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Thursday, October 2, 2008
Tressel wants balanced offense
Ohio State coach Jim Tressel has always said he wants his offense to average 200 yards rushing and 250 passing, but those standards may be hard to reach with Terrelle Pryor in the fold.
The athletic freshman quarterback is still developing as a passer, and he’s more likely to rely on his dazzling scrambling ability than to stand in the pocket and uncork enough throws to reach 250 yards.
The Buckeyes piled up 279 rushing yards against Minnesota last week, averaging a robust 7.5 yards per attempt, but they threw for just 135.
And while Pryor’s running ability has given the ground game a boost, coach Jim Tressel isn’t ready to revise his goals for the unit.
“We need to be balanced, although you’ll never be disappointed in that rush total,” Tressel said on his call-in radio show Thursday.
Tressel said the Buckeyes went into the game against the Gophers planning to throw 25-30 times. Pryor went 8-for-13 and sub Todd Boeckman 5-for-9.
“We did call somewhere in that neighborhood,” Tressel said. “Sometimes Terrelle took off, which isn’t a bad thing.”
Sure, having a legitimate passing attack would be helpful. But Pryor’s dual-threat talents are enough to keep foes guessing, and Tressel may have to be satisfied with 450 total yards no matter how they’re amassed.
