Say what you will about Bam, dude can cut a rug

A question was posed to me the other day that got me thinking (never a good thing); all the hype heading into this season is about Terrelle Pryor, and little concern is devoted to the fact that most everyone else at an offensive skill position is a new, or relatively new face. The question was, outside of Daniel Herron, Pryor and DeVier Posey,  who else is being hyped as someone poised for a huge year?

Then I started getting ideas (also never a good thing). I decided I'd come up with an award, based on preseason hype and overall expectations of individual players. I then decided I'd name the award for a guy who, for four straight years at Ohio State, overcame overwhelming preseason hype spurred by mesmerizing spring game and practice performances to.... do next to nothing in the regular season. I decided that this award would go to those "other", non-headliner guys at the skill positions - not Pryor, Herron, Posey etc. - who actually deliver on preseason hype, unlike the award's namesake.

My usual response to the question I was asked is to say - while providing all the necessary caveats about the evolution of the offensive line - watch the minor contributors to last year's team, because Tressel has always made playing time decisions based on experience than raw ability. What that means is that the person asking the question should look for guys like Dane Sanzenbacher, Ray Small, and perhaps even Jake Ballard, to become factors in the Ohio State offense. But those aren't the only guys up this year's Bammie award.

Dane Sanzenbacher

I have my concerns about Sanzenbacher - to wit, his size, and his penchant for exposing himself to the big hit - but I am still as high on him as I was when I wrote this back in May:

He doesn't have elite speed, but he's still dangerous in space with his athleticism and ability to make defenders miss (jukification?) and will eventually grow into the role of the reliable third down option for Terrelle Pryor.

Since then, opinions of Dane have gone through a bit of an evolution, with Kurt Coleman at one point considering him potentially the guy:

"Dane is the guy, any way he has to, he's going to get it done, he's going to get the first down," Coleman said. "I think Dane is coming in being the No. 1 receiver, but DeVier is definitely that deep threat, that guy you always have to have someone guarding."

In camp, "Sanzo" (or, as I call him, "Bloody Sanzio") has struggled with injury and hasn't made a massive dent in the depth chart, but most still consider him to be, at the very least, the probable number two behind Posey. What he brings to the game is not all the different from what Anthony Gonzales brought to the team in 2006: a player who's willing to go across the middle and make the tough catches in heavy traffic on passing downs, even with his lack of size. He will be critical to Pryor's development as a quarterback, and he just might be the most likely breakout player at his position this year.

Official WWAHT Breakout Year Hype-O-Meter: 8 Bam Childresses out of 10

Brandon Saine

Probably the guy that most needs a breakout season, he's going to have to earn it while sharing duties with Boom Herron. Saine came to OSU as a football player who happened to play track,  but has spent most of his time looking like a track guy who happened to play football; nursing injuries, avoiding hits, and generally struggling massively as a spell back behind Beanie Wells. This spring, I liked what I saw:

Saine has looked a bit more confident, abandoning his fear of hits and hitting the hole (TWSS) with tenacity, quickness and excellent vision.

Reports from practice on Saine are few and far between, but there was this from the jersey scrimmage:

Brandon Saine didn't get a lot of work, and was 5/20.

So the Saine Hype Train that was steaming along early in the spring appears to have slowed down just a bit, but last I checked, Tressel still plans on rotating Saine with Herron, and since the spring game was the closest thing he has seen to genuine game action since early last fall and he looked excellent in it, I'm not too worried. It's hard to have a "breakout" year as part of a rotation, but I think all the things he brings to the table as a runner are different enough from Herron that he'll continue getting reps throughout the season. 700 yards on the ground may not be out of the question.

Official WWAHT Breakout Year Hype-O-Meter: 6 Bam Childresses out of 10

Ray Small

I know, I know: everyone says this is his year, ever year. This year might be the least likely year that the Motormouth will break out, in fact. But I'm still holding out hope. Tressel apparently is too:

Senior Ray Small, who started the month in Tressel's doghouse again, got plenty of time running routes and returning punts (his job a year ago) Wednesday. He appears to be back in the mix.

Small's recruiting numbers were not excellent without reason: the potential is still there. He has shown how dangerous he can be in space. He also knows that this is his last shot, and he hopefully knows that outside of that punt return, he will be most remembered for this:

Which is not ideal. If these facts, along with all the (somewhat deserved) hate from the fanbase, serve to motivate him just a bit, he might end up partially redeeming his checkered (to put it lightly) career.

Official WWAHT Breakout Year Hype-O-Meter: 5 Bam Childresses out of 10

Taurian Washington

Deacon of the Church of Latter-day Bam himself, Washington has blown up in two straight spring games - catching 8 passes for 163 yards and two touchdowns in the past two years. He would have 9 for 226 had a flag not taken away a 63-yarder in the 2008 edition of the game. Sounds like a star in the making right? I give you his career regular season stat line:

Somewhere, Bam Childress knows that he still has a good man spreading the word and doing his work in Columbus. After this year's electrifying 92-yard spring game performance, Washington finds himself again down on the depth chart, presumably behind Posey and Sanzenbacher. There were previously rumblings that he may get looks in the slot should Ray Small find trouble yet again.

Official WWAHT Breakout Year Hype-O-Meter: 5 Bam Childresses out of Ten

Duron Carter

 Reports from practice and the scrimmage have been almost exclusively praise for the scion of Cris Carter.  Assuming Ohio State mostly operates out of 3-wide sets  this year, Posey, Sanzenbacher and Ray Small all have a considerable leg up on Carter when it comes to playing time. He's too big to play the slot and not quite a burner. One way I could see him having a breakout season is if he's deployed mostly in red zone situations, where defenses would have to work just a bit harder to cover him as they field as many linebackers as they can to stop the rushing attack. They just might not be able to cover someone with his size and speed.

Official WWAHT Breakout Year Hype-O-Meter: 6 Bam Childresses out of 10

Honorable Mentions

There about five other guys on the depth chart who may come out of nowhere to have a big year. Here are the big two, both with Hype-O-Meter ratings of 4 or fewer:

Jake Stoneburner - A converted WR at TE is always an exciting prospect, but to buy the notion that 2009 is Stoney's breakout year is to buy that a) he'll make the transition gracefully as a redshirt-freshman, b) Ohio State starts making a serious effort at utilizing the tight end in the passing game and c) he actually catches anything as the second tight end provided that b) actually happens. Thus, he just remains a darkhorse.

Official WWAHT Breakout Year Hype-O-Meter: 3 Bam Childresses out of 10

Jaamal Berry - Berry has bounced back excellently from his June marijuana arrest, impressing in camp before succumbing to injury and struggling in the scrimmage. He wasn't here for the spring, so it's safe to say he's a bit behind. Nevertheless, he's the fastest back on Ohio State's roster, and probably the most dangerous in space. But I have my doubts: see here and here on why I think he might struggle.

Official WWAHT Breakout Year Hype-O-Meter: 4 Bam Childresses out of 10

So, there you have it, your 2009 Bammie candidates on the offensive side of the ball. I'll go over some of the defensive guys later in the week. Feel free to write in other darkhorse contenders below.