Exploring The Balance Between Loyalty to Upperclassmen and the Youth Movement

Let's start with this: in a 66-0 mugging of Kent State Saturday, Ohio State played 23 true or redshirt freshmen.

Included in that figure are team cogs like quarterback J.T. Barrett, running back Curtis Samuel, and linebacker Darron Lee.

So consider this, too: the talent — specifically the brand of talent that fits Meyer’s vision and blueprint for success — on the Buckeyes' roster is bottom heavy. It lies with its youngsters.

But don’t take that the wrong way: Ohio State, of course, has talented upperclassmen in players like Michael Bennett, Doran Grant, Jeff Heuerman, Devin Smith and Evan Spencer. 

This is an Ohio State team, though, that revolves around the youths. They are everywhere. Here’s a breakdown of units with youngsters listed on the team's most-recent depth chart:

• Quarterback: J.T. Barrett (redshirt freshman)
• Running back: Ezekiel Elliott (sophomore), Curtis Samuel (freshman)
• Wide receiver/H-back: Dontre Wilson (sophomore), Jalin Marshall (redshirt freshman), Noah Brown (freshman), Michael Thomas (redshirt sophomore), Johnnie Dixon (freshman)
• Offensive line: Billy Price (redshirt freshman), Pat Elflein (redshirt sophomore), Jamarco Jones (freshman), Kyle Dodson (redshirt sophomore)
• Linebackers: Darron Lee (redshirt freshman), Raekwon McMillan (freshman), Dante Booker (freshman), Chris Worley (redshirt freshman)
• Defensive secondary: Vonn Bell (sophomore), Tyvis Powell (redshirt sophomore), Cam Burrows (sophomore), Eli Apple (redshirt freshman), Gareon Conley (redshirt freshman) 
• Special teams: Cam Johnston (sophomore), Sean Nuernberger (freshman)

Notice how critical positions that were at the crux of the team’s success a year ago — like quarterback, running back, offensive line and wide receiver — are littered with guys who may or may not be able to legally buy beer yet.

Inevitably, with that kind of cache and their disposal, it means Meyer and his staff face an interesting crossroads when evaluating who plays how much and who starts where.

The intersection of loyalty to upperclassmen — guys who have busted tail for years — and playing the best players, regardless of year, is an age-old battle and a tricky one. 

“I think we have an obligation — when they say you’re the head football coach — to win the game and represent Ohio State,” Meyer said.

Meaning, you play the best players and separate emotion from what’s best for the product on the field. A lot of the times, the best players are seniors. Sometimes, they’re not. And to some extent, Meyer said, upperclassmen get first dibs anyway. 

“If a guy does everything right,” he said, “as far as academics, behavior on and off the field, his work ethic, then you give them every opportunity.” Reality is different. 

There’s 22 seniors on Ohio State’s roster. Seven, not including the inactive Braxton Miller, have a starting job on the team’s two-deep. Some, like linebacker Curtis Grant, are jockeying with guys like Raekwon McMillian to keep those coveted roles. It's why other guys, like Rod Smith, Bri'onte Dunn, Warren Ball, Cam Williams, Ron Tanner, are second fiddle to their younger counterparts. 

“There comes a point where, if the younger player’s better, than you have to go with the younger player,” Meyer said.

Duh, that’s common sense. And all those youths running around lends itself to team-wide inexperience that got exposed against Virginia Tech a few weeks ago. So Meyer is supposedly wielding his whistle during this bye week like the Buckeyes were playing the Green Bay Packers two weekends from now. 

“We have to get these guys game reps — from our starting quarterback to our starting right guard to our tailbacks — they’re all new players — to a handful of receivers that we have to just get them as many reps as we can,” Meyer said.

“It’ll be a little different than we’ve done in the past: if you have an old veteran group, then you kind of rest them and you work on things. If you have a young group that needs work then that’s what we’re gonna do.”

Because at Ohio State, in 2014, youth can either be an asset or a liability. It seems somewhere in between those two extremes right now.