One of the key reasons for Irons' impressive production was Ohio's defensive strategy. Virtually the entire Bobcat starting secondary is out due to injury, so they have several players in positions they've never played before. They tried to limp through the Fordham game but got scorched for 400+ yards passing, including several long TD throws. They shifted their strategy in the Kent game to give receivers a 5- to 10-yard cushion and prevent anyone from getting behind them. If you look at the replay of the Zips game, you'll see there was zero bumping/tight coverage at the line -- all to keep the ball in front of the secondary rather than get beat long. The only way this strategy works is if your offense can score at a faster rate than your D gives up points. It almost worked against Kent and did work against Akron. If Ohio can get some starters back, tbey could be really good. Otherwise, they look like a 6-6 team to me.
