Urban Meyer states Ohio State should 'oversimplify' run game vs. Penn State

A majority of Big Ten games are won in the trenches, and there’s a big chance that same mantra will apply in this weekend’s marquee matchup. No. 3 Penn State takes No. 4 Ohio State at Beaver Stadium in one of the most high-stakes games of the season.

Former Ohio State head coach Urban Meyer knows a thing or two about playing Penn State with a 6-1 record against the Nittany Lions. And with the Buckeyes’ offensive line suffering numerous injuries, he revealed what he’d do in that particular matchup with the run game.

“This is rugged, I’m actually going to talk about this on Big Noon,” Meyer said on The Tim May Show. “First of all, you talk about the run game, I would make it so simple. Because I watch Penn State, I’ve been watching actually all day, and they’re very multiple. Tom Allen‘s the D-Coordinator, they move Abdul Carter all over the place. So first, if we concentrate on the run game, I would oversimplify it. Zone is your base play and you have gap schemes, I wouldn’t do much more.”

Ohio State lost star left tackle Josh Simmons for the season against Oregon before his backup Zen Michalski was also injured last weekend against Nebraska. Forcing the Buckeyes to reshuffle on the offensive line and presenting a challenge for them this weekend in a hostile environment.

“You’re gonna have a cadence issue, you’re gonna have the issue with snapping the ball. Their left guard when they were in Oregon, Donovan Jackson, was a guy that triggered it. He would turn at the quarterback and give the signal, he’s now out at tackle I’m hearing,” Meyer explained. “So I would make this thing simple stupid for that offensive line and get the ball to your best players. Which the skill level at Ohio State is still arguably the best they’ve ever had.”

Ohio State across the board has one of the most talented rosters in college football. But offensively, everything starts with quarterback Will Howard. A veteran dual-threat that Meyer believes should have his legs utilized even more than usual this weekend.

“I’d run the quarterback, I’d run him a lot. I made a comment, I’d run him 15 to 20 times in this game. He’s the great equalizer,” Meyer said. “The running quarterback equates numbers for you instantaneously, and it actually forces the teams to stop doing a lot of that nonsense. When you start seeing all the chaotic defense, run your quarterback because you’re going to gain a blocker.”

Ohio State’s offensive line will be a pivotal position to watch on Saturday, and it will be fascinating to see how offensive coordinator Chip Kelly chooses to attack Penn State’s stout defense in the run game following several injuries up front.