by Christian Hoppens
Staff Writer, OhioBobcats.com
All through the week preceding the game, Ohio expected Southeastern Louisiana’s offense to be predicated around the run.
It’s hard to blame them for that expectation as the Lions averaged 302 yards per game on the ground while gaining an average of 44 yards through the air in their first two games.
They flipped the script on Saturday, airing the ball out 32 times to the tune of 174 yards and two touchdowns in Ohio’s 35-14 victory at Peden Statdium.
“It definitely (caught us by surprise),” redshirt junior safety Toran Davis said. “The whole week in practice, we emphasized the run and they came out throwing the ball more than they did on tape by far. We adjusted to it and made plays when we had to make plays.”
Solich said that change in gameplan for Southeastern Louisiana wasn’t a total surprise after Ohio did a solid job limiting Marshall’s rushing attack save for one explosive play.
“I think they felt that they do so much in the running game— it’s all based off of triple-option football—that you work hard on stopping the run,” Solich said. “So it didn’t surprise me that the quarterback they played is a good throwing quarterback. They’ve got good receivers. It made sense for them for them to open things up against us a little bit. We didn’t play a lot of coverages. They saw that and were able to get some things. And I think that was able to help them in the running game. They were able to get a little bit of both going.”
And then there was the game from redshirt freshman running back Papi White, who led Ohio with 66 yards and two touchdowns on the ground to compliment his 50 yards receiving.
It wasn’t necessarily a surprise to Solich or his teammates, but it was White’s first breakout game as he put his explosive speed and agility on display with a 58-yard touchdown run and a 41-yard reception. “Papi’s been due to finally get some receiving and his run game came along today,” redshirt senior quarterback Derrius Vick said. “People were able to see his burst and what he can do outside.” That 58-yard run by White came after the Lions had trimmed the Ohio lead to 21-14 in the fourth quarter. The run provided the Bobcats with momentum that could’ve been halted by a “shocking” one-hour lightning delay. “I thought Derrius really put the money on the mark, Solich said. “There were a couple throws that were a little overthrown and our receivers caught up to the throw. I think the explosive plays were huge for us and I really like seeing that. You have to have the ability to make one-on-one plays and so far, we’ve shown that ability throughout the first three games.”
