at free safety, and against the Cardinals Moore put forth the best performance of his career: 10 tackles and an interception.

-  The graphic on page one trying to explain this article from The Post made no sense.  None.

-  That doesn’t mean Fletcher was nowhere to be found.  He ended the game with four solo tackles, at least two of which I remember came on special teams.

-  OL Kadre Pinder got the start at right guard in place of Eric Herman (ankle) versus Kent State.  Against Ball State, Herman got the start, and the two split time.

-  Ohio offensive line report: The ‘Cats are still healthy, and only six lineman saw action against Ball State, a season low.  A.J. Strum at left guard, left tackle Chris Rodgers and center David White took all 71 snaps, while Herman (44) and Pinder (28) split time.

-  Ohio tight ends have caught seven (seven!) balls this year.  You have to believe by now opposing defenses have just stopped bothering to even game plan for the likes of Jordan Thompson and Jahan Olyaie.  Chris Garrett (11) and Donte Harden (10) both have more catches than the total from the tight end trio that includes Nate Caldwell.

-  Speaking of tight ends, Buffalo TE Jesse Rack may be the best in the league (6 TDs).

-  LaVon Brazill looks very comfortable back returning punts.

-  Ball State may have one of the junkiest offenses in college football.  Did BSU even mind putting together a game plan?  What was the goal of all their just “stuff”, exactly?

-  Can you name the six true freshmen who have seen the field this season for Ohio?  Answer at the bottom of the blog entry.

-  Ohio had three drives that each lasted at least five minutes and took at least 11 plays.  Problem is, those three drives netted two field goals and an interception.  The Bobcats must cash in on those better.

-  Any chance Temple’s Al Golden will be back with the Owls in 2010?  I doubt it.

-  The occasional tweak of bringing in QB Tyler Tettleton for the occasional snap has lost its mystique and luster a bit.

-  Buffalo WR Naaman Roosevelt has caught a pass in 47 straight games, and is 24 yards shy of the all-time receiving yards record at UB.

-  U at B has just five turnovers its last five games.

-  Bet you didn’t know:  Matt Weller (3) has more tackles than DT Corey Moncrief (1) and Jeff King (1).

-  The team went to the Niagara Falls Monday night before settling down in a Buffalo hotel.

-  The six true freshmen to play for the ‘Cats thus far: WR Gary Fortune, DT Carl Jones, OL Skyler Allen, QB Tyler Tettleton, LB Jelani Woseley, and OL James Davis.

-  More to come.

Filed under: 2009 Bobcat Blog, November 2009 Blog Notes |