The 2019 season has been nothing short of remarkable for the Ohio St. Buckeyes. After Urban Meyer handed the keys to Ryan Day, the bucks continued their winning ways by going undefeated in the B1G, beating Michigan, and winning another conference championship. Speaking of remarkable, how about Georgia transfer Justin Fields? The young quarterback from Harrison High School has shown why he was the number one quarterback recruit coming out of high school in 2018. Check out these stats on the Sophmore:
CMP/ATT- 208/308. CMP %- 67.5. Yards – 2,953. TD’s – 40. INT’s – 1.
I’m not sure what’s more prodigious, throwing for nearly 3,000 yards or only throwing one interception. Both stats are stunning.
From his first snap in the FAU game, we saw just how special this kid is, taking a QB draw for 51 yards to the house! He went on to score 4 TD’s and throw for 234 yards.
Justin Fields really is special. His dynamic arm and electric legs make him dangerous. He’s like Cam Newton, just better if I dare say. Once more, he’s a general on the field and can make chicken salad out of chopped liver. It amazes me how Georgia let him slip away but that was a difficult situation playing behind Jake Fromm.
Fields isn’t running a one-man show though. He’s got a nice supporting cast with him.
Leading the Buckeye ground game is junior back, J.K. Dobbins. The junior has accumulated 1,829 yards this season, coming in second just behind Jonathan Taylor from Wisconsin in the Big Ten. Once more, he has been bell cow for the buckeye ground game. Dobbins is not a blazer, he’s not going to burn you but he can get after it in the open field. What he does well is bulldozing his way thru you. He’s a power runner with a purpose and he’s very hard to tackle. Not only that but he’s very durable, he has great hands for a running back.
And then there is the unblockable, Chase Young. The junior defensive end has 16.5 sacks(team record), 44 tackles, and 6 forced fumbles in the 2019 campaign. At 6’5, 265 lbs, Young stands out in a crowd and it’s no easy feat to contain him. One of his best games came against Penn St., where he recorded 9 tackles and three sacks, right after coming off a two-game suspension where he accepted a personal loan. Young is an All-American and will no doubt be a future NFL standout.
The Buckeyes will have their hands full on December 28 when they take on the Clemson Tigers. Even though Ohio St. has gone undefeated and won the Big Ten, playing Clemson will be their biggest challenge of the year. There will be many challenges and they will need to address the following:
- How well will they protect Justin Fields?
- Can they establish a ground game?
- Can they contain Trevor Lawrence and penetrate Clemson’s offensive line?
- Will Fields be able to make enough plays to help his team?
If Ohio St. can make Trevor Lawrence uncomfortable and establish a ground game, I like their chances. It will be an intriguing game, to say the least.
The Fiesta Bowl is this Saturday at 8 PM on ESPN.
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