Ohio State Practice Update 4-4-12

Defense Dominates:

Ohio State’s offense rallied late, but came up short. So the OSU defense has now won both “winner/loser” days. “You’d expect that,” said coach Urban Meyer, but quickly added, “I’d expect our offense to be a little more competitive right now, but they’re trying.” He says offensive players seem a bit reluctant. To combat that, the Buckeyes are considering slowing down a bit when it comes to the installation of their new scheme.

Injuries:

Meyer says Nathan Williams is rehabbing his knee by working out in the pool. Trainers expect to have him jogging this June. Linebacker Storm Klein has returned from a mild knee sprain and was playing Wednesday with the second team. On the other hand, Travis Howard left Wednesday’s practice early. Observers (ie. John Porentas and Dave Maetzold) said he had his bell rung. Meanwhile, Johnathan Hankins was dinged up on the last play of the day, but appeared to be walking it off.

Depth Chart Notes:

Michael Bennett was taking snaps with the first-team defensive line. “Luke was much higher on him in offseason workouts,” observed Meyer. “And now I can see it on the field. He’s doing really well.”

Both Brian Bobek and Jacoby Boren saw time as the second-team center, but it was Boren who fielded the majority of the work. In any case, Meyer has yet to be impressed with depth along the O-line. While Meyer called the collective play of Reid Fragel, Marcus Hall, Corey Linsley, Andrew Norwell and Jack Mewhort “adequate,” after that, he thinks they have “problems.”

Another Possible Captain:

Meyer confirmed what he said earlier this week about his intention to make John Simon a captain. He also said there’s one more player who’s done an outstanding job from a leadership standpoint: Zach Boren. “Those would be two good football coaches someday if they want to go coach. They’re everything you want,” said Meyer.

Looking Ahead to the Spring Game:

As Meyer first stated on 97.1 The Fan, he does intend to hold a player draft to set the rosters for the spring game and he wants it to resemble a football Saturday as much as possible. Wednesday he explained one reason that’s important. “I want the coordinators to call the game,” he answered, pointing out that there are new assistants on both sides of the ball, and it’s important for them to be able to all get on the same page.

Here’s some video from practice:

You can see Urban Meyer instructing players. That’s followed by some drills for the lineman. I don’t actually know what’s going on at the end of this (around the 1:08 mark), but I do not envy that young man. He’s going to have sand stuck in his football pads for weeks.