Vince Young looked good carrying the ball against Michigan in that Rose Bowl. Vince Young shined with some critical rushes in the Horseshoe. I can vividly remember Vince Young making USC defenders look inferior as he rushed the football. Three games with the whole world watching and Vince rushed well in all of them. There was a reason the whole world was watching. Those games were big games. In big games, you pull out everything in your bag. That doesn’t just mean elaborate schemes and trick plays, that means you throw everything you have at that opponent.
Mack Brown is a smart guy. Go back and visit Texas game film and you will see Young wasn’t carrying the football with designed QB keepers as much when the Texas squad was burying joke opponents. They didn’t need a helmet hitting Vince in the knee when the Longhorns were up 40-0. They didn’t need an awkward fall on his shoulder when he rushed for a first down early in the third quarter during a route.
We all tend to think Vince Young ran the ball every game like he did against the Michigan’s, OSU’s, and USC’s, but that is not the case. Texas needed Young last year, and they weren’t about to wear him out or hurt him with an inefficient strategy. They had tailbacks and receivers and linemen that could move the chains against some opponents. They wanted Vince’s running in the mix only when needed. Four or five rushes against a Baylor…15 rushes against a big one.
Vince is gone. What do I mean by all this? Well, Troy is also a dual threat. Troy doesn’t get taken third in the draft maybe, but I promise you OSU needs Troy like Texas needed Vince. As far as college football impact to the team, Troy is our Vince. The OSU coaches have watched all the Vince Young Texas game film and will take a page from Mack Brown. Why get Troy dinged when they are beating NIU 28-0 only five seconds into the second quarter? Throwing to Ted and Gonzo and handing to Pitt and Beanie seemed to work just fine. Sure Troy will get a few runs, but don’t hold your breath for too many.
Expect to see Troy’s theatrics running the ball against Texas, Iowa, and of course against Michigan. He will carry the ball however many times he needs to carry the ball during those games. However, I wouldn’t expect 20 rushes against Cincinnati, BG and Indiana.