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After canceling scheduled media availability in the aftermath of the injury news to Braxton Miller, Urban Meyer and selected Ohio State football players made themselves available to questions to discuss the team in a post Braxton Miller world.
Meyer starts by saying today was a great day at practice.
Meyer said today might've been the best practice Ohio State's had since he came to Columbus
— Patrick Maks (@maksimuspatrick) August 20, 2014
That's probably a good thing, given the potential for yesterday's tragic news to completely suck all of the energy out of the team. Braxton seems to be taking the news decently as well.
Meyer: "Braxton's demeanor is better than I thought." Doesn't know when surgery will be.
— Bill Rabinowitz (@brdispatch) August 20, 2014
When Miller went down, Meyer initially thought someone hit him. Said he went "berzerk." ""It was devastating. It was a bad day."
— Ben Axelrod (@BenAxelrod) August 20, 2014
Well, that's probably to be expected.
Meyer on last 48 hours: "One thing our team has been pretty good about is getting ready for the moment."
— Bill Rabinowitz (@brdispatch) August 20, 2014
In other "glass is half-full" news, Meyer talked about how Barrett is better prepared for this sort of situation.
Meyer said JT Barrett has roughly 300 competitive snaps. Calls him a "meticulous guy."
— Patrick Maks (@maksimuspatrick) August 20, 2014
300 competitive snaps, huh? That's probably what Guiton got when he had to play, right?
Meyer says Barrett has had 50x more competitive snaps this camp than Guiton had 2 years ago
— Marcus Hartman (@marcushartman) August 20, 2014
The actual number thrown about was six snaps for Kenny G, so Urban wasn't exaggerating.
This wasn't the last time that Guiton was mentioned while talking about Barrett.
Meyer said some of the best quarterbacks are great distributors. Mentioned Peyton Manning and Kenny Guiton before saying J.T. could be that.
— The Lantern TV (@LanternTV) August 20, 2014
Meyer also got pretty explicit in the comparison.
Meyer on Barrett: "This kid’s kind of Guitonish… that's a term here now."
— Marcus Hartman (@marcushartman) August 20, 2014
That whole Kenny Guiton thing worked out pretty well last time, didn't it?
As for the return of Braxton to Ohio State...
No timetable yet on recovery time for Braxton Miller
— Marc Givler (@MarcGivlerBG) August 20, 2014
Urban Meyer asked about Braxton Miller's desire to return in 2015. "I hope." Compared the injury to Drew Brees and Sam Bradford's.
— Ben Axelrod (@BenAxelrod) August 20, 2014
A lot can change between now and the end of the season, so I wouldn't tattoo BRAXTON 2015 anywhere important.
Also, is Urban married to only playing J.T Barrett? Apparently not!
Would Urban play both J.T. Barrett and Cardale Jones? "Sure."
— Austin Ward (@AWardESPN) August 20, 2014
Did Meyer think Ohio State would be in this position this year?
Meyer believed Miller would be ready to go in the summer after the surgery in February. Was throwing the ball really well in July
— Patrick Murphy (@_Pat_Murphy_) August 20, 2014
Even so, it's nice to remember that this isn't the first time a Meyer-coached team was stuck in this predicament. And that worked out pretty well.
Meyer said they had their QB at Utah break his wrist in first game and a skinny guy came jogging in. "Can't remember his name... Alex Smith"
— Patrick Murphy (@_Pat_Murphy_) August 20, 2014
And here, Meyer confirms the specific injury, in case you missed it before:
Meyer confirms its a torn labrum for Braxton Miller. Wasn't mentioned in Ohio State's official release. #buckeyes
— Ryan Ginn (@RyanGinnBSB) August 20, 2014
In non Braxton Miller news, an update with an o-line battle:
Meyer said Billy Price and Joel Hale -- both converted defensive linemen -- are battling hard at left guard.
— Bill Rabinowitz (@brdispatch) August 20, 2014
And at cornerback:
Meyer on CBs: Still a battle between Gareon Conley, Eli Apple and Armani Reeves.
— Bill Rabinowitz (@brdispatch) August 20, 2014