Ohio State fans really want to see Bo Jackson get more carries
Throughout the year, we will be asking and answering questions about various Ohio State teams, the players, and anything else on our collective minds of varying degrees of importance. If you have a question that you would like to ask, you can tweet us @LandGrant33 or if you need more than 280 characters, send an email HERE.
I can’t believe that we are almost through the first quarter of the season, and that after tonight, Ohio State will be done with non-conference games for the regular season. But, as we keep one eye on the bye week and then the Big Ten slate, for this week’s fan survey, we wanted to know what Ohio State player fans think has earned more playing time.
We asked about that and the winning margin in tonight’s game between the Ohio State Buckeyes and the Ohio Bobcats, and the results are in. Take a look at what the collective Buckeye Nation said below, and if you agree or disagree, hit up the comments at the bottom of the page and let us know why.
Question 1: Which Buckeye do you think has earned more playing time through the first two games?
When I was a kid, there was no more exciting and explosive athlete than Bo Jackson. He was a two-sport star unlike any other. I had the iconic black-and-white poster of him on the wall in my bedroom, and I watched the Saturday morning cartoon “ProStars” that starred him, Michael Jordan, and Wayne Gretzky (although none of the athletes actually voiced their characters). Bo Jackson was the most dynamic athlete of my youth.
Then, a freak hip injury ended his football and, eventually, his baseball careers. Now, 34 years after he last played football, a different Bo Jackson is looking to make a name for himself running the ball, and while he is no relation to the Heisman Trophy winner, if his one collegiate appearance is any indication, he might have more in common with OG Bo than just their shared name.
Now, I realize that there is more to playing running back for Ohio State than just running the ball. The true freshman needs to get better in pass protection (he had the second-worst PFF grade in that department against Grambling State), and his fumble out of bounds on his final run of the game clearly ticked off his head coach.
But, to me — and apparently 63% of our respondents — he showed that he is a legit playmaker, likely better than the two guys ahead of him, C.J. Donaldson and James Peoples. So, I don’t need Bo to be RB1 starting with today’s game against OU, but I would like to see him get progressively more high-leverage snaps as the season continues, so that by the time the Buckeyes host Penn State, the best back in the room is leading the rushing attack.
Question 2: What will the margin of victory be in Saturday’s game against Ohio University?
When FanDuel Sportsbook initially released the odds for this game, the Buckeyes were a 34.5-point favorite to beat the in-state Bobcats. As of the writing of this article, that number has dropped to 29.5, which I find to be bonkers.
The gold standard of college football analytics, SP+, projects a final score of 41-10, but I don’t think that is even close enough. This OSU team is fiesty, the defense doesn’t like giving up points, and the offense is beginning to figure things out.
OU, while they have played well against a pair of Power 4 teams, they lost 34-31 to Rutgers (currently No. 45 in SP+) and beat West Virginia 17-10 (the Mountaineers are 60th). So, as I said on this morning’s episode of ”The Land-Grant Tailgate Podcast” and will say in the LGHL experts’ prediction article going up later this morning, I’m taking the Buckeyes to win 52-6 which would put me in with the 18% who are calling for a 43+ point victory.