Offensive line aims to upgrade mental game
They aren’t hitting, but they are learning.
With weeks to go before training camp and 71 days until Ohio State’s football season opens against Indiana, this is a comparatively down time for college football. But for the Buckeyes, football seldom pauses for long, especially for positional units with something to prove.
Count the Ohio State offensive line among those units. It was the foundation of the Buckeyes’ 2014 national title but has been inconsistent the past two seasons. With the graduation of Rimington Trophy winner Pat Elflein, the line knows the spotlight will be on it.
After the spring game, coach Urban Meyer said that seven of the team’s nine positions were up to standard. He didn’t name the laggards, but it wouldn’t be a stretch to speculate that the offensive line was one.
The linemen have taken their charge seriously. They aren’t doing contact drills but are working out under the oh-so-gentle tutelage of strength coach Mickey Marotti and spending lots of time on the mental side of the game.
“There’s a lot of film prep going on right now,” said Billy Price, who will be a four-year starter making the switch, as Elflein did last year, from guard to center. “For instance, Matt Burrell and I will look at certain formations we like to run plays out of. If they present this type of defense, how do we react? There are a lot of what-if scenarios that are being addressed to make sure that we are comfortable with those looks.”
Burrell is one of the candidates for the right guard spot vacated by Price. Asked about a front-runner there, Price was coy.
“Yeah, I’ve got an idea, but I can’t tell you,” he said with a smile. “I’m pretty confident in what we have going forward.”
The Buckeyes return starters at the other three spots — senior left tackle Jamarco Jones, sophomore left guard Michael Jordan and junior right tackle Isaiah Prince.
“Jamarco Jones is my co-leader,” Price said. “He’s taking as much ownership of this unit as I am to make sure we develop. We’re watching the educational development — the mental side of football — continue to grow. That’s where I think a lot of guys are taking strides right now.”
Prince was the subject of much criticism last year, but Price said he is building on the improvement he started to show in preparation for the Fiesta Bowl and continues to show more accountability.
Even in years when the Buckeyes’ offensive line dominated, Meyer voiced frustration about the inability to build significant depth. Price believes that is developing. Malcolm Pridgeon, injured early in training camp last season as a juniorcollege transfer, is healthy. Price praised his consistency.
He also is enthused about the potential shown by freshmen Josh Myers, Wyatt Davis and Thayer Munford. Myers, the only early enrollee, is probably a step ahead because of that.
“There’s so much being thrown at them,” Price said. “They’re sponges. They’re absorbing everything and doing everything we ask. There are a lot of positives coming from that group.”
Every season under Meyer, the Buckeyes have needed at least one untested lineman to emerge. In 2014, it was Price.
“Somebody has to continue to develop and push,” he said, “and the guys who are quoteunquote second team need to push the starters — to push myself, to push Jamarco.”
Of course, talk in June is just that. What matters is whether the line will be ready when the Buckeyes go to Bloomington.
“On Aug. 31, you’ll see an offensive line,” Price said. Will it be a good one? Price just smiled.