Fighting Illini Football Preview: Ohio State, Like a Baus

I wish Braxton Miller the best. I hope that his leg heals up completely, and that no permanent damage or setbacks whatsoever result from the injury he suffered last Saturday against Nebraska. I hope he comes back 100%, next week. Saturday, I want in the worst way to see Joe Bauserman take the field as the starting quarterback. Its not just because of Bauserman's statistically amazing 1/10 13 yard performance against Nebraska in the fourth quarter (he threw an interception too, he had as many completions to Buckeyes as he did Cornhuskers.) No Illinois fans knew about the Bauserman experience before it was cool.

Last year in Memorial Stadium, Terrelle Pryor was on his way to eeking out a victory against Illinois when he took a hit to the hip on a running play and was sidelined. In stepped Joe Bauserman. The Baus' brief appearance resulted in this stat line 1/2 for one yard and an INT. Oh if only Pryor hadn't returned, what could have been.

So on the one hand, I suppose  I can hold out hope that Luke FIckell just wants to play it safe with Braxton Miller and send the Baus out there to do what he does, but I don't think I am that lucky, Ohio State will likely not only be with its "better" of two quarterbacks, but also will have the services of Daniel Herron back, who has been serving an NCAA suspension to this point.

Braxton Miller may very well have a bright future in this conference, but simply being the better option over Joe Bauserman isn't necessarily saying much. The true freshman has had his ups and his downs so far this season. He is 25-47 for 386 yards on the season, with four touchdowns and two interceptions thrown in. His arm does not seem to be much of a threat based on those numbers, but looks much better when the threat of his running ability is thrown in. His 91 yards against Nebraska and 83 yards against Colorado suggest that he might be an effective dual threat quarterback, provided one overlooks the confusing -27 yards accrued against MSU.

Daniel Herron too will add a wrinkle to this game, as the starting running back from last year's Sugar Bowl team, one would expect he is an upgrade for the Buckeyes, but rushing hasn't exactly been the reason Ohio State has been listless on offense, Jordan Hall and Carlos Hyde have been doing an admirable job thus far.

What the Illini really need to be focusing on is the Ohio State defense. Despite their 3-3 record, OSU still has a defense that is ranked 11th in points against and are still just as stacked as OSU defenses usually are. Last week this defense held Nebraska without a TD for the first half before imploding down the stretch, but make no mistake, with a competent offense to give this unit rest they are fearsome and formidable.

As for Illinois, one would hope that the self inflicted wounds do not catch up to them this week. Nathan Scheelhaase is still not progressed beyond the occasional bone headed INT, Jason Ford and Donovonn Young seem to wait for the absolute worst times before the fumble, and the special teams hasn't done anyone any favors.

As much of a struggle Ohio State has had this year, they have lost to some damn good teams and are certainly no cupcake. Give them the ball with short field position and they will get points out of it. Don't fully engage a blitzer and you will see a sack or a fumble, and don't stay in your lane on kick offs? Well more of what we saw last week. Shore up the mistakes, cut down on the penalties guys, there is no need to throw a life line to this injured team.

This week will be a great test to see just how far progressed Nathan Scheelhaase and the rest of the offense is.  Ohio State has the athletes to probably cover A.J. Jenkins much better than he has been of late, but that doesn't mean they should really take to the air waves and start talking trash about it. (Do not wake the Dragon, dude.) Illinois has run the ball at everybody, and they have done it pretty effectively, and set up murderous play action passes for Jenkins and Scheelhaase. Nate's mobility too should be helpful. As much as it makes me cringe when he does it, Nate is averaging 3.7 ypc and that is something you really can't say no to from a QB.

Elsewhere the Illini running backs are still all basically on the same level. Jason Ford got his confidence back last week in the second half and still looks like the best option in short yardage situations. Troy Pollard excels in the option game, and has a team leading 361 yards and a mighty 9.8 ypc to show for it. And Donovonn Young still has trouble holding onto the ball, but when he does, he has amazing speed and is the best chance to break a long run of anyone.

What I most want to see this week is a door slamming display of defense by the front seven. No matter who is in the backfield on Saturday, they are just begging to get sacked, and that is something that so far Illinois has been very eager to oblige.  Whitney Mercilus, Jonathan Brown, Michael Buchanan, all have been terrors so far this year, but this is the game where they can perhaps have the most impact. This is an offense without a real passing threat and that is prone for negative yardage plays and turnovers. Standout play from the front seven could mean more points off of turnovers and a win no matter how good the Ohio State defense plays.

All of that said, it will be a fun game to watch to be sure, and I still like the Illini to keep this thing going.

Illini 24, Ohio State 17.