The Bobcats took the short trip up state Route 33 on Saturday to play against the No. 1 team in the nation, Ohio State. Ohio played a tough game, having real success on defense despite losing 37-9.
Ohio will return home this weekend to play its final non-conference game of the season against FCS opponent Gardner-Webb. Brian Smith sat down with reporters on Monday for his weekly press conference, here is what we learned.
Injury Updates
Brian Smith was more open with injury updates for his team after saying “going to discuss injuries” when asked about the injury defensive end Kaci Seegars was dealing with.
The Bobcats had some players go down in Ohio Stadium on Saturday, most notably was quarterback Parker Navarro, who sat out the second quarter against the Buckeyes. Offensive lineman Trent Allen also went down late in the fourth quarter with an unknown injury.
“Parker obviously finished the game and (he) finished playing well. So we're going to kind of see how he's doing day to day,” Smith said. “(As for) Trent Allen, I'm expecting him to be fine this week.”
Looking ahead to Gardner-Webb
Smith spoke highly of the Runnin' Bulldogs and their ability to be competitive against FBS opponents. He also talked about the Ohio ties within their coaching staff and how fired up both players and coaches will be for a midseason homecoming.
“I think Gardner-Webb is a really good football team,” Smith said. “One of the things I think is interesting about them is that the staff has a lot of Ohio ties. And as they transitioned to that program, they brought in a handful of players from the state of Ohio … I think there's going to be some guys that are going to play harder, because they have an opportunity to come back home and play in front of their family, and in front of their state.”
The Running Bulldogs are a scrappy team and will compete until the final whistle on Saturday afternoon, so Smith and his staff want the players prepping like any other game and with just as much intensity as they have until this point.
“That was my stress with our staff on the accountability aspect of making sure that everything that we're doing is to our standard, that we're doing all the little things the right way,” Smith said.
“We're really holding them more accountable, maybe, than we have been before, or emphasizing things at a higher level, just to show the urgency of how important those things are.”
Defensive Line Depth
The Bobcats' defensive line and linebacker core have seen some injuries amid the non-conference slate they have played. Fortunately for the defense, the backups have stepped up well and shown that this team is more than just 11 deep on that side of the ball.
“The longer you're coaching, you start to realize that at times, a fall off isn't as far as you think it is when guys do go down,” Smith said. “I think if you're doing a great job with your coaching staff of developing your players and that your culture is strong, you know, the next group will rise up and will perform to the challenge.”
One of the players to step up so far this season has been redshirt sophomore defensive lineman Jay Crable, who has had a sack, three quarterback hits and three tackles, including one for a loss.
“I’ve been really proud of Jay, you know him coming a couple of years ago as a true freshman and seeing his progression from being a scout team player to what he's able to do right now,” Smith said. “I've really enjoyed his growth.”
Special Teams Progress and Updates
After a tough start to the season for Ohio’s special teams unit against Rutgers, the Bobcats have turned it around big time, fixing up a lot of the mistakes they made in week one against the Scarlet Knights.
New punter Magnus Haines has improved dramatically, going for an average of 44.4 yards per punt against Ohio State this weekend.
“I was definitely proud of Magnus,” Smith said. “He grew a lot in these first few games and did a nice job locating his punts and flipping the field for us. And I think our coverage guys are doing a great job too.”
After David Dellenbach looked like the starter at kicker in week one, Incarnate Word transfer Brack Peacock has taken that job, and been solid at it, despite missing a field goal against West Virginia and an extra point against Ohio State, which may lead to more kicking competitions.
“He was a walk-on tryout addition, and did really well,” Smith said of Peacock. “We allow them to compete throughout practices. He'd been more consistent, so we gave him an opportunity two weeks ago, and we'll continue to reevaluate it, because obviously, he missed an extra point. So those competitions will continue.”
Dellenbach has continued his role handling kickoffs, however, a place where he has been good to start the year.
“I thought David did a great job with kickoffs too,” Smith said. “It's good when guys have roles and they're making the best of those.”
