Meyer: ‘He’s A Quick-Twitch Guy’

Urban Meyer met briefly with reporters following Wednesday’s practice. His debut as Ohio State’s head coach is now just hours away and you can hear the anxious anticipation in Meyer’s voice.

Williams will likely play this week.

“We had a good day today,” Meyer said. “I still don’t think we’re game-ready, but we’re close. I’m real excited. It was a good day and you could tell from everybody’s demeanor.”

The No. 18 Buckeyes will face off against visiting Miami University on Saturday (noon, Big Ten Network) and several freshmen are expected to see action. Three scholarship players got their black stripes removed on Wednesday, signifying they are officially OSU football players. They were center Jacoby Boren, cornerback Najee Murray and linebacker David “Boom” Perkins.

Meyer said that if a player hasn’t had his black stripe removed, he will likely redshirt.

“Yeah, it’s hard to play if you don’t have your stripe off,” the coach said. “We had a couple pop off today. Jacoby Boren, David Perkins, (walk-on offensive lineman Logan Beougher) and Najee Murray. So, we’re getting close. You would look really weird trying to play with a big, black stripe on your helmet instead of Buckeye leaves.”

Nate Dogg Ready To Bark?

Fifth-year senior defensive end Nathan Williams has been medically cleared and could be a factor off the edge this season for the Buckeyes. In fact, Williams is likely to play against the RedHawks.

“Yeah, he had a good day (on Monday) when he did some live work and he practiced with our defense today,” Meyer said. “So, that’s up to our defensive coaches and we’re going to meet on that tomorrow morning. I’d like to get him on the field.”’

When asked if he would err on the side of caution with Williams, Meyer said: “Well, if he can’t go, he can’t go. But they told us he can go. So, we won’t wear him out, but we hope we get him on the field.”

What does Meyer like about Williams? A better question might be what doesn’t he like.

“He has great hands and he’s a quick-twitch guy,” Meyer said. “People told me he was one of our best players the couple last years on defense. He looked really good (Tuesday). He’s a good player, obviously.”

The other veteran currently injured is senior tailback Jordan Hall. Meyer hopes to have him back by the Cal game on Sept. 15. However, it might be until the game at Michigan State on Sept. 29 before Hall is ready for action.

“Yeah, he’s jogging,” Meyer said. “He’s a couple weeks away.”

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Bill Kurelic Chat Archive from Tuesday

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Video interview with C Corey Linsleyy

Coaching Notebook: Warinner, Withers

Meyer Looks Forward To OSU Debut (with 34 mins of video)

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