COLUMBUS, Ohio — Almost as soon as it arrived, spring camp at Ohio State wrapped up. Time isn’t likely to fly by quite as quickly in the offseason with the summer months sure to drag by until the 2014 campaign finally opens in August. The Buckeyes have plenty of work to do to get ready for their debut against Navy on Aug. 30, and to help pass the time, we’re looking at some of the most pressing positional questions they’ll have to answer to make another run at a championship. How will the Buckeyes divvy up the carries?
Urban Meyer has never seemed all that worried about establishing one true workhorse in the backfield, though when he found one in Carlos Hyde the Ohio State coach turned him loose and let both the yardage and the carries pile up.
But with last season’s top tailback out of the picture, will the Buckeyes try to duplicate the formula of identifying one featured rusher to pair with quarterback Braxton Miller or will they unleash all the weapons in a stocked arsenal to try to replace all the production left behind by Hyde as he heads to the NFL?
+ EnlargeAP Photo/Jay LaPreteWill Ezekiel Elliott take over the lead running back duties this season?If they’re going to settle on one guy, Ezekiel Elliott is the clubhouse leader after spring practice, even if Meyer has been hesitant to reveal a pecking order. At the end of his true freshman season a year ago, Elliott had already shown in a handful of appearances why he was such a coveted recruit, taking advantage of the rare opportunities afforded backup rushers with 262 yards on just 30 carries with a pair of touchdowns. Elliott doesn’t appear as physically imposing as Hyde, but at 225 pounds, he’s not much lighter than his predecessor, capable of taking and dishing out punishment and also bringing more than enough speed to break away from defenders when he finds some daylight. But if the Buckeyes would like to mix it up and spread the touches around, they have no shortage of candidates with plenty to bring to the table. Senior Rod Smith still hasn’t quite lived up to his enormous potential and had to sit out the end of spring practice due to academic issues, but his natural talent remains hard to ignore and could encourage the coaching staff to find a way to get him on the field. The same is true for Bri’onte Dunn, who surprisingly took a redshirt as a sophomore but flashed his ability with explosive runs during open workouts during camp before capping it with 35 yards on 6 carries with a touchdown in the spring game.
It’s a new face, though, that might actually be the biggest threat to a backfield monopoly, with early enrollee Curtis Samuel turning heads throughout March and April and giving Meyer another speedy, versatile threat to open up the spread rushing attack. The Buckeyes already have Dontre Wilson tabbed in their hybrid role and he’s certainly likely to take a few attempts from the tailbacks, but Samuel is cut from the same mold and clearly had Meyer enticed by his game-breaking ability heading into the offseason.
So as they move into the summer conditioning program, the Buckeyes could easily go either way — but to some extent, that was the case a year ago with Smith, Jordan Hall and ultimately Wilson all offering legitimate options to shoulder the load.
Continue reading this article at ESPN: OSU offseason questions: Running backs
