The above picture was the highlight of the year for the special teams, and it isn't even close (no offense to Ray Small's several dynamic returns against Wisconsin and Penn State) as Devin Barclay's foot catapulted the Buckeyes to the Rose Bowl, and we all know how that story ends.
Unfortunately for the 2009 Ohio State special teams, the year in general wasn't very...well...special. At all.
Improvements are hopefully on their way to the rescue as this year's most glaring question marks resides on the shoulders of the special teams in Columbus.
Not to make last season's special teams sound awful, but quite frankly they weren't exactly good. Maybe even the worst that Tressel has seen at OSU since his first year in 2001. Aaron Pettrey and Jon Thoma were expected to provide a reassuring presence in both departments of the kicking game, and that simply didn't come to fruition. Pettrey's kicking style didn't serve him well from inside 40 yards, and it showed with miss after miss in the short-range kicking game. With Thoma, he began the season displaying the ability to pin the ball inside the opponent's own 20 yard line, but that dependability turned into a mixed bag as the season went on. All in all, with all due respect to what Barclay contributed after Pettrey tore his ACL in late October, it was a highly average year for the special teams.
What made matters worse? A kick coverage team that seemed like they didn't even know what they were doing at times. That, above all in my humble opinion, is the most important aspect to the improvement of the special teams. If they can improve off of last year's continuous inability to stop premier return men then we should be looking at a very sound football team.
Devin Barclay will handle kicks within 40 yards, which seems to be his speciality especially after hitting some clutch field goals for OSU -- none bigger than his 39 yard field goal that gave the Buckeyes the Big Ten championship. True freshman Drew Basil appears to have a firm grasp on long distance kicks as well as handling the kickoff duties. Both will need to be consistent in order for OSU to reach their full potential. If there is a screw up by the field goal kickers in big games such as Miami or on the road at Wisconsin or Iowa, then it could result in a season of disappointment.
The punting game is still a mystery up to this point. It will be Ben Buchanan that will be the starting punter for the Buckeyes, but that is not what I mean by the sense of mystery surrounding the position. Buchanan was a very highly touted recruit coming out of high school, but has yet to impress few if any coaches at Ohio State up to this point. He has been asked to focus on punts for the remainder of his career, which all indications sense as a let down for the redshirt sophomore. He has the talent to be an excellent punter, but we will have to see whether he is able to pin teams deep consistently when given the opportunity. If the punt is the most important play in football to Tressel, then he needs Buchanan to come up HUGE this season.
The return game will likely see several faces get a chance to prove themselves as the year goes on. As of right now, all indications are that Brandon Saine and Jamaal Berry will be the starting kick returners against Marshall. We will have the official depth chart a week from now, so nothing is certain until then. Other names to look out for are Boom Herron, Jordan Hall and James Jackson. Others could possibly emerge as time goes on. The punt returner should almost certainly go to DeVier Posey, who substituted in for Ray Small after he was suspended for the Rose Bowl. Dane Sanzenbacher may line up to return punts as well, as he was the designated return man in the season opener last season.
My grade for the 2009 special teams: C.
My grade for the 2010 special teams: Time to play the waiting game.
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