ESPN Video: What's Wrong With Terrelle Pryor?

Here's some food for thought to Buckeye fans from Olin Buchanan, Rivals.com College Football Senior Writer.


Q: From Nina in New Albany, Ohio: This may be the worst offense in the Jim Tressel era at Ohio State. Is it time for Tressel to look in the mirror and finally see that changes need to be made, whether with players, coaches or philosophy?

A: Yours is one of several emails received about quarterback Terrelle Pryor and the offensive issues at Ohio State.

So, to your first question: Yes, this could become the worst offense in Tressel's nine seasons. After seven games, the Buckeyes are averaging 331 yards and 28 points, but matchups remain against Penn State and Iowa, which have strong defenses.

Tressel's worst offensive team at Ohio State was in 2004, when the Buckeyes averaged 320.8 yards and 24.2 points. They went 8-4 that season.

Yes, it appears to be time for Tressel to reconsider his offensive philosophy, and changes should be made in an attempt to fully utilize Pryor's athletic ability.

Pryor, a sophomore, is getting heavy criticism from all directions. He was just 5-of-13 passing for 87 yards in a win over Wisconsin, then followed that up by throwing two interceptions in last week's 26-18 loss to Purdue. That's unacceptable in Columbus. Indeed, it's unacceptable most places.

But don't bury Pryor just yet. When he came out of Jeannette (Pa.) High, he was being compared to former Texas All-America Vince Young because of his size (6 feet 6/235 pounds) and physical gifts. Dramatic comparisons to Young still can be made.

Pryor is struggling. He's completing 56 percent of his passing attempts, for 1,169 yards, 10 touchdowns and eight interceptions.

But Young was a liability as a passer when he was a sophomore, too. Young passed for 1,849 yards with 12 touchdowns and 11 interceptions in 2004. That season, he was just 8-of-23 for 86 yards in a 12-0 loss to Oklahoma and 3-of-9 for 19 yards and two interceptions the next week in a 28-20 victory over Missouri.

Some called for Young to be moved to tight end or wide receiver. But coach Mack Brown re-evaluated his system, junked a pro-style offense and almost exclusively went to the zone read, which was better-suited for Young's talents.

Texas didn't lose another game during Young's playing days, and he emerged as one of the best college football players ever.

That's not to say that Pryor will do the same if Tressel makes a similar move; it should be noted that Young had more talent around him than Pryor does. But it's something to consider.

After all, Tressel saw first hand what a player with Young's physical gifts could do. In '05, Young passed for 270 yards and ran for 76 in a 25-22 victory over Ohio State.


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Tressel Epiphany? Assistant Coach Darrell Hazell Called "Some" Offensive Plays Last Week

Posted by HD Handshoe
Founder—BlockONation


It turns out that assistant head coach Darrell Hazell did call some plays for Ohio State last week in a 38-0 win over Toledo.

"Oh, sure," coach Jim Tressel said yesterday.

When asked if that was out of the ordinary, he said, "Not at all," which means it could continue Saturday when Ohio State plays Illinois in Ohio Stadium.

Maybe it was more noticeable against Toledo because quarterback Terrelle Pryor turned to Hazell when he had a question about a play.

Earlier this week, Hazell had replied, "I don't know; I'm not sure," when asked whether he was calling some of the plays. Tressel drew criticism for his playcalling in an 18-15 loss to Southern California the week before, yet he has defended his right to make the call.

But as Tressel has often explained, he sees himself as the triggerman in a process that includes input from all offensive assistant coaches.

"When things work, we're all part of the wonderment," Tressel said, "and when things don't work we're probably all part of the disappointment."

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Let's hope this is a sign of Tressel loosening his death-grip on calling the plays (something he has proven is not his strong suit) and shifting the responsibility to Hazell full-time, or at least most of the time...

Hazell played it aloof when asked if he had called any plays on offense vs. Toledo. It's actually kind of funny, and you pretty much can tell from his reaction to the question that the answer was yes.


Hazell could be the answer, but either way, maybe Tressel needs to watch film from this game, the 1987 Cotton Bowl, and the playcalling. Nothing personal against Jim Karsatos, but if he was able to become a Buckeye Legend and do everything he did in that game, and his career, so too can uber-athlete Terrelle Pryor--and then some.




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Original article written by Tim May of the Columbus Dispatch. Final three paragraphs written by HD Handshoe of BlockONation.