In Kirk Herbstreit’s third installment of the Varsity Football Classic, the most intriguing game arguably comes from Central Ohio. Showcasing two differing styles of offense, the spread oriented Dublin Coffman Shamrocks face off against the Westerville South Wildcats, who will run it down your throat with RB Jayshon Jackson. Read the rest of this entry »
Jimmy Ros, the 6’1″ 285 lb defensive tackle from Franklin Heights decided on Wednesday to return to Columbus West, the school he had a stellar junior season with after the failure of the South-Western City School operating levy. After racking up 73 tackles, 30 for a loss and four sacks in 2009, it had been rumored to return to Franklin Heights all summer long, the school where he played his first two seasons with. Garnering Honorable Mention All-District in ’09 with West, the decision was made to return to the Cowboys when it became known that Franklin Heights coach Rodney Hopkins wouldn’t let him back on the team. Hopkins decision made Ros’ even easier to make. Read the rest of this entry »
On the first weekend of high school football in Central Ohio, two dark horses from Columbus found themselves 1-0 after the opening week of play. The most shocking came from the likes of the Groveport Cruisers who upset highly ranked Westerville South 19-10 in front of a packet crowd at Cruiser Stadium. Read the rest of this entry »
Fresh off a Rose Bowl victory and arguably his best performance thus far in his career at Ohio State, Terrelle Pryor has fans around the Buckeye State confident in his performance. Initially coming out of Jeanette High School in Pennsylvania, Pryor looked as if he was the best QB commit the Buckeyes had received in recent memory. With the signing of Braxton Miller, who according to ESPN is the no.2 signal caller in the nation, it’s clear to see that Jim Tressel found his replacement to TP, or did he upgrade? For Pryor, his running ability is what set him apart from the rest of the quarterbacks in his class. But for Miller, his legs are only an add on to an already superb passing game. And what makes Miller a more intriguing prospect is the fact that he has been clocked various times in the 40 running 4.4′s. Scary. It has been expected since he came onto campus that Pryor would be gone after his junior season, and if this does happen, it will clearly open the window for Miller to come in and take the job, with Kenny Guiton being the only reasonable competition for the spot. The thing Miller has over Pryor in this situation, is that Miller is well advanced for his age when it comes to the passing game. This is what ESPN Scouts had to say about Miller.
“ He has a big arm and can make every single throw. This offense provides him opportunities to stretch the field both outside of the numbers and between the hashes. Shows good velocity on his deeper throws. Can fit the ball into a lot of tight spots. He does a very nice job surveying the field and goes through his progressions.”
“Shows ability to change velocities and throw catchable balls underneath. He also shows good accuracy and touch in the short-to-intermediate passing game. Release mechanics are compact, but can be about 3/4. He is in the shotgun most of the time and needs more reps from under center to develop as a drop-back passer reading on the move. Possesses good lateral movement and shows the ability to slip pressure and create second-chance opportunities. He has very good speed for the position. He is elusive and quick for his size and displays some start and stop ability.”
For all of Buckeye nation, this scouting report is very promising. Not since the days of Troy Smith have the Buckeye had a consistent passing game. But with Miller, it seems that the Ohio State offense will be able to expand the spread offense, as this is what he has ran in all three years at Huber Heights Wayne. Dangerous once he is in open field, it’s very clear that the Buckeyes won’t lose anything in the ground game from their quarterbacks once Pryor is gone.
What will hurt Miller once he is on campus is the expectations that will be waiting for him. In two very solid s
easons under center, Pryor has been criticized heavily, despite winning 18 of 21 games as a starter, including wins over Oregon in the Rose Bowl, at Penn State and home against Iowa, the defending Orange Bowl champions. Compiling 3405 yards and 30 TD’s through the air, the job Pryor has done thus far in his career is quite astounding. Considering the pressure that was thrust upon him upon arrival, there isn’t much to knock on Pryor. Going into the last three games of ’09, the inability to win “the big one” is what hurt Pryor the most. But after defeating the aforementioned Penn State and Iowa, and winning on the road against Michigan, the Rose Bowl victory only put those notions to rest. When Miller comes into the starting role, I expect his expectations to be much higher, as only two days after he committed to Ohio State, most analysts and fans are concluding that he will be better than Pryor. For now, I see him as a mere replacement to Pryor, but not yet an upgrade. For that to happen, Miller must improve the passing offense his freshman year, along with equaling the things Pryor has done on the ground. Either way, the quarterback position for the Buckeyes has been solidified for the next five years.
Rivalry Week (Part I) for the OCC, with Pickerington Central playing North at Crew Stadium, also Hilliard Bradley at Hilliard Darby, and the two Westerville’s meet up when North and Central collide. All scores I have accessed from JJhuddle.com. UPDATED: 10:49 PM.
FINAL SCORES: Read the rest of this entry »
All scores I have accessed from JJhuddle.com. UPDATE: 11:05 PM
FINAL SCORES:
Recently, a HS athlete from Hamilton, Ohio was put on trial for felonious assault. Dwayne “Deejay” Hunter, a 19-year old track and football star at Middletown HS, shot a 15-year-old kid twice with a BB gun in the face from a car; with one of those BBs hit the victim in the eyelid. “You’re 19 years old. And you are standing right here, six inches away from a prison number and the potential to go away to prison for eight years — that’s two presidential terms. Read the rest of this entry »
All scores I have accessed from JJhuddle.com. (FINAL UPDATE: 11:03 PM) Read the rest of this entry »
As Northeast Ohio and the Cincinnati area dominate Division I football in Ohio, the Central Ohio region has some supreme talent of their own. After a drubbing from Pickerington Central over California’s Orange Lutheran, Central Ohio showed just how much talent is in the region. With Kirk Herbstreit’s Varsity Series showcasing the top players in the country, a trio of running backs not only put their names on the lists of scouts everywhere but showed once and for all that football is here to stay in Columbus. Fresh off the press here on Behind The Box Score, here are the top running backs here in the 614 if not all of Ohio. Read the rest of this entry »
Led by the rushing assault of Jayshon Jackson, the Westerville South Wildcats gambled but came up miserably short in a 21-20 loss against Hilliard Davidson in part of Kirk Herbstreit’s Varsity Football Series. Jackson, a transfer from Central Crossing, had a coming out party in Saturday’s contest. Having not been mentioned during the pregame, Jackson outperformed his former middle school teammate in Davidson’s Rico Butler, rushing for over 100 yards and two touchdowns. Jackson scored first on a 10 yard run where he nearly broke the ankles of two Davidson defenders. Using his size and strength, Jackson was essential to a passing offense that struggled for the most part. Read the rest of this entry »
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