OL - 3 starters return, guessing Anderson replaces Cooper, McCray replaces Watson, should be as good or better than this year
Admittedly, you can't isolate one thing, but for me this is a major key to next year's success. So much of our success or failure starts with the OL. Our running game was weaker this year. Is that because we had injured backs or because the holes were smaller? For that matter, did the OL contribute to the RB injury problem? How often was our QB rushed in the pocket? How often did we give up untimely sacks? Give me a MAC-leading OL and I like our chances--suddenly our QB and our RBs are getting high praises.
When your program really is rolling is when you have a solid situation at each position. That starts with identifying talented recruits, signing them up, and building them up. When you get there, that position "reloads, not rebuilds", to use an old saw. That doesn't happen overnight, unfortunately, but when you get there, you know you have a solid position coach and program.
What positions does Ohio have this? First to mind is Wide Receiver. Dixon does a great job. He gets quality recruits, and he trains them up. Ohio has always seems to have very good receivers, year in and year out. Another one is linebacker, where Coach Collins has done a great job. You lose Russell, you find Poling. Year after year, I never doubt that Ohio is going to be good at linebacker.
Another one is DL. Prior to Coach Williams, the defensive line was held together by bandaids. They would bring in Jucos, trying to shore the position up, and were always scrambling to find the right guys. Now the situation is different - they recruit the right guys, and train them up. In 2014 you lost Crutcher, McLeod, and Davis, but the next year was fine. Then you lost Tautuiaki and Purdum, and again, it was fine. This year Ohio loses Laseak, Basham, Sayles, and Strobel, and I predict that it will be fine again.
Running back in a another position where you have this, and even with the incredible number of running back injuries this year, Ohio was fine. Defensive back has also not been a problem. Special teams also fits this mold - good every year.
Where has Ohio had chronic weakness? Two positions come to mind - offensive line, and Quarterback. These have been the stumbling blocks that have kept Ohio from taking that next step up that everyone wants to see. Everyone harps on the playcalling, but is that the problem? If you don't have the QB, and you don't have the offensive line, plays aren't going to work well. If you have a great OL and a great QB, you can call most anything and it will work.
Interestingly, two years ago Vanderbilt hired away two coaches, the Offensive line coach, and the QB coach. This has been a blessing in disguise. I think Johnson is doing a better job than Lightner, and I think that Isphording is doing a better job than Gdowski. Both have been recruiting a much higher quality athlete. Both have seen players progressing faster. Both positions still have major depth issues, however, and both remain the team's weak point.
Going back to Williams, he came to Ohio in 2011, and the line was so thin he was forced to play true freshmen Crutcher and Tony Davis. As he built depth, he shored the position up with some JUCO players and transfers (Branz, McLeod, Tautuiaki, Kendric Smith, and Robbins) but now the pipeline is stuffed with guys he recruited. It took 3-4 years for the defensive line to get where it is, but now it's great.
Can Johnson do the same for the Offensive line? He's following the same script. The talent he inherited was thin, some starters (McQueen, Lucas, Powell, and Watson), and then behind them, not much. He was forced to play true freshmen (Lowery, McCray, Preuhs), and then to try to recruit to fill the pipeline. He added some JUCO talent to short things up in the short term (Anderson, Cooper, Newton for next year), while he continues to recruit some new talent. Can he repeat the success of Williams, identifying quality recruits, and coaching them up? That remains to be seen. If he's successful, then guys like Trotter, Fernandez, Pleasants, Beadle, Notestine, and Grimes will be all-MAC in a couple years. If he's not, they will disappear like many of Lightner's recruits did.
And QB? We've seen Sprague, Vick, and Windham improve under Isphording. We've only seen one Isphording recruit on the field, though, that being Maxwell. I'm hopeful that Maxwell improves dramatically over the off-season, and that come next fall the game is much slower for him. I'm also hopeful that new recruits like Keszei will dazzle us in the future.
The jury is still out on Johnson and Isphording, as far as I'm concerned. I have reason for hoping they are going to get the job done. In order for this not to be "As good as it gets", these two positions need to get better. They have been the two consistent problem areas over the last five years. If they do improve, and the other positions remain solid, where we are is definitely not "as good as it gets". As far as other positions, they are all generally solid, year after year. Yes, this year was very, very thin at CB, but I think that was an exception, not an ongoing problem.