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Buckeyes have three capable of starting, but who will get the nod?
Sunday, August 28, 2005
Ken Gordon and Tim May
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH
Troy Smith, from left, Todd Boeckman and Justin Zwick could give Ohio State a winning hand at quarterback.
Five hundred dollars sure can buy a lot of complications. That’s the amount Ohio State quarterback Troy Smith accepted from a booster in May 2004, leading to his suspension for the Alamo Bowl and the 2005 season opener, Saturday against Miami University.
Consider what the transaction triggered:
In Smith’s absence, the all-but-discarded former starter, Justin Zwick, led Ohio State to a 33-7 trouncing of Oklahoma State. Playing with a bum hamstring, Zwick gained respect from his teammates and renewed questions about who should be the starter this season.
The fact that Smith has sat out some recent practices — he found himself back in coach Jim Tressel’s doghouse for attending a football camp in June without permission — and won’t play Saturday also opened other doors. There’s a buzz among some practice observers that Todd Boeckman, a 21-year-old redshirt freshman, might be game-ready.
All of this because of $500. Had Smith not taken the money, there likely would be no debate — he would be the clear-cut starter coming off a showcase performance (386 total yards) in a win over Michigan.
Instead, Tressel has spent much of the preseason fencing with reporters without stating who will start for OSU against Texas on Sept. 10.
After the team’s jersey scrimmage Aug. 20, Tressel joked about his reasons for having all four quarterbacks, including true freshman Rob Schoenhoft, address the media.
‘‘(I) can get a good handle on where they think we are and where we’ve got to go," Tressel said. ‘‘And then I’ll read everything and listen and see how we’re doing."
But Tressel’s demeanor changed after more quarterback-related questions. Reaching the point of mild annoyance — his emotions never rise to the level of exasperation — Tressel said, ‘‘We know one thing for sure — Troy’s not playing against Miami. That’s the only thing I know for sure."
Maybe. It could be that Tressel already knows who will start against Texas and sees no reason to announce it until kickoff.
But it is instructive to review how Tressel has treated the quarterback position in his time in Columbus. He loathes a platoon system, preferring to pick a starter and stick with him unless events force his hand.
For example, in 2001, Tressel endured criticism for his steadfast backing of Steve Bellisari during a rocky 7-5 season. Bellisari’s legal troubles led to his benching, but he returned to play in the Outback Bowl.
Two years later, Craig Krenzel fought injuries and inconsistency through the first half of the season, entering the Penn State game with six touchdown passes and seven interceptions.
When Krenzel went down because of a concussion late in the first half of that game, Scott McMullen rallied the team to a dramatic victory.
Tressel, though, was not about to change horses in midstream. McMullen threw one pass the following week against Michigan State and played just 14 minutes the rest of the season.
"Well, I think there’s no question who our starting quarterback is," Tressel said at the time.
Last season was similar to 2001 in that Tressel stuck with Zwick even as the quarterback and team struggled with backto-back losses to open the Big Ten season. Zwick’s shoulder injury the next week, in a lopsided loss to Iowa, opened the door for Smith, who seized control.
Discussing why he was staying with Zwick last October, Tressel was asked whether he believed in settling on a starter once the season begins.
"I don’t know if you could go that far," he said. "But once you see a separation between two people performancewise, until there’s not so much of a separation, you’re set."
Using that logic, it would appear Tressel will insert Smith into the starting role at first opportunity. After all, he saw a separation last season, at least from a performance perspective.
But developments could gum up the works. ABC-TV analyst Gary Danielson, a former college and NFL quarterback, summed up the scenarios neatly after watching Ohio State practice last week:
"There is still going to be a key decision made. What’s going to happen?" Danielson said. "We all assume (Smith) is going to start the Texas game.
"But what happens if Zwick throws for 350 (yards) the first game? What happens if coming out of the blocks they have four straight three-and-outs (with Smith) against Texas?"
Danielson said he thinks the Buckeyes could win with Smith, Zwick or Boeckman.
Players tend to agree. That’s the company line, after all.
"If we had one exceptional quarterback and three lousy quarterbacks, then that would be a real worry," receiver Anthony Gonzalez said. "But I feel like we have three very talented quarterbacks, so for me, no, it doesn’t bother me at all."
Offensive lineman Doug Datish just shrugged.
"You’ve still got to block as hard," he said. "Miss a guy, (it) doesn’t matter who’s in, he’s probably going to get sacked."
But most people don’t view the situation in such cut-and-dried terms.
There are politics involved, such as should Tressel reward Smith with the starting spot after his repeated off-field mistakes? Or does Zwick deserve a chance to play with the new spread offense that developed after his injury last season?
The questions likely will linger until the evening of Sept. 10.
"It’s complicated," Danielson said. "Believe me, it’s complicated with quarterbacks."
Sunday, August 28, 2005
Ken Gordon and Tim May
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH
Troy Smith, from left, Todd Boeckman and Justin Zwick could give Ohio State a winning hand at quarterback.
Five hundred dollars sure can buy a lot of complications. That’s the amount Ohio State quarterback Troy Smith accepted from a booster in May 2004, leading to his suspension for the Alamo Bowl and the 2005 season opener, Saturday against Miami University.
Consider what the transaction triggered:
In Smith’s absence, the all-but-discarded former starter, Justin Zwick, led Ohio State to a 33-7 trouncing of Oklahoma State. Playing with a bum hamstring, Zwick gained respect from his teammates and renewed questions about who should be the starter this season.
The fact that Smith has sat out some recent practices — he found himself back in coach Jim Tressel’s doghouse for attending a football camp in June without permission — and won’t play Saturday also opened other doors. There’s a buzz among some practice observers that Todd Boeckman, a 21-year-old redshirt freshman, might be game-ready.
All of this because of $500. Had Smith not taken the money, there likely would be no debate — he would be the clear-cut starter coming off a showcase performance (386 total yards) in a win over Michigan.
Instead, Tressel has spent much of the preseason fencing with reporters without stating who will start for OSU against Texas on Sept. 10.
After the team’s jersey scrimmage Aug. 20, Tressel joked about his reasons for having all four quarterbacks, including true freshman Rob Schoenhoft, address the media.
‘‘(I) can get a good handle on where they think we are and where we’ve got to go," Tressel said. ‘‘And then I’ll read everything and listen and see how we’re doing."
But Tressel’s demeanor changed after more quarterback-related questions. Reaching the point of mild annoyance — his emotions never rise to the level of exasperation — Tressel said, ‘‘We know one thing for sure — Troy’s not playing against Miami. That’s the only thing I know for sure."
Maybe. It could be that Tressel already knows who will start against Texas and sees no reason to announce it until kickoff.
But it is instructive to review how Tressel has treated the quarterback position in his time in Columbus. He loathes a platoon system, preferring to pick a starter and stick with him unless events force his hand.
For example, in 2001, Tressel endured criticism for his steadfast backing of Steve Bellisari during a rocky 7-5 season. Bellisari’s legal troubles led to his benching, but he returned to play in the Outback Bowl.
Two years later, Craig Krenzel fought injuries and inconsistency through the first half of the season, entering the Penn State game with six touchdown passes and seven interceptions.
When Krenzel went down because of a concussion late in the first half of that game, Scott McMullen rallied the team to a dramatic victory.
Tressel, though, was not about to change horses in midstream. McMullen threw one pass the following week against Michigan State and played just 14 minutes the rest of the season.
"Well, I think there’s no question who our starting quarterback is," Tressel said at the time.
Last season was similar to 2001 in that Tressel stuck with Zwick even as the quarterback and team struggled with backto-back losses to open the Big Ten season. Zwick’s shoulder injury the next week, in a lopsided loss to Iowa, opened the door for Smith, who seized control.
Discussing why he was staying with Zwick last October, Tressel was asked whether he believed in settling on a starter once the season begins.
"I don’t know if you could go that far," he said. "But once you see a separation between two people performancewise, until there’s not so much of a separation, you’re set."
Using that logic, it would appear Tressel will insert Smith into the starting role at first opportunity. After all, he saw a separation last season, at least from a performance perspective.
But developments could gum up the works. ABC-TV analyst Gary Danielson, a former college and NFL quarterback, summed up the scenarios neatly after watching Ohio State practice last week:
"There is still going to be a key decision made. What’s going to happen?" Danielson said. "We all assume (Smith) is going to start the Texas game.
"But what happens if Zwick throws for 350 (yards) the first game? What happens if coming out of the blocks they have four straight three-and-outs (with Smith) against Texas?"
Danielson said he thinks the Buckeyes could win with Smith, Zwick or Boeckman.
Players tend to agree. That’s the company line, after all.
"If we had one exceptional quarterback and three lousy quarterbacks, then that would be a real worry," receiver Anthony Gonzalez said. "But I feel like we have three very talented quarterbacks, so for me, no, it doesn’t bother me at all."
Offensive lineman Doug Datish just shrugged.
"You’ve still got to block as hard," he said. "Miss a guy, (it) doesn’t matter who’s in, he’s probably going to get sacked."
But most people don’t view the situation in such cut-and-dried terms.
There are politics involved, such as should Tressel reward Smith with the starting spot after his repeated off-field mistakes? Or does Zwick deserve a chance to play with the new spread offense that developed after his injury last season?
The questions likely will linger until the evening of Sept. 10.
"It’s complicated," Danielson said. "Believe me, it’s complicated with quarterbacks."
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