Drew Thurman (2:37 pm)

Who needs to step up in Beanie's absence? Let's take a look...

5) Rory Nicol:

Rory Nicol??? Yes, I have Rory Nicol on this list. The Buckeyes offense needs to become more diverse, and the tight ends can cause headaches for the defense. Especially Nicol, who has a great set of hands the potential to make a big play at any moment. Of course Boeckman has to throw the ball Nicol's way, but I think we are going to see this a lot more!

4) Ray Small:

Ray Small probably needs to step up as much as anyone regardless of Beanie's condition. Small is a threat for the long ball at wideout and as a returner on the special teams unit, and needs to act more like it. We know what Robiskie and Hartline can do, but the long threat needs to be a more active part of the Buckeyes offense. With his number taken away he seems to have more of a chip on his shoulder, and let's hope that continues!

3) Terrelle Pryor:

It is hard to put too much pressure on a true freshman, but Pryor is capable of handling it. He offers an aspect to the rushing attack the Buckeyes have not had in years past, and that needs to continue. Beanie's absense made the ground game much more inept last season than it should this year with Pryor as part of the equation.

2) Maurice Wells, Boom Herron, and Brandon Saine:

This is a pretty obvious one on this list. All three of the running backs need to step up their games. Maurice seems to be running harder this season (probably because he was buried on the depth chart), and that is very encouraging. Boom Herron I think is the best option between the tackles, which is funny because he is the smallest of the three. He hits the  the middle fast, which works very well in the Buckeyes attack. Finally Saine probably needs to step up the most of the three. He has been pretty disappointing since becoming injured last season. I understand he still has nagging injuries, but we need him to start hitting the hole faster.

1) Todd Boeckman:

Boeckman is the leader the of our offense. With Beanie missing, his performance will make the difference in how the offense grades out. Boeckman once again looked confident in the pocket in the opening game, and that is something this offense needs. He has tons of weapons at wideout and in the backfield, and he has to trust the line. His performance last season started going down hill as he got "happy feet" in the pocket, and he cannot go back that. If Boeckman gets in rhythm it could totally smooth Beanie's absense over!

Leave a Reply