Originally published at: https://pistolsfiringblog.com/spencer-sanderss-value-to-osu-underlined-in-subpar-bedlam/
Toughness and grit weren’t quite enough to get the Cowboys back in it.
OSU, especially this year, is a much better team with Sanders than without (an indictment on Gundy for not having another good qb on the roster). However, that belies the fact that over the last 4 years there have been numerous games where Sanders’s play has cost OSU games. Most notably big games–the Big 12 championship and Bedlam. This site has been pumping him up as the second coming of Vince Young for the last 5 years. He is not that. He is a good athlete and an average qb. He is essentially Tone Jones playing on better teams (OSU fans over 45 should understand that reference). I appreciate what he’s done, but I’ll be happy to move on from him.
You only have to look at Sander’s uniform…it has green smears everywhere from being pummeled by the OU defense. It is hard to put too much blame on the qb when his OL is obviously incapable of blocking for him. If you watch the game film you will see that on many plays the are OL who don’t block anyone no matter what play is called. It is as if they don’t have any idea as to what they are supposed to do on a particular play. They play as if they are totally clueless. Bad coaching or something else?
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Oline couldn’t defend sanders from a brisk gust of wind. He played poorly but they never gave him a chance to work. At least he went out and have it his all unlike the offensive coaching staff.
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“Sanders could come back for another year if he were to choose to thanks to the NCAA’s COVID eligibility waiver. If he does, OSU will certainly be in better shape in 2023 than if he doesn’t.”
Will OSU certainly be in better shape though? What’s been some of the biggest issues over the last three seasons?
- Offensive line
- Sander’s injuries
- Offensive play calling
The offensive line has been a consistent issue. The only time we seemed to have a salvageable running game was because of a guy we got from the transfer portal (go figure). Warren made the OL look better than they actually were. I’ve heard the argument how OSU gave up the least sacks last season. That possibly has something to do with Sanders ability to evade defenders as well.
Which leads me to my next point. Why is Sanders getting injured so much? Is it because he has sense to run and gets tackled? Or is it because of the lack of consistent protection? I guess you could say it could be both. If you don’t want him getting injured you have to give him some things to work with to keep him from being the beating heart of your team. OSU used to not be in a position where they had to rely on the QB consistently to win the game. You have to have other reliable options outside the QB to keep your team from falling apart.
Dunn isn’t an OC. He’s wildly inconsistent. Most of the time the offense looks bland and noneffective. Several times a game plan (or lack thereof) seems to be the offense trying to attack the strength of the opposing defense. OU’s run defense is one of the worst in the nation. So we attempt 67 passes against them? If you can guarantee me that we’ll have an OL that doesn’t suck chit and some kind of reliable running game then keep Sanders on board I guess, but if that’s not the case then find me a QB that loves and thrives handling the pressure of running for his life and possibly getting hurt every season while still making the defense look silly.
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I think the root of sanders injuries comes from having zero protection. I mean just look at his jersey Saturday. Unacceptable.
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Hope you will be happy when our new less mobile qb is getting pounded because our OL is still horrible
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