The Bucks rushed for 35 yards, their quarterbacks were sacked nine times and they only managed to avert their first shutout in the Shoe in 29 years because Bauserman threw a 33-yard touchdown pass to Evan Spencer with just 10 seconds left.
The Bucks are now 3-2, so who do you fault for this anemic start?
Start with jettisoned head coach Jim Tressel, banished quarterback Terrelle Pryor and all four of those veterans players who were suspended for the first five games of the season and spent Saturday bundled up on the sidelines.
All of the MIA players were involved in the memorabilia-for-tattoos-and-cash scandal that rocked the program in the offseason, and Tressel was forced out for covering up the players’ involvements.
The personal selfishness and disregard for the program sent Ohio State limping into the season under-manned and counting on too many untested players.
That was never more evident than with Miller on Saturday.
As the recently crowned starting quarterback, he’s being asked to lead this team, and he’s not ready yet. Add in that his line had trouble protecting him and he rarely had a chance Saturday.
He threw for 56 yards and an interception, rushed for minus-27, the negative yardage the result of four sacks, and bobbled several snaps. He had trouble picking up the Spartans’ blitzes and didn’t change plays at the line and so he rarely got rid of the ball.
By the fourth quarter Fickell had seen enough and replaced him with Bauserman, who fared no better until the final drive.
“It was pretty tough out there,” Miller admitted. “It was like ‘Welcome to the Big Ten,’ ”
Sophomore tailback Carlos Hyde admitted Miller was overburdened Saturday: “He’s a young quarterback and he’s gonna make mistakes and not read plays right. He just needs more time and he’ll explode and be the quarterback everyone expects him to be.”
After Saturday’s game Fickell said Miller still is his starting quarterback, though he said the team might even give a look to third and fourth stringers.
Yet while some see uncertainty, there are other Bucks who see help on the horizon. The suspended players — top receiver DeVier Posey, running back Dan Herron, left tackle Mike Adams and backup defensive lineman Solomon Thomas — return next Saturday and are being painted as saviors.
“Trust me, those guys are gonna be on their A games...and we’ll be a different team,” sophomore safety Christian Bryant said. “They’re all seniors. We can count on them big time.”
Wrong.
If that was the case, Ohio State wouldn’t be struggling like it is.
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