Albin is Co-Coordinator.  At least you could get the titles and duties correct.

ROTFLMAO

I agree with these thoughts........we have the most anonymous offense.  No scheme, no strength, non consistency.

Back in the Grobe/Knorr era we knew we were an option-offense, when it worked it worked great, when it didn't, well go to the stacks at Alden Library and peruse the title "Ohio Bobcat Football History, Volume 2001: The Knorr Wilderness".  It was definitely antiquated and lost its potency thus its abandonment.  But there was at least a deliberate approach, a certain kind of talent brought in to operate in it and a commitment to it.

Now I feel like the coaches pick like 8 plays and download them to some kind of online magic 8-ball.  Hmm.....3rd down and 6...give the ball a good shake.....

While we are on this subject...........

Is anyone else a little disappointed that we have not really (maybe short of Kalvin) recruited a key offensive player out of high school, groomed him in our system and developed him into a household name across the MAC at the level that Pennington was at Marshall, LeFeavor (sp?-apologies to Chips fans) or even, gasp, Roethlisberger at Miami?

If you had to nominate an Ohio offensive skill player to the MAC All-Decade 1st Team who would it be and how confident are you they would make the squad?

I loved players like Brinker, Everson or even Dontrell Jackson (Grobe years), for their grit and play, but honestly how many people outside of Athens knew about them?

Did you watch the Knorr years?  Navy ran more option in pre-game saturday than Knorr ran in four years.

We have been more of a big play quick strike offense in recent years.  QB needs to have time and then make correct decisions. Hard to blame the OC when the players don't execute the play called.  The team needs to execute in practice and carry it over on game day.  Hard to tell the problem from two games.  A good QB like Scott executed big in the clutch for us. Turnovers aren't the fault of the OC.  Now running a foolish reverse that loses big yards when we could have selected a better play has been a problem over the past 5 years. Sometimes we get too cute and screw things up in the redzone when a simple get into the I and blow the other team off the ball is the best approach.  Got have some goaline and short yardage plays that you can convert at a high % without risking turnover. 

That's the point, I think. They didn't have the time, and they weren't able to make big plays, with one exception.  The job of the offensive coordinator is to figure of the strengths of the players he has, and get the most out of them. I don't think anyone here cares what plays or formation Ohio runs, so long as they move the ball. The only time they looked like they were moving the ball to me was running the option.

We can blame Albin or the other offensive staff members all we want, but at the end of the day, it still comes back to Frank. He's the head guy, it's his call. This is his sixth year at Ohio now. If something isn't working, it's his job to fix it.

I'll be blunt: offensive production has ALWAYS been Frank's Achilles heel when he's been a major college coach, whether he was his own offensive coordinator or someone else was. I'm not being provocative, just being honest.

Even if you try to be more than fair to him and throw out his first year at Ohio (when the program was still influenced greatly by Knorr, right?), if you average Ohio's offensive stats from '06 through '09, you're looking at an offense that still averaged only 88th in total offense and 71st in scoring. Right now, two games into the season - after playing Wofford and Toledo, not exactly defensive powerhouses - Ohio is ranked 116th in total offense and 85th in scoring.

In Frank's two best years at Ohio so far, 2006 and 2009, his offense ranked 106th(!) in total offense in both years and 85th and 78th in scoring, respectively. It's clear that his formula for winning division titles in those years was playing solid defense & special teams, and not turning the ball over - these things, much more than brilliant offensive coordination and playcalling, it's clear, were keys to Ohio's success in those years. For example, Ohio ranked 45th in total defense and 28th in scoring defense in 2009. In 2006, Ohio was 29th in total defense and 23rd in scoring defense. Coincidence that we haven't seen the opposite (relatively strong offense, weak defense)? Under Frank, I'd have to say no.

The pattern extends back to his Nebraska years. NU's offense dropped off the map in 2002 and 2003 (with the graduation of Eric Crouch, among others). Even in 2003, NU's offense was ranked just 83rd in total offense and 74th in scoring offense; but its defense ranked 11th in total and 2nd in scoring defense. The best thing NU's offense could do that year was run the ball where it could and not turn it over.

One might say this is smart, basic football, but it falls apart if you DO turn it over (of course, everything falls apart if that happens), if your defense can't hold up, or if you're simply playing a good team that forces you to diversify your offensive gameplan. If you continue to call basic, predictable - dare I say outright bad - plays that aren't working against an in-tune defense, it's not long before your team begins to resemble a man banging his head against a wall. How many times now have I see message board posts in which fans praised a Solich team's defense but criticized its lack of offensive execution/playcalling? Far too many to remember, frankly. It started long before Tim Albin was his offensive coordinator, and it continues year after year after year.

I'm not saying big offensive improvement or a good offense aren't possible this year or the next under Solich. But I am saying I won't be holding my breath for it.

Agreed. This is Solich's job to fix, and he needs to make whatever changes are necessary, if any.


Again, I agree. Solich has built his winning reputation on defense, special teams, and not turning the ball over. There is nothing wrong with that. Heck, even with the dismal offensive performance against Toledo, they would have won without the turnovers and poor special teams. If he can improve the offensive production at Ohio, he should be able to dominate the conference.


It isn't as if Solich has simply accepted the status quo. He has changed his offensive philosophy from run to pass, from I to spread, trying to find an effective offensive solution. I think Ohio has the tools for an effective offense. I think he will continue to make changes until the offense does produce.

Not big enough?  You do realize that most all teams that run the option run the option because they are smallish and less talented than their opponents, so not real sure where you are going with that concept.

I will give you the not deep enough in the backfield as we are short a RB, and we lack a fullback, and for any real option you need the big guy.

I agree - the plays looked too creative. I thought they needed to simply stuff, and run plays that hit faster. 

That is very interesting, regarding the offense becoming less effective at Nebraska in 2002-3. 2002 was the year Albin became a full time Coach at Nebraska and took on the role of "Passing Game Coordinator".

my concern is with the lack of adjustments... but again, I'm not afraid to admit I don't have much of a keen eye for x's and o's, but when our players and coaches are saying things about Toledo dropping 8 men into coverage... well... that strikes me as a rather extreme measure taken by the defense.  Wouldn't that give us an opportunity to exploit... something... when we recognize that?  At some point how did we not gash them a few times on the ground and force them to adjust back?

No chances the coaches could've been prepared and made some adjustments?  See L.C.'s remarks about quicker hitters.  I'd think that those would work against only a 3 man front--get us into their secondary.

Something.  Or just keep doing the same stuff that wasn't working.