Ohio State Cornerbacks Coach Taver Johnson Leaving For Arkansas

Taver Johnson headed to Arkansas

According to the Dispatch, Ohio State cornerbacks coach Taver Johnson has said earlier today that he is leaving for Arkansas to become a defensive assistant and also will be the assistant head coach under Razorbacks coach Bobby Petrino.

“This is a great opportunity, getting the chance to be an assistant head coach and some of the added duties that will come with that,” Johnson said. “With that said, I love Ohio State. Urban Meyer is an incredible coach, and I really am appreciative of the opportunity coach Jim Tressel gave me (six years ago) to come to a place I’ve always wanted to be a part of.

Johnson, a 1994 graduate of Wittenberg, new OSU coach Meyer, who was hired on November 28th. Also kept from the previous coaching staff were interim head coach Luke Fickell, now defensive coordinator; linebackers coach Mike Vrabel, now defensive line coach; and wide receivers coach Stan Drayton, now running backs coach.

This is a surprise for me personally, as Urban Meyer had decided to keep Johnson on his staff. With Johnson leaving, that might open up another spot, or could make one of the coaches already in place take on more duties. We'll have to see how it plays out, but I'm happy for Taver, as he has produced some very good cornerbacks in his time here, including Malcolm Jenkins. 

Taver will also be re-uniting with former Ohio State coach Paul Haynes. 

Keep it at Inside The Shoe for all of the latest news, updates and opinions on Ohio State athletics.

Final Sugar Bowl thoughts

Thomas came up big for the Buckeyes

The Sugar Bowl ended in typical Ohio St. fashion on Tuesday night with another white knuckle affair. It really didn’t have to be that exciting though. The Buckeyes stormed out of the gate to a 28-7 lead in the first half and held a 31-13 advantage late into the 3rd quarter before Mallet and the hogs mounted a furious comeback. Only Soloman Thomas dropping in to coverage to pick off an errant Mallet throw with under a minute to play saved the Buckeyes from another season of “SEC this and SEC that”. I think the big guy was just as surprised as the rest of us when the throw found its’ way into Thomas’s bread basket but he held on and the rest is history.

This performance does not cure all of the ill will that the Big Ten has endured over the past decade but it was a step in the right direction. Michigan St., Michigan and Penn St. did the conference no favors by dropping all of their respective games to SEC foes on New Year’s Day and Wisconsins’ loss to TCU was shocking considering the Badgers were one of the hottest teams heading into the bowl season. Thankfully, Iowa and Illinois handled their business in mid December and the Buckeyes finally got that 8000lb SEC monkey off their back with a Sugar Bowl for the ages. It pushed the conference record to 3-5 on the bowl season. The mark for this year isn’t great but the end result would have been much worse had the Buckeyes blown it in New Orleans.

After digesting this recent bowl game, I wanted to touch on a few points and wrap up the successful 2010 season.

OH, How Sweet It Is

Nothing is better

12-1. Sugar Bowl, and Big Ten Champions. It's awesome.

Recap up tomorrow

Live Blog: The Sugar Bowl

Join us as the Buckeyes take on the Razorbacks for the Sugar Bowl

Chat starts at 8:15 PM EST!

Preview: Ohio State vs. Arkansas

The Ohio State Buckeyes have face many challenges since their last game against Michigan, and the Sugar Bowl hasn't even started yet. As Buckeye fans are well aware, Terrelle Pryor and company will be leading the charge against the SEC, who is sweeping the Big Ten in bowls, and will look to complete with a win from Arkansas. Ohio State is 0-9 vs. SEC schools in bowl games, and this one is no cupcake. The NCAA, and Jim Tressel, have decided that what's done is done, and to let these kids play.

Much has been said of this match-up, including that the #3 defense in the country will have it's hands full with Ryan Mallett come tomorrow night. The same is said for Arkansas defense against Terrelle Pryor. The hype is that this is the best quarterback match-up in a bowl game this year. Pryor has a lot on his shoulders, including the conference. The junior has posted a 22-3 record as Ohio State's full-time starter the last two seasons. 


He's led the Buckeyes to victory in 17 of their last 18 games, including a five-game winning streak to end the 2010 regular season. The Buckeyes are familiar with Ryan Mallett, facing him in the 2007 version of "The Game". Ohio State has been to BCS Bowl Games every year since the 2005 season, and posts a 2-3 mark. Arkansas, on the other hand, makes it's first experience on the BCS level, and some pressure will be added on the Razorbacks.

Arkansas Defense/Special Teams Breakdown

The Arkansas defense is often overlooked in matchups as teams tend to focus on their offense.  They gave up an average of nearly 23 points per game this season, but that number is exaggerated by the 65 point mark that Auburn put on the Razorbacks.  Take out the Auburn game and the average is down to about 19 per game, which is respectable considering the numbers their offense puts up.

Arkansas' defense has improved since losses to Alabama and Auburn

Rush Defense: Rush defense is not the strength of the Arkansas defense. The Razorbacks finished 10^th in the SEC, giving up 157 yards per game.  That number gets even worse when you take out the home games, rising to 177 yards per game.  In Arkansas’ two losses this year, to Alabama and Auburn, they gave up 278.5 yards per game and 8 rushing touchdowns.

This could be a major issue for the Razorbacks.  Ohio State loves to run the ball and control the clock while Arkansas will want to get the ball back to its high-powered offense.  If the Buckeye defense can shut down the Arkansas pass game, the Razorback defense could tire quickly if Ohio State pounds them with the running game.

What the Razorbacks lacked in stopping the run, they made up for it by being opportunistic.  They recovered 14 fumbles throughout the season, all of them in victories.

Expect the Buckeyes to come out running and look to take advantage of the play-action pass after establishing the ground game.

Tat Five To Return For Senior Year

The Columbus Dispatch is now reporting that the Tat Five, which includes Terrelle Pryor, Boom Herron, Mike Adams, DeVier Posey, and Solomon Thomas are all returning next year for Ohio State.

"Ohio State coach Jim Tressel said this morning that the five junior players who are scheduled to serve a five-game suspension at the start of next season, including quarterback Terrelle Pryor, had to pledge they would return for their senior season before being included on this Sugar Bowl trip to play Arkansas on Tuesday night."

Also, it seems that Tressel will, in fact, not suspend these players for a quarter, or the Sugar Bowl:

"The Buckeyes thus will begin practice in the Superdome this afternoon with all hands on deck. And all hands will be at their assigned positions, Tressel said, indicating there will be no sanctions against the affected five in terms of starting spot or playing time."

I wonder if these players got word that the appeal might work, and the suspension be reduced to something like 3 games. We shall see.

This gives great hope to Buckeye Nation, as our chances without these players were slim. Now that they are back, and are returning for their senior season, there will be no distractions whatsoever.  Bring on the Hogs.

Representing: Arkansas

Our Sugar Bowl opponent has some pretty good blogs out there, and one of the best, Arkansas Expats was kind enough to join us in answering questions about the Razorbacks.

Arkansas has so many weapons on offense, and not just Mallett. Who else does this team build around in big game situations, and can make the big plays?

Ryan Mallett is the unquestioned leader and main guy on offense but, like you said, he has a lot of weapons to chose from. For starters, the receiving corps might be the deepest in the nation, to the point where they didn't miss a beat even with the loss of  #1 WR Greg Childs to a season-ending injury against Vanderbilt in October. Since Childs went out, the other wide receivers - Joe Adams, Cobi Hamilton and Jarius Wright - have each stepped up with big games and huge plays in key moments. Because Mallett tends to spread the ball around a lot, none of these guys got the individual acclaim that comes with gaudy stats, but they're all very dangerous players.

Moving on, Mackey Award winner D.J. Williams is probably the best pass-catching tight end in the country, and usually presents a tough matchup for the defense with his size and speed. And, although Bobby Petrino isn't known as a running coach, it was actually the emergence of RB Knile Davis and the ground game that spurred Arkansas from a potentially disappointing season into the Sugar Bowl. Davis rushed for more than 1,000 yards despite not being chosen as the featured back until October, and has added a key element that was missing when the Hogs let 4th quarter leads slip away against Georgia (a close win) and Alabama (a painful loss) because they couldn't run the ball.

Arkansas Offensive Breakdown

Ed. Note: We at Inside The Shoe would like to welcome Stephan to our team of writers to make this blog that much better. You can read more about him on the "About Us" tab. 

This is part one of a two part breakdown of the Razorbacks.  Coming later this week will be a breakdown of the Arkansas defense and special teams.

Today, we're breaking down the Arkansas offense in preparation of the Sugar Bowl match up.  The Razorbacks will be a good test for the Buckeye defense, finishing the regular season 2nd in the SEC in both scoring and total offense, behind only Auburn.  Whether or not Ohio State can slow down the Arkansas offense will be a big factor in the outcome of the game.

Quarterback: At quarterback for the Razorbacks is the former Michigan man, Ryan Mallett.  Buckeye fans, you may remember him from the 2007 game when he went 1-3 for 8 yards as a short-term injury replacement for Chad Henne.  Michigan hired RichRod after that season and Mallett left for Arkansas.

Mallett is one of the top quarterbacks in the country and he has shown why over the past two seasons at Arkansas.  This season, Mallett has thrown for 3,592 yards with a 66.5 completion percentage and 30 touchdown passes.  The major test for the Buckeye defense will be stopping Mallett, as only three times all season has a defense held him under 300 yards passing: once against Auburn when he was held to 95 yards, but he was knocked out in the first half of that 65-43 shootout with a concussion. The second time was the next week against Ole Miss, but that performance can be chalked up to him still feeling some effects from the concussion. The third and final time this season was against UTEP, when the Miners held Mallett to 215 yards, but he only played the first three quarters.  In Arkansas’ other loss, a 24-20 defeat to Alabama, Mallett threw for 357 yards but also threw three interceptions.

The key to winning the Sugar Bowl for the Buckeye defense will be forcing Mallett into mistakes. If the Silver Bullets can force Mallett into at least two turnovers, Tresselball will take over and the Buckeyes should win.

Should We Thank Wisconsin?

Did Watt do us a favor?

Something came to my mind earlier today. Along with the fact that some of Ohio State's best players are going to be suspended for 5 games, and maybe the Sugar Bowl (depending on what Tressel decides), maybe Buckeye fans should be thanking, yes thanking,  Wisconsin. The tatgate has hit OSU hard, and hit the legacy of Terrelle Pryor even harder. Ohio State plays in the Sugar Bowl on January 4th, but what would have happened if they were playing on the 10th, for the National Championship? The NCAA and Ohio State would be in a pickle. Say Auburn was our opponent, would the NCAA still suspend these Buckeyes after letting Cameron Newton go free with money in his pocket, simply because he "didn't know"?

If they did, maybe it's time to be gracious we aren't in a position to win a National Title this year. If we had to stick the ball into Bauserman's or Guiton's hands without our starting left tackle, without a starting wide receiver, and without the leading rusher, could they really pull out a win? The defense might be fine, other than the mind game they would be playing while trying to tackle the best player in college football in Cam Newton. The mind game would overtake their minds simply because they have no offense backing them up. Who knows, maybe they would take that into a good way, maybe they like taking the load on their shoulders, but really, you can't win with just a defense. You can come close, don't get me wrong, but you have to have some sort of an offense.

Terrelle Pryor: The Enigma

Unstoppable.

(Ed. Note: This post was written before the suspension, etc.)

Coming out of high school Terrelle Pryor was the most sought after and heavily recruited quarterback that the country had seen in some time. His freakish 6’6” 240lb frame could withstand a heavy pass rush while still getting the ball away with a defensive linemen barreling down on him. He could take on linebackers and defensive backs for a ride at the end of long runs. His speed seemed almost impossible considering the size of his body. It never quite looked like he could outrun a defender but those gazelle-like strides and sub 4.4 speed told a different story. Expectations and excitement in Columbus couldn't have been higher when the super frosh decided to don the scarlet and gray.

Unfortunately national titles have eluded him thus far in his career at OSU. Assuming he returns for his senior season (and all signs point to him doing just that), many Buckeye and Big Ten records are likely to fall but this column isn’t about record books. It is about showing up when all the cards are on the table and TP has had his share of problems in big games to this point. Last year’s Rose Bowl was a great performance but I would argue that the defense and running game had just as much, if not more, to do with the Buckeye victory than Pryor. Sure, TP ended up with his greatest statistical game and had some big runs to propel that OSU victory. However he still had the tendency to deliver his throw high or at the feet of open receivers.

After so much time in Jim Tressels’ system, myself and many fans had hoped his Junior year would be the coming out party for Pryor. The numbers were good this past season but do you feel he has reached his full potential? Has TP reached his potential plateau? Can we count on a solid performance on Jan. 4th and beyond? These are some of the questions that popped in my head during the college football lull over the past few weeks.

No Rose Bowl? No Problem!

Very small chance

Obviously, the goal every year at Ohio St. is to win the Big Ten and ultimately a national championship. The Buckeyes are easily one of the top 5 programs in the nation and 1 or 2 loss seasons are often deemed as a failure. Short of a MNC appearance, the Rose Bowl is the next best post season destination for the Scarlet and Gray. Historically, Pasadena has been THE destination that all Big Ten/Pac Ten schools would aspire to be at. The BCS has changed that somewhat but a trip to sunny southern California is still considered to be a great accomplishment.

This year, it appears that the only way the Buckeyes are going to Pasadena is if they can somehow pass Wisconsin in the BCS standings by Sunday night. This seems to be a pipe dream at best because of Ohio St.’s head to head loss to the Badgers in Madison back on Oct. 17. To be honest, I don’t think OSU deserves it over a Wisconsin team this year. They beat the Buckeye’s up and down the field in that fateful first half and deserve to be slated higher in the standings. In reality, it looks like the Buckeye’s will have to settle for a trip to Miami to face an ACC team or New Orleans to face an SEC team. Is that really a bad option for the team this year? I don’t think it is.

Referees, BCS Thoughts

Just that stud.
AP Photo/Amy Sancetta

All during the game on Saturday against Michigan, referees were like hawks when it came to unsportsmanlike conduct. This included fighting (which, there was plenty of) excessive celebration, and holding up gloves to the 7th largest crowd for the OSU-Michigan game. Wait, what?

Yes, the referees had the balls to penalize Ohio State players all game long for holding up their hands and with the Nike provided gloves that formed a block "O". Of course, this didn't stop the Buckeyes, because hell, this is THE Game, and nothing was going to stop them from celebrating like they were supposed to. Look, I don't have a problem with referees flagging players for excessive celebration, but holding up your hands and forming a Block O isn't anything against the opposing team. Mr. Jay Z, sir, that is a penalty.

If Nike gives Pro Combat uniforms, and they also hand out the gloves, then the team in question also has to wear the gloves. It's just how it works. So why is that every time they did what they were told, Ohio State was penalized? Obviously it's not Nike's fault. They've done it before, and here, and here, and here. This is a lot of penalty's waiting to happen. There were no flags at all in those games, everyone seemed to think it was the next big fashion statement for the NCAA. Which by the way, I think the gloves look amazing and wish they would wear them every game.