Ohio State’s 2017 Offense and your favorite cheeseburgers

Last year the Ohio State Buckeyes were, if you look at the outside results, good enough teamwide to make an appearance in the Playoffs against Clemson. However, not all was well in mudville Columbus.

According to the mothership:

The 2016 Ohio State Buckeyes were more of a defensive team that relied on running the ball with J.T. Barrett. That mostly worked until they played Clemson, which paired elite defense with an explosive offense.

Casual observers of the Buckeye football program and also the players thought the playcalling by Beck and Warriner was a bit predictable:

“Last year,” Weber said following this week’s Thursday morning practice. “I kind of felt we (were) a little predictable when it came to our play-calling.”

Urban Meyer decided to shake up his coaching staff by hiring former Indiana HC (and Miami of Ohio, Northwestern and Oklahoma OC) Kevin Wilson as the latest Buckeye playcaller.

I’ll always have fond memories of Kevin Wilson from watching him turning the 1999 3-9 Wildcat squad into a team that scored 54 points on a stacked Michigan team with Zak Kustok as a running QB and Damien Anderson at RB. Zak Kustok!

Wilson took his talents to Norman, and later on was hired as Indiana’s Head Coach. His teams were always exciting, and I vividly remember several games when he almost took OSU or Michigan to the wall.

Kevin Wilson’s hiring was praised far and wide, however I’ve detected a room for concern from the mothership

The Ohio State run game has been geared around inside zone and power blocking. Wilson tended to build his Indiana units around outside zone, which works rather differently and doesn’t feature the same kinds of QB option complements. While Wilson might emphasize balanced formations and the pass, it’s unlikely Meyer would stop combining inside zone and power, particularly the QB read varieties with Barrett entering his final season.

How will Kevin Wilson’s offense mesh with OSU’s current roster and Urban Meyer’s offensive tendencies? Will OSU return to the offensive potency of the Tom Hermann era when they won a natty?

Also, isn’t it crazy that J.T. Barrett is still OSU’s QB?

Three years ago community member trasch_man has this to say about a great Columbus eatery:

Third stop: Thurmanator, The Thurman Cafe

The Thurman Cafe is a German Village staple, a Columbus must-see. It's not a very big place and you will absolutely wait a while to get seated but bah gawd are the burgers good. Wash them down with a Four String Brass Knuckle or a CBC Breakfast Bodhi.

"What is the Thurmanator? Is it a burger or is it some sort of killing machine?"

Yes.

The Thurmanator is two of the very best burgers, the Thurman burger and the bacon burger, stacked on top of one another:

The scene: Bottom bun, mayo, lettuce, tomato, pickle, banana peppers, 12 ounce burger, bacon, cheddar, another 12 ounce burger, sautéed mushrooms & onions, ham, mozzarella & American cheese, top bun served with fries and a pickle spear.

What’s the best cheeseburger you’ve had?

Aaron: I wrote a little in yesterday’s potluck about how it will be interesting to see how much influence Wilson’s offense has on what has been successful for Meyer at Ohio State. If you look at the way Ohio State threw the ball in its last three games last year, it becomes obvious that the passing game is the weak thing. Therefore, the best thing might be to leave Meyer’s successful running game in place and just have Wilson work on the passing game, but that’s assuming that J.T. Barrett is up to the task. Nothing’s ever as easy as it seems.

Oh, and Shake Shack makes the best cheeseburger. It’s da bread!

JWS: Thurman Cafe has a nice burger, but I also used to enjoy a place right down Thurman Avenue named Easy Street Cafe. Their Greek burger was one of my favorites. Sadly, it recently closed. For a really good burger, I now head to place called Spud’s on Henderson Rd.

As for the Ohio State offense, I think it mostly depends on the receivers. The line, Weber, and Barrett have my confidence. Kevin Wilson terrified me when he was roaming the sidelines at Indiana, and even more so when Zander was back there running and throwing. I am guessing they will be somewhere in the mid 40s for points per game.

Candystripes: Given that OSU will in no way have to worry about getting the talent to fit whatever system Wilson chooses to run, worst case is that the offense might only be marginally amazing this year, with next year being the first part of utterly fantastic offense rolling in.

WSR: OSU will score enough points to win the B1G. What happens after that is anyone’s guess. And the best cheeseburger I’ve ever had was at the Blue Door, just in case I haven’t carried the banner for them enough through the years. If you’re asking me to pick one, I’d probably have to go with the Horsekick Blucy.

Townie: My take on the OSU offense is simple...they need to improve from last year. JT Barrett is down three to a team they should beat. On their own forty yard line, with over a minute left on the clock...no problem, right?

Somebody tell this kid you can’t take a sack on 3rd and ten when you are down the field goal.

This was a schematic problem, but the OSU offense shouldn’t have been in this situation in the first place. Ohio State got the ball back, down by three, with over four minutes to play.

This offense, with this much talent, should be able to get a field goal against anybody...even Clemson. That’s why Wilson is in this year. He’s got plenty of tools, we’ll see if he can get this straightened out.

When it comes to burgers, I’m a snob. I find that most backyard BBQ guru’s can’t make a burger to save their lives. You need enough fat so you don’t make a hockey puck. You need good, flavorful beef or you are just making a vehicle to carry condiments. I am a fan of the burgers at Notch8 in the Fairmont Hotel Vancouver in Canada.

You asked for the best, I’m giving you the best. Big, moist, great flavor...get the onion rings to go with them. And get an extra napkin...