Ohio State Football: Did Virginia Tech Unveil Buckeyes’ Kryptonite in Week 2?

Inside the halls of the Woody Hayes Athletic Center—the de facto headquarters of the Ohio State football team—motivational mantras line the walls.

POINT A TO POINT B AS FAST YOU CAN GO! says one sign.

4-6 SECONDS OF RELENTLESS EFFORT AND FOCUS,” reads another.

But in the week following the Buckeyes’ 35-21 loss to Virginia Tech, it’s been a different cliche that’s been the overarching theme of Ohio State’s practices.

Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me.

Urban Meyer doesn’t like being fooled, period, but that’s exactly how the third-year Buckeyes head coach felt last Saturday when the Hokies stifled the Ohio State offense with a 46 Bear defense that employed a Cover 0 coverage. Meyer and his staff had not previously seen Virginia Tech use such a scheme while reviewing the Hokies on film, and as a result the ill-prepared Buckeyes struggled to move the ball on a consistent basis.

The start of the game I remember on the headsets I said, ‘Wow, I’ve never seen them do that,'” Meyer said on Monday. “They made a decision to take away the tailbacks and there were nine guys within six yards of the line of scrimmage, and you have to make someone pay a price.”

Ohio State’s shock was apparent in the box score, with quarterback J.T. Barrett completing just nine of his 29 pass attempts and throwing three interceptions in the second start of his college career. The redshirt freshman quarterback didn’t get much help from the rest of his offense either, as the line struggled to protect him and wide receivers routinely dropped balls.

If ever there was a blueprint for beating the 2014 Buckeyes, this appeared to be it. Load the box to take away Ohio State’s run game and force the inexperienced—and thus far, inefficient—passing attack to try to beat you over the top.

Continue Reading: Ohio State Football: Did Virginia Tech Unveil Buckeyes’ Kryptonite in Week 2?