Braxton Miller has expressed excitement about his offseason recovery from shoulder surgery, but it appears the Ohio State quarterback's speedy return will include some pit stops.
The Heisman Trophy candidate hasn't thrown much at all since fall camp opened.
"We haven't done much with him yet," Buckeyes offensive line coach Ed Warinner said, per the Northeast Ohio Media Group. "We're kind of bringing him along slowly. I think we have a really good plan to get him where he needs to be Aug. 30 (vs. Navy). We definitely don't need to rush it."
Warinner likened Miller's progress to a professional baseball pitcher in spring training, pitching an increasing number of innings in each outing until strong enough to win a game by the time the season starts. The Buckeyes start the season at Navy, and it's highly unlikely the Midshipmen would derail Ohio State's season. A Week 2 home game against Virginia Tech could present much more of a challenge. But Warinner described a determination in Miller that suggests he'll be more than ready to play in time to start the season.
"I love Braxton's work ethic, his attitude, his mentality," Warinner added. "His mindset is awesome."
More interesting than when Miller returns will be how the Buckeyes use him when he does make it back. Limiting his throwing repetitions in camp might be a wise precaution, but it's the physical contact inherent for a quarterback who rushes as much as Miller -- he's already run for more than 3,000 yards in his career -- that has to be the greater concern for OSU.
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