If Urban Meyer doesn’t win a Big Ten championship or never gets his team to a national championship game, at least he brought the Ohio State football team into the modern age.

Saturday’s spring game between the Scarlet and the Gray featured quarterback Braxton Miller, who threw the ball nearly 30 times in a game that featured a running clock in the second half and shortened quarters.

The game featured the spread attack Meyer began implementing as head coach of Bowling Green, and used for BCS success at Utah and Florida with quarterbacks like Alex Smith and Tim Tebow.

Ohio State was always cutting edge on defense, and plain dull on offense. The team had no real basic offensive philosophy, other than Jim Tressel’s fond feelings for the punt, a play he once said was the most important in football.

Not to rip Tressel or Jim Bollman, who are among two of the most successful coaches in the team’s history. But the truth is getting players to play in the system was becoming difficult. Tressel was able to bring in big quarterback recruits like Terrelle Pryor, Justin Zwick, Troy Smith and Miller; but for the most part there has been a problem with depth at the position.

Those days are over. The Buckeyes operated in the shotgun Saturday, tossing the ball, running motion, using multiple sets while using only a fraction of the offense.

To paraphrase country singer Brad Paisley — welcome to the future, Buckeye fans.