Head coach Urban Meyer’s Ohio State Buckeyes began the march to their title defense at Saturday’s spring game, where Team Gray defeated Team Scarlet, 17-14.
Cardale Jones was the star of the event, playing all four quarters and throwing a couple of deep touchdown passes to Corey Smith for Team Gray.
For Jones, the event served as a way to take an early lead in the three-way quarterback battle yet to unfold, while Smith used the platform to make his case as the No. 1 wideout after offseason departures.
Brandon Castel of The-Ozone.net revealed Smith’s final line and award afterward:
Saturday was a day of celebration and moving forward, as Bill Rabinowitz of The Columbus Dispatch illustrates:
As Sports Illustrated’s Richard Deitsch notes in response to a tweet by Yahoo Sports’ Pat Forde, fans flocked far and wide to see the defending champions begin their next campaign:
It started with the infamous Oklahoma drill at the 50-yard line, finalized with Jones taking on another quarterback to rile up the players before the actual game.
During the pregame interview, Meyer stressed the importance of finding a guy who could take the top off the defense with Devin Smith on his way to the NFL.
Corey Smith, who caught just 20 passes a season ago, reeled in a 46-yard bomb from Jones on the first drive in response. It seemed to lead to a touchdown reception by Jalin Marshall, but the referees later corrected the call and ruled him down to keep the game tied.
Joey…
Continue Reading: Ohio State Spring Game 2015: Recap, Highlights and Twitter Reaction