Ohio State coach Urban Meyer has way too much ego to credit a reporter's thought with an assist for his football team, but in a 49-28 win over Maryland on Saturday, the Buckeyes replaced quarterback Cardale Jones with J.T. Barrett in the red zone.
That's exactly what a reporter in Meyer's Monday news conference suggested. Meyer indicated the OSU staff had already considered it, but the timing here is, at the least, a fun coincidence. Meyer's full reply to the suggestion on Monday: "That's a good point. We've thought about it. We've had that conversation. At this time we haven't made any decisions on that right now."
Perhaps now, they have.
With Barrett running the read-option near the goal line, the Buckeyes scored two touchdowns on consecutive possessions to take a 14-7 lead and perhaps help put an end to the slow offensive starts that have marked Jones' play at times this season. He scored another short-yardage touchdown late in the third quarter to help seal the win.
The Buckeyes might not have all the answers, but it looks like they've found one of them.
Here are seven other things we learned in Week 6 of college football:
2. College football needs Nick Chubb. The Georgia sophomore's horrific-looking injury -- the extent of which still isn't known -- was the ugliest thing to happen in Week 6. So ugly, CBS stopped replaying the play. Georgia coach Mark Richt said Chubb would be "OK in the long run," but for now, one of the most talented true sophomores in the college game is out of action.
3. The Laremy Tunsil saga could finally be ending. The Ole Miss star left tackle has sat out the first half of the season due to an NCAA eligibility investigation. Could he be back for next week's Rebels game at Memphis? Sounds like it. A junior, Tunsil is arguably the most talented left tackle in the country, and the investigation is focused on, among other issues, allegations of improper involvement with sports agents. If he's cleared to play, NFL scouts will descend a lot more heavily on Ole Miss games in the second half of the season.
4. NFL draft prospect injures knee. Iowa defensive end Drew Ott reportedly tore his ACL in a win over Illinois. If the senior, who projects to be chosen within the first 150 picks of the 2016 NFL Draft, is out for the season, his rehab goals figure to be NFL Scouting Combine- or pro day-related.
5. Maryland coach Randy Edsall has heard reports of a pending firing. And he doesn't appreciate them.
6. There is still some fight left in Texas. The beleaguered Longhorns improved to 2-4 in glorious fashion Saturday, knocking off rival Oklahoma 24-17 on a neutral field and, in so doing, taking a little heat off second-year coach Charlie Strong.
7. Nick Saban's not the only coach who knows how to brow-beat the media. Clemson's Dabo Swinney lost his temper Saturday after a 43-24 win over Georgia Tech with a reporter who used the not-so-endearing term "Clemsoning," which once had some hashtag traction as a way to describe games that got away from the Tigers. Swinney was positively breathing fire. And for a coach whose team is 5-0, it's easy to understand why.
8. Rashard Higgins can be contained. The Colorado State star receiver caught just three passes for 42 yards in his lowest output of the season in a 41-10 loss to Boise State. That snapped a three-game streak of 100-yard games for the senior.
*Follow Chase Goodbread on Twitter **@ChaseGoodbread*.
