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The Ohio State Buckeyes released their depth chart for the Indiana game on Monday and there were several positions where co-starters were listed.
The one position that stood out where co-starters were listed was the running back spot: Mike Weber or true freshman J.K. Dobbins. However, there should be no doubt in anyone’s mind that Weber will be the Buckeyes’ workhorse this season.
Weber is coming off a 1,000 yard season as a first year starter as a redshirt freshman and is perceived as one of the best backs in the country. Despite this, Ohio State, B1G and general college football fans should expect to see Dobbins in a role that matters during his first year in Columbus.
When Dobbins first arrived to Columbus, there were questions where he would fit on the Ohio State depth chart. But an opportunity presented himself that allowed him to show he is worthy of carries this season.
During preseason camp, Weber suffered a hamstring injury which sidelined him for the majority of the practices. Because of that, Dobbins jumped over other backups in preseason camp to secure the No. 2 spot. Running back coach Tony Alford has gone on record in the past saying he is willing to utilize both ball carriers, depending on how Weber is playing.
“J.K., without question,” Alford said to Eleven Warriors. “This guy loves football. He is smart. In my 22 year, this guy has picked it up faster than anyone I have ever been around. He has picked it up, understands the offense. He plays hard, which part of the culture of this program.”
As head coach Urban Meyer put it, “He’s earned that right.”
Meyer said Dobbins reminded him of former linebacker Raekwon McMillan, in terms of how both came to Ohio State as “kind of a grown man.”
“J.K. is the same,” Meyer said. “He came in here and he’s an excellent student, one of the best workers in the weight room and then on top of that, God’s gifted him great speed, elusiveness. He’s a real one. We’re happy he is here.”
Meyer is not the only one who is excited about Dobbins potential. Everyone else on the coaching staff to all his teammates have raved about the speed and the ability to make defenders miss that the La Grange, Texas native possesses. That talent helped him be the first freshman to lose his black stripe this year.
His debut is one of the most anticipated of any Buckeye in recent years.
Dobbins has all the tools to make a significant impact for Ohio State as a freshman. He has skills (rans a 4.32 40 which is the fourth fastest on the Buckeye roster), football IQ (Alford’s quote speaks to that) and opportunity (Weber’s injury).
Meyer has said on multiple occasions in both spring and fall camps that Dobbins will see the field in 2017. But how much playing time reminds to be seen because he missed his entire senior year of high school due to a knee injury. So he has not played a significant down of football since 2015.
With Weber still nursing his hamstring injury, the probability that Dobbins receives a bulk of the carries looks highly probable. And it is even more probable that he gets at least 10 carries per game thanks to offensive coordinator Kevin Wilson’s system.
As the head coach of Indiana, Wilson won a lot of games by utilizing just one primary back. However, he has won a lot more games using two backs.
In 2015, Wilson had two 1,000 yard rushers on the same team as Jordan Howard ran for 1,213 yards and Devine Redding rushed for 1,012 yards. Together, both backs combined for over 70 percent of Indiana’s carries that year. Also, in 2013, Tevin Coleman ran for 958 yards and Stephen Houston eclipsed 738 yards.
With Alford saying Dobbins is the No. 2 back for Ohio State, it is beyond easy to say the freshman will see several carries this season.
The freshman hype surrounding Dobbins is exceedingly high. But that typically happens for a lot of highly touted incoming freshmen.
If Dobbins’ talents are truly what the Buckeye coaching staff has said, there is no reason why he won’t see a significant role as a freshman for Ohio State.