Roundtable Wednesday: Who Should Start At Running Back?

Here at Pistols Firing, we use Slack to communicate back and forth. Sometimes this is constructive. Other times we riff for 20 minutes on Mike Gundy’s golf game. We’re going to try and do an informal roundtable every Wednesday about whatever is going on this week and post it here.

Here is Volume 1. It’s pretty slangy and GIF-y and not meant to be anything serious. We’re just here to talk about OSU the way we all do in real life. If you need to brush up on any of the contributors, you can do so here.

Porter (publisher): I agree with @boonek about the RBs. Shades of Joe Randle in Justice Hill.

Boone (head of crootin): Someone in that group is going to be severely disappointed by the middle of the season…

Porter: Carson.

Aldrich (head of hoops): ^retweet

Carson (podcaster): Why does everyone think I don’t like him? I was just skeptical is all, none more so than Porter!

Porter: Bring me your Booker T. takes.

Carson: The speed at which you’ve distanced yourself from our convo is faster than Tyreek

Porter: Hahaha

Carson: He didn’t start btw, which is all I was really questioning: A freshman starting Game 1 over three seniors. Did Boone report he was starting?

Caleb (intern): Gosh, I know it’s cloudy here in OKC but it seems awfully shady in here…?

Porter: I was talking about Chris Carson! Not @carsoncunningham !!

Aldrich: Lol I was talking about Chris Carson too but this is great

Porter: It really is. A heel turn from Carson on official Big Cat Is Back Day.

Boone: lol Nooo @carsoncunningham I didn’t. But I think @sam.aldrich10 wrote something about Gundy “potentially” starting Hill..

Southwell (chief uni officer): Give Justice Hill jersey #24 and have Bob Stoops re-punt to him. Let’s see what happens

Aldrich: I was simply relaying Robert Allen’s sentiments

Carson: We are both CCs too, gotta figure out a name for Chris.

Porter: We could just call him Jeremy Smith 2

Boone: Yeah true that, @sam.aldrich10. But to be fair to Robert, he’s definitely right about Justice being the best option.

Aldrich: Absolutely not arguing that.. Justice is the real deal

Thomas (Xs and Os): So is this RB rotation the topic of discussion?

Porter: Sure. Who should start on Saturday?

Aldrich: I also thought Rennie Childs already had “Jeremy Smith 2” title on lock

Boone: Can Raymond Taylor come back? He had more yards than all of our backs on Saturday.

Thomas: Carson again, see who gets hot. Barry j will be a specialist guy, carr will see majority of carries in garbage time.

Thomas: Taylor would bounce off of anything I loved him.

Carson: One for me, and one for Ray Tay

Porter: I think Hill should start. Give Carson red zone carries. Let Barry J. do Senior things in the return game. Line up Jeff Carr in the slot. Trade Rennie Childs for a backup LB.

Caleb: I agree with Thomas, start Carson again and let them rotate for the first half again. If anyone (Hill) starts to show more promise, load the carries that way a bit more. I liked the distribution last game with Hill getting the most touches. I think this week could also be make or break for Childs whether he stays in the running the next few games or drops to the back of the pack.

Southwell: Diamond formation rotating fresh legs. Barry J, Hill, and Carr can also rotate in the slot for the “jet sweep” touch pass option

Porter: Is anyone concerned about losing to CMU and/or the Aaron Rodgers II (according to Gundy) it has at QB?

Thomas: Nah not as of now. Their style of play doesn’t match up well, neither does Pitt’s

Carson: It’s clear to me the two best options are Barry J & Justice. They have the juice. We know what Chris Carson can & can’t do at this point. 3rd & 1 who do you hand it to?

Aldrich: Start Hill and rotate Barry J in as needed. Give goal line touches to Castleman

Carson: Vincent Taylor RB3.

Aldrich: Now we’re talking

Porter: Barry J. ran for one yard on four carries, @carsoncunningham

Carson: Check Engine Light package

Carson: How many carries w/ starting o-line?

Porter: They were playing SE Louisiana!

Thomas: Rennie and carson looked much improved, I say Carson/Child’s/Hill rotation and then specialist Barry and his backup is Carr. They should make a specialist role with their own packages and such. Kind of how they used hill but a lot better. They didn’t know how to use hill effectively at all.

Porter: Am I wrong in saying Carr isn’t really a RB, @thomasfleming ?

Thomas: He is but could be better utilized, especially considering how crowded they are at RB. There’s a role for a small, quick guy in modern football. Like a poor man’s Jakeem grant or shane williams-Rhodes

Boone: Against CMU I really don’t think it matters who gets the start. If it goes as planned they’ll have the second team offensive line in before Gundy checks out for his 2:00 tee at Karsten Creek. But Hill should get the start, followed by Carson, Childs and Carr.

Porter: Do you think Gundy cheats in golf?

Aldrich: I probably wouldn’t call him out on it if he’s got the camo oakley’s on

Porter:

Boone: Oh absolutely he does. He’s that guy that tees up in the fairway when I’m looking for my ball in the rough.

Porter: “Just doing everything the right way over here.”

Carson: If you make Gundy putt out…”That’s not matoor.”

Porter: “I’m very ack-u-rut with my wedges”

Boone: “Uh yeah, can I get a mulletan on that one? My hands were sweaty.”

Boone:

Caleb: Does that role for Carr overlap with McCleskey’s role in the jet sweep/screen/”whatever else he does” game?

Thomas: Potentially. Unless you use McCleskey just as a star slot receiver and all of the plays for him are in passing game.

Aldrich: First par 5 of the day *Yurcich reaches for 3-Iron*

Caleb: Scale of 1-10 what is the likelihood that we see any of the following this season: a) Mason running the triple option. b) Barry J. running the Wildcat. c) a wide receiver set of all true freshmen (Obi, Stoner, Alexander, Hill in the slot?) d) a reverse pass to Rudolph for a 40+ yard touchdown

Porter: If we see Mason running the triple option, I’m going to drive up to Stillwater and do a hunger strike outside of Joe’s until Gundy promises to never do that again.

Thomas: They’ve ran the traditional option w him two or three times with an inside zone read and bubble. And that TD they had with Carr against TCU was technically a variation of traditional triple opt, but Rudolph didn’t actually read anyone off of inside zone.

Carson: Reverse pass to Mason plz. Shades of Chelf vs. Baylor. Gundy vs. Wyoming (YouTube it, kids). What song is Mason singing in the 4th Qtr & is it audible over the coed shrieks?

Porter: [points to student section while crooning Should Have Been a Cowboy, multiple sorority girls die]

See you guys next week.