While the Trojans walloped the Buckeyes in Los Angeles last fall, Ohio State was the team with hopes that a freshman quarterback might help steal the big road win (Terrell Pryor didn’t start, but came in after Todd Boeckman got hurt). This year, the tables are turned, Pryor is the best offensive player on either team, and USC will be looking for the road win behind a freshman QB.
OSU Fans: Pryor Must Pass Well for Bucks to Win
I say Pryor is the best offensive player on either team as a judgment of my own -- not because Pryor has yet begun dominating opponents. For Ohio State to win Saturday night, he’ll need to. The indispensable We Will Always Have Tempe offers his strategic take:
Ohio State will not win if Terrelle Pryor passes for fewer than 150 yards. To help him do this, OSU needs to immediately exploit play-action when and if the running game hits it stride. Yes, Ohio State will need to exploit the same thing USC will be trying to on the other side of the ball, but it’s going to have to do it in a variety of ways. I’m hoping we’ll see a little bit of variation as far as the looks we give USC on the fake hand-off; motion a WR into the backfield, put a HB in the slot and do the same thing, or hell, even do the patented Tim Tebow QB-only play-action fake, in which Pryor basically does a headfake and prays a DB bites on it.That seems sensible, especially because so much of the focus this week has been on the need for Terrell Pryor to do what Vince Young did to Pete Caroll and USC. Fans mostly remember the 200 yards and 3 touchdowns rushing the Texas legend amassed in that Rose Bowl, but it was his equally brilliant passing -- 267 yards on 30 of 40 passing -- that broke USC’s back.
Pryor must be able to do the same on Saturday night. Watching the supremely talented Ohio State quarterback in last year’s Fiesta Bowl, Texas fans (and linebackers) were caught off guard by how much ground Pryor covered with his long strides. Eventually, everyone adjusted, but there’s little doubt that the kid can run like the best of the best rushing QBs. Pete Caroll will be keyed on stopping Terrell Pryor the rusher, and if that’s all he’s doing, USC surely will. The key will be for Pryor to move the chains through the short and intermediate passing game, forcing USC to play the pass honestly and giving Pryor the opportunity to break the kinds of devastating runs that Vince Young did three years ago.
Blog Coverage: Ohio State / USC
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