Urban Meyer and Ohio State officially finished up spring practice as Cardale Jones guided the Gray team to a 17-14 victory over the Scarlet team in the Buckeyes' annual spring game Saturday.

But as Ohio State continues to gear up for a title defense in 2015, Meyer feels that his team has a long way to go.

"As a team, we did not improve," Meyer said of spring camp Saturday, according to Austin Ward of ESPN.com.

Who improved and who failed to take a step forward this spring?

Winner: Cardale Jones

Cardale Jones didn't have a jaw-dropping performance in the spring game, completing just 19 of 42 passes for 304 yards, with two touchdowns and two interceptions. But his disappointing stat line was in part caused by some uninspired play-calling as the Buckeyes went deep way more than they would during a real game. 

That won't take away from what Jones was able to do this spring. Before camp started, Urban Meyer described Jones as "raw" and "almost a rookie," according to Zac Jackson of Fox Sports Ohio. But the redshirt junior improved during the course of spring camp, which wasn't on full display during the spring game.

"That wasn't a Cardale day," Meyer said, according to Ryan Donnelly of BuckeyeGrove.com. "He's got to be much sharper than that. He had a great spring though."

Loser: Braxton Miller

Braxton Miller didn't do anything to hurt his chances of starting in 2015, but he was the most limited of Ohio State's three quarterbacks this spring.

With Cardale Jones getting the lion's share of the first-team reps and J.T. Barrett able to participate in non-contact drills, the two younger guys were able to find a rhythm that Miller couldn't establish as he rehabs from his shoulder surgery.

The coaching staff is being very careful with its redshirt senior, who spent a majority of spring camp throwing passes of 15 and 20 yards. 

Of course, the summer will be a crucial time for Miller, who needs to be as close to 100 percent as possible when fall camp rolls around. If his shoulder can't hold up for a full load of practice reps, he won't have a chance to land the starting spot.

Winners: Noah Brown and Curtis Samuel

With as much talent as Ohio State returns in 2015, Urban Meyer still has some tough playmakers to replace in Devin Smith and Evan Spencer.

With a wide receiver corps in need of playmakers, the Buckeyes turned to Curtis Samuel—who was Ezekiel Elliott's backup at running back last year—and Noah Brown (who played sparingly a season ago) as potential candidates.

And through spring practice, they delivered in a big way.

Samuel was identified as one of the team's top playmakers, and Meyer routinely said that he had to get him on the field for 40 to 50 plays a game this fall. Brown, who rotated in and out of each wide receiver position this spring, emerged as a threat as well.

Neither produced a huge stat line during the spring game, but it will be surprising to say the same thing once the season rolls around. 

Loser: Dontre Wilson

Much like the injured quarterbacks, running back Dontre Wilson spent the entirety of spring practice on the sideline, watching as younger, promising candidates surged to take over his role as a starter. 

Both Curtis Samuel and Noah Brown spent time at H-Back this spring, and of course, the Buckeyes return Jalin Marshall at the position as well. As Urban Meyer and the Buckeyes work to identify their top playmakers, Wilson wasn't able to go through drills this spring.

As a junior who's logged plenty of minutes, though, the coaching staff is very aware of Wilson's potential. But through the first two years of his collegiate career, that potential hasn't been fully realized on the field. After recording 460 yards from scrimmage to complement three total touchdowns as a freshman, Wilson only managed 400 total yards in 2014 before breaking his foot against Michigan State in Week 11. 

It will be imperative for Wilson to get back to 100 percent before the start of fall camp. If he doesn't, he may end up buried on Ohio State's depth chart.

Winner: The Defense

Ohio State's defense was consistently shredded during Urban Meyer's first two years in Columbus, and after struggling in back-to-back games to close the 2013 season, the Buckeyes brought in Chris Ash to be the co-defensive coordinator alongside Luke Fickell. 

That proved to be a winning move as Ohio State made drastic improvements defensively during its 2014 national title run. After a rough start to the season, which included a 34-21 loss to Virginia Tech in the home opener, the Buckeyes thrived with a simplified system under Ash.

According to Tim May of The Columbus Dispatch, defensive backs coach Kerry Coombs believes that consistent simplicity was the key:

If you watched the team play the last four, five or six games defensively, the defensive speed was incredible. And the reason wasn't because we got faster defensive players, or that they got faster during the course of the season.

It's because the scheme was simple, they understood what they were doing, and they were able to play really fast. ... We found and used the strength of our players (individually), and that was the strength of our defense.

With another year in the system, Ohio State looks primed to take an even bigger step toward dominance. That was on display in the spring game as neither offense found a groove against Ash and Fickell's units. 

David Regimbal is the Ohio State football Lead Writer for Bleacher Report. Follow him on Twitter, @davidreg412.