Will Evans doesn’t think Ohio’s defense has consistently been on the same page.
“I feel like there’s been times where not necessarily one guy, but maybe a whole group may not be on the same page,” the defensive end and team captain said. “That usually happens when teams score and make big runs against us, when we’re just not on the same page.”
Defensive coordinator Ron Collins, however, was unaware of the disconnect some of his players feel on the field.
“That’s the first I’ve heard that,” Collins said. “I’m not sure where we’re coming from.”
The Bobcats defense is in flux six games into the season.
Ohio allowed Northern Illinois to score points on its last five drives and lost Saturday on a game-winning field goal after another performance full of missed tackles, poor coverage and miscommunication.
Coach Frank Solich was straightforward in his weekly Monday press conference when he discussed what Ohio can do to correct its defensive problems.
That is why the Bobcats are 2-4 and have their worst start to a season since 2008.
“We’re starting from scratch in terms of what might be the problem,” Solich said. “We’re looking at a lot of things. Do we get worn down? Do we need to get more aggressive in our calls?”
Solich and Collins plan to decrease the snap counts and utilize substitutions more frequently to give defensive starters more rest.
That is perhaps the biggest change the Bobcats will implement to kickstart a defense that led the MAC with a +13 turnover ratio and finished eighth in the conference with 25 sacks a season ago.
Ohio isn’t close to those numbers this season.
At the halfway point, the Bobcats are ninth in the conference with eight sacks and have only four turnovers. Missed tackles aren’t a recorded statistic, but the Bobcats have struggled in that category, too.
The defensive headaches have wasted key plays from its offense, and the Bobcats have six games left to find a fix.
Right now, the coaches believe that will come with lower snap counts.
“We’ve not very successful in the fourth quarter,” Collins said. “We need to roll more guys and get fresh guys on the field, or at least have our guys that we feel are our best players fresh in the fourth quarter.”
The lower snap counts might help, but the problems appear to extend beyond potential fatigue.
That was the case Saturday, when NIU backup quarterback Marcus Childers ignited the Huskies offense with a 70-yard run in the third quarter. The Huskies scored a touchdown two plays later, and the Bobcats never stopped the Huskies from finding points on a drive the rest of the game.
Evans kept his answer short when he was asked about the play.
“It was a bad call for the play at the time,” the redshirt junior said.
Collins took blame for the playcall.
“They split us on a zero blitz,” he said. “It was just a matter of a little bit of execution, but us putting the guys in the right spots, and we didn’t do a good job of that.”
It was just one play, but the Bobcats never looked the same from their first half when they held NIU to 10 points. Ohio allowed 387 yards in the second half, and players were frustrated as they exited the field after each of the four touchdowns from the Huskies.
“I don’t want to say inexperienced because these guys are experienced,” senior linebacker Eric Popp said. “We all know what we’re doing out there, but it’s a whole new group of guys that are getting meshed together right now.”
The defense has to show improvement against Kent State on Saturday at Peden Stadium if the Bobcats want to become bowl eligible for the 11th straight season and remain atop the race for a MAC Championship.
The Bobcats have won five consecutive games against the Golden Flashes, who have the eighth-best offense in the conference and haven’t had a winning season since 2012.
It shouldn’t be too tall of a challenge for Ohio, but the Bobcats are starting from scratch and can’t afford any disconnect.
With six games left, the defense appears to have plenty of it.
