Wednesday, October 21, 2015

2015 Ohio State Football Depth Chart for Rutgers



J.T. Barrett finds his name in the starting quarterback slot on Ohio State's latest depth chart.



DEPTH CHART: J.T. BARRETT LISTED AS SOLE STARTER AT QUARTERBACK FOR OHIO STATE AHEAD OF RUTGERS ROAD GAME


By Eric Seger on October 20, 2015 

When Ohio State heads to Rutgers for the first time in program history Saturday night, the Buckeyes will have a different starter at quarterback than the first seven weeks of the season.
As Urban Meyer said Tuesday on the Big Ten teleconference, J.T. Barrett's "earned the right" to start at quarterback ahead of Cardale Jones against the Scarlet Knights.
There weren't many other changes on the team's depth chart, released Tuesday afternoon.
Notes:
  •  Obviously, the biggest change from last week is at quarterback where Barrett and Jones' names have switched. After scoring four touchdowns against Penn State, Barrett gets the nod this week, but Meyer said Jones will still have a role.
  •  Tommy Schutt's name is absent from this week's depth chart, after it was announced Monday the senior defensive tackle had surgery to repair a broken wrist. Schutt is replace by Joel Hale and Michael Hill, both listed as co-starters at defensive tackle. Freshman Robert Landers finds his name on the depth chart for the first time this season.
  •  Parris Campbell is still listed as Michael Thomas' backup at wide receiver. Campbell missed last week's game with a knee sprain despite being listed on the depth chart last Tuesday.
  •  The battle at placekicker rages on between Jack Willoughby and Sean Nuernberger. Willoughby nailed a 39-yard field goal against the Nittany Lions Saturday.
OFFENSEDEFENSE
LT68TAYLOR DECKER6-8315SRDE59TYQUAN LEWIS6-3260SO
74JAMARCO JONES6-5310SO10JALYN HOLMES6-5265SO
LG54BILLY PRICE6-4315SODT92ADOLPHUS WASHINGTON6-4290SR
78DEMETRIUS KNOX6-4305FR52DONOVAN MUNGER6-4300SO
OR93TRACY SPRINKLE6-3290SO
C50JACOBY BOREN6-2285SRDT51JOEL HALE6-4295SR
79BRADY TAYLOR6-5300FROR77MICHAEL HILL6-2305SO
57ROBERT LANDERS6-1290FR
RG65PAT ELFLEIN6-3300JRDE97JOEY BOSA6-6275JR
75EVAN LISLE6-7305SO6SAM HUBBARD6-5265FR
RT57CHASE FARRIS6-5310SRSLB43DARRON LEE6-2235SO
59ISAIAH PRINCE6-7305FR35CHRIS WORLEY6-2225SO
TE81NICK VANNETT6-6260SRMLB5RAEKWON McMILLAN6-2240SO
85MARCUS BAUGH6-5255SO55CAM WILLIAMS6-1225SR
WR3MICHAEL THOMAS6-3210JRWLB37JOSHUA PERRY6-4254SR
21PARRIS CAMPBELL6-1205FR33DANTE BOOKER6-2233SO
89JEFF GREENE6-5220SR
QB16J.T. BARRETT6-2225SOCB13ELI APPLE6-1200SO
12CARDALE JONES6-5250JR12DENZEL WARD5-11180FR
RB15EZEKIEL ELLIOTT6-0225JR
25BRI'ONTE DUNN6-0215JRSAF23TYVIS POWELL6-3210JR
28WARREN BALL6-1225JR24MALIK HOOKER6-2205FR
H-B1BRAXTON MILLER6-2215SRSAF11VONN BELL5-11205JR
2DONTRE WILSON5-10195JR26JARROD BARNES5-11193JR
WR4CURTIS SAMUEL5-11200SOCB8GAREON CONLEY6-0195SO
82JAMES CLARK5-10185SO2MARSHON LATTIMORE6-0195FR
WR17JALIN MARSHALL5-11205SO
5JOHNNIE DIXON5-11194FR
83TERRY MCLAURIN6-1200FR
SPECIAL TEAMS
K98JACK WILLOUGHBY6-2210SRH95CAMERON JOHNSTON6-0195JR
OR96SEAN NUERNBERGER6-1220SO
P95CAMERON JOHNSTON6-0195JRPR17JALIN MARSHALL5-11205SO
KO98JACK WILLOUGHBY6-2210SR2DONTRE WILSON5-10195JR
96SEAN NUERNBERGER6-1220SO
LS41BRYCE HAYNES6-4220SRKR2DONTRE WILSON5-10195JR
49LIAM MCCULLOUGH6-2210FR4CURTIS SAMUEL5-11200SO





 2015 Ohio State's Depth Chart for Rutgers









Starting Barrett Right Call for OSU

 
Cardale Jones has never lost a game as the starting quarterback at Ohio State, but Urban Meyer announced on Tuesday that he was making the switch to J.T. Barrett. And it's the right move.

"J.T has earned the right to start Saturday at Rutgers," Meyer told reporters on Tuesday.The Buckeyes are still ranked No. 1 with a 7-0 record, but it's clear that the offense has operated with better efficiency when Barrett is under center. Barrett, who Ohio State began to use as a red-zone quarterback over the last few weeks, ended up playing much of last Saturday night's game against Penn State. His running ability helped lead the Buckeyes to a 38-10 win after a slow start with Jones behind center.
Barrett, a sophomore, started 12 games last year after Braxton Miller re-injured his shoulder. He proceeded to finish second nationally in passer rating and fifth in the Heisman Trophy vote, and he would have rushed for over 1,000 yards had he not broken his leg against Michigan. Jones replaced him for the Big Ten title game and the College Football Playoff, dazzling with his strong arm and powerful running as he helped lead the Buckeyes to the national title.
Jones was the starting quarterback through the spring with Barrett and Miller still recovering from injuries, and as Miller shifted to receiver, Jones kept the job into the season. As Meyer repeatedly said, Barrett had to beat Jones out, and he didn't quite do it up until now.
The departure of top deep threat Devin Smith has hurt Jones, and Ohio State has struggled to find an identity on offense after losing coordinator Tom Herman. Meyer's offenses have typically leaned heavily on the read-option, but Meyer shifted his philosophy around Jones, whose deep passing can open up space for tailback Ezekiel Elliott and the Buckeyes' other talented athletes. Jones ranks 48th nationally in passer rating, completing 62.4 percent for 1,242 yards (8.3 per attempt) with seven touchdowns and five interceptions, and he has rushed 50 times for 130 yards and a touchdown. Ohio State averaged 10.2 yards per play in the opening win at Virginia Tech, but the offense has been inconsistent since then.
With Jones' raw talent and the talent around him, the offense has worked just fine at times, but only when Barrett is in the game do all the parts seem to fit together. Barrett is the beset point guard for this offense, which is why Ohio State started to turn to him in the red zone, where Jones' downfield passing is a nonfactor. Jones can run, but Barrett is more explosive and a better decision-maker in both the option and passing games.
Over the last two weeks against Maryland, Ohio State has scored touchdowns on 11 of 12 trips to the red zone with one field goal. Barrett has thrown only six passes in those two games, completing all six, as he has been counted on more in the running game. The combination of Barrett, Elliott and Miller, plus an increased tempo, helped lead the Buckeyes to 315 rushing yards against a talented Penn State defensive front. Barrett ran 11 times for 102 yards and two touchdowns, and he also threw a pair of TDs.
"Just sheer production," Meyer said of the decision. "Cardale is going to be a very active part. Hopefully we'll keep him very much involved. It was a difficult decision, but the red-zone production and third-down production were the two areas that made the difference. [Barrett] earned that with the way he played Saturday."
Barrett has completed just 27 of 44 passes for 249 yards with four touchdowns and two picks this year, but he hasn't gotten a chance to be the full-time quarterback. We saw what he is capable of doing last season as a passer, and there's little reason to think that he won't hit his stride again -- even if he still might be looking over his shoulder at Jones, who's not exactly getting benched for good. Last season, Barrett completed 64.6 percent for 2,834 yards with 34 touchdowns and 10 interceptions, while running 171 times for 938 yards and 11 touchdowns.
Starting Barrett won't solve every problem the Buckeyes have immediately, especially if there's still a short leash and roles are uncertain. But based on the way he's played recently, Barrett appears prepared to take the job and run with it. Ohio State will be heavily favored the next three games against Rutgers, Minnesota and Illinois, before a tough finish against Michigan State and Michigan. In other words, there's still some time to put the puzzle together before the season is on the line.
But even though Jones has done a lot of good for this offense, making the decision to go with Barrett now puts Ohio State on the right track to maximizing its potential.
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