Was it just that Hampton was terrible? Were any questions answered? For me, I had some questions:
1. First and foremost was how good the offensive line will be. They certainly dominated Hampton, so that's a good sign, but we really don't know how good Hampton is.
2.Second, how much of a drop-off will we see in Ohio's defense from last year? Ohio's offense dominated the defense in scrimmages, so there was reason for concern. Ohio's defense totally dominated Hampton's offense. We know little about how good Hampton's offense is, so that doesn't tell us much, but it's certainly better than the alternative.
3. Is Ohio's secondary improved this year? When I looked at the coverage, it looked excellent. Of course, Hampton doesn't have the receivers and speed that Purdue will have next week.
Now, we're all left with the question of, was it just that Hampton was terrible? Or is Ohio good? Or, is is a mix of both? We'll find out more next week when Ohio plays a much better team in an improved Purdue, and Hampton goes back to FCS. Here is what Solich said after the game:
At first the yards were tough to come by, but our offense was able to keep itself on the field by making first downs. I think it was a wear-down effect— that's the way it usually is if you are having a very good running game and the plays get a little bit better in the third and fourth quarter.
As Ohio's offensive line wore down the Hampton defense, the result was that Ohio scored a TD every time they were in the red zone. Before Ohio let off the gas, they scored 8 in the first quarter, 13 in the second, and 26 in the third. A nice easy win early is a lot better way to start the year than last year. So far as I saw, no Ohio players were hurt, so now it's on to a real test next week. Go Bobcats!