Penn State braces for Ohio State's Braxton Miller
COLUMBUS, Ohio - Penn State has seen Braxton Miller only twice, both times as Ohio State's quarterback. For its coaches, its players and Nittany Nation, that was two times too many.
COLUMBUS, Ohio - Penn State has seen Braxton Miller only twice, both times as Ohio State's quarterback. For its coaches, its players and Nittany Nation, that was two times too many.
Miller's mind-boggling combination of speed, quickness, elusiveness and decision-making was a factor in a pair of wins for the Buckeyes - 35-23 at Beaver Stadium in 2012, and, 63-14, at Ohio Stadium in 2013. In those two contests, Miller rushed for 202 yards and four touchdowns, and passed for 395 yards and four TDs.
After a one-year absence when he sat out with a shoulder injury, Miller returns Saturday night for the top-ranked Buckeyes' game against Penn State as an H-back – a dual-threat runner and pass-catcher. That blend makes him as difficult to defend as ever, even if he no longer is the regular quarterback.
"We've watched him on film," Lions head coach James Franklin said, "and he's playing wide receiver like he's played wide receiver his entire life. It's impressive. I think Braxton is that type of athlete. He can throw it, he can run with the ball in his hands. He's special. So it just gives you another option that you have to deal with."
His versatility is almost unimaginable. The 6-foot-2, 215-pound Miller has been responsible for 87 touchdowns – 52 passes, 33 runs, two receptions – in his career. His 3,215 rushing yards are fifth-best in Ohio State history and third among active players in FBS. He has thrown for 5,295 yards, eighth all-time at the school.
Miller had to miss all of last season with a shoulder injury. In the meantime, J.T. Barrett came on for 12 starts at quarterback and evolved into a Heisman Trophy candidate. When he got hurt against Michigan, Cardale Jones took over and led the Buckeyes to a national championship.
So when Miller was healthy enough to return, he saw the QB logjam and started to work as a wide receiver. With head coach Urban Meyer wanting to get the ball in Miller's hands as much as possible, he mixed passes and runs into his man's playbook.
However, with just 39 touches in six games, Miller wants more, and Meyer hears him.
"Every good quality player wants the football," he said. "We don't discourage that. We don't look at that as a negative. When we go out and recruit skilled athletes, we want them to want the ball. So when me and Braxton have conversations, it's about how we get him the ball."
And how does Miller express that?
"He says, 'I want the ball,' " Meyer said.
Miller's willingness to move to positions allows the Buckeyes to have one more playmaker in there. He joins running back Ezekiel Elliott and quarterbacks Jones and Barrett, who will see much of his action leading Ohio State in the red zone.
Given all that firepower, the nightmares of past Ohio State games could rekindle nightmares for Penn State if its defense isn't on its game.
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