Reader says Buckeyes look familiar

by David Hood - Senior Writer - Thu Dec 26 18:19:07 GMT-04:00 2013

CLEMSON – When defensive tackle D.J. Reader D.J. Reader
So. Defensive Tackle
#48 6-2, 335
Greensboro, NC
View Full Profile sees film of Ohio St., Clemson’s opponent in the Discover Orange Bowl on January 3rd, he sees Boston College.

Before you raise your eyebrows and scoff at the notion, Reader said that what the Buckeyes do offensively reminds him a lot of what he saw against Boston College this season, but that the Buckeyes just have better personnel.

“It’s kind of like Boston College, but it’s not the same personnel as Boston College,” Reader said last week. “They run the ball a lot, a lot of powers, a lot of zones. Carlos Hyde also cuts it back. No back we’ve seen this year, he’ll bend the play - it’s supposed to go outside -all the way back to the other A-gap. They’re just a good team.”

Reader and the other defensive tackles will have the task of trying to keep tabs on Hyde – the Buckeyes’ strong and physical running back – and quarterback Braxton Miller.

“They’re extremely talented. Braxton can run it. He can throw it,” Reader said. “Carlos Hyde is a good back. He finds holes, has great vision down field. He can beat you up top, if you try to hit him up top, he can drive through you. If you hit him in the legs, he can pull away. So, I mean, they’re a great combo. We’ve got to figure out a way to contain those two. They’re a great tandem.”

Reader then went on to say that Hyde reminds him of Boston College running Andre Williams. Williams rushed for over two thousand yards this season, but the Tigers held him to just 70 yards on 24 carries.

“I think they’re similar. Andre is a great back, I watched him this year,” Reader said. “I thought he was really good. Carlos Hyde is also a great back. He didn’t play some games, but he showed up in every game he played in and always performed well, so you can’t take anything away from him. He’s a great back.”

However, stopping great backs has been a strength for Clemson’s defensive line this season.

“We take a lot of pride in that,” he said. “We don’t have a lot of finesse guys on our defensive line…we take a lot of pride in the run game. We feel like that’s one of our biggest strengths. We take a lot of pride in it. We talk about it every day. We accept it as a challenge every time somebody says they’re just going to come out and run the ball on us.”

The Tigers were able to hold South Carolina running back Mike Davis in check in the regular season finale – he had just 22 yards on 15 carries – but quarterback Connor Shaw made the Tigers pay on third down and ran for 94 yards on 22 carries.

Reader said that letting Shaw get loose stung.

“He really just hurt us more on third down,” Reader said. “He did a good job of knowing the down and distance. He really didn’t kill us, kill us, but he did a good job of knowing the down and distance, getting out with his legs, just making plays when they needed to be made. It ate at us a little bit. He had 94 yards, it wasn’t over 100. They had 170 yards rushing total. It ate at us a little, but it didn’t eat at us as bad as it could have. We just didn’t make plays, sometimes, when they needed to be made. That’s what really ate at us more, more so than him running the ball. It ate at us that we didn’t step up in those third-down situations.”