So many things about this Ohio State team are marked by greatness, but the loss to Indiana showed a lack of completeness they must achieve to be champions again.
Columbus, OH – For Ohio State to repeat as college football national champions, two things of quintessential quality must tandemly happen.
Last year they were the keys to vindication for Ryan Day’s program.
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First: Really good to great offensive line play. Second: Great quarterback play.
Veteran columnist Jeff Gilbert writes Ohio State football and basketball and OHSAA sports for Press Pros Magazine.com.
Duh, you say.
Duh, I say.
Because, too many focus too much on two things with this team and assume too much. The enamoration with a dominant defense and the dynamic duo of receivers Jeremiah Smith and Carnell Tate. As great and unmatched as those two aspects of Day’s team are, they create overconfidence and an expectation that margins for error are wide. Plus, maybe the comfort you derive from Day becoming the play caller again.
This time of year, margins shrink. Sometimes they disappear. The Buckeyes must be the most complete team to complete the task.
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If Ohio State’s loss to Indiana in the Big Ten title game taught us anything, it’s that the Buckeyes – hailed all season as the nation’s most complete team – are not complete, at least not yet.
We learned that defense alone doesn’t always win championships. Thirteen Hoosier points should have been defensive effort enough. Yes, something like 13-10 can happen again.
“They’re an elite-level defense. It will be a challenge for us to go out and play competitively. It’s going to be a good opportunity for us to show what we’re about.” – Carson Hinzman
The high hopes of how the IU loss – just like the 2024 Michigan loss – will galvanize this team to roll through the competition, is just that. Hope.
Hope is not a strategy.
The Buckeyes – to hold the trophy they want to hold – can’t just hope to be four points better next time. Because it might take more than that. The playoffs require it.
Let’s begin with the usual suspect of the offensive line. From tackle to tackle, this unit must mesh like the one that went from suspect to a strength in the Buckeyes’ historic four-game title chase.
They have to be better.
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Against 12 opponents, the front five, with help from tight ends and running backs, kept Julian Sayin upright, unhurried and uncanny with his accuracy. As a result, he earned a trip to New York as a Heisman Trophy finalist.
But Indiana’s upfield rush was the fastest, most aggressive and most effective the Buckeyes saw. Sayin was sacked five times and hurried twice.
“Obviously, our pass protection wasn’t up to par to what our expectation is,” center Carson Hinzman said Monday. “Looking at some of the things, going back to fundamentals, we know it’s going to be important.”
Ya think.
Under the direction of Pro Football Hall of Famer Jason Taylor, Miami’s pass rush from all angles and run-stopping made Texas A&M look like a Group of 5 offense. Ends Rueben Bain Jr. and Akheem Mesidor led the assault. They plan to do to Sayin what they did to the Aggies’ Marcel Reed. And OSU tackles Phillip Daniels and Austin Siereveld must be steel doors, not turnstiles.
“They’re an elite-level defense,” Hinzman said. “It will be a challenge for us to go out and play competitively. It’s going to be a good opportunity for us to show what we’re about.”
Last year’s run game hit for big plays with TreVeyon Henderson and mastered short-yardage and red-zone situations with Quinshon Judkins. But this year, short-yardage wins, red-zone dominance and big-play frequency are down.
Last year’s line dealt with season-ending injuries to center Seth McLaughlin and left tackle Josh Simmons. Somehow the next-man-up philosophy, which included Hinzman at center, became reality. Will Howard had all the time to throw he wanted, and he made defenses pay with the best quarterbacking of his life.
The run game hit for big plays with TreVeyon Henderson and mastered short-yardage and red-zone situations with Quinshon Judkins. But this year, short-yardage wins, red-zone dominance and big-play frequency are down.
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Bo Jackson’s future as a running back might be bright, but he’s only been the main man in two big games. So, he and the others need more push from the line. Whether it’s gap or zone schemes or counter plays or RPOs, the front five needs to reveal a nasty streak and carry giant chips on their shoulders like Buckeye lines of yore.
Performance at right guard has gotten much of the blame this season. Tegra Tshabola’s struggle to find consistency overshadowed an overall lackluster performance down the line. But he’s out because of surgery following the Indiana loss. The position will be manned by sophomore Gabe Van Sickle and junior Josh Padilla from Wayne High School.
Discussion about them has been positive in their backup roles. One will start and must show he is worthy of that calling. All six, Hinzman says, must play with the edge that line coach Tyler Bowen and strength coach Mickey Marotti have worked hard to develop. An edge that was soft against Indiana.
Bo Jackson’s future as a running back is bright, but he’s only been the main man in two big games. So, he and the others need more push from the line.
“When the edge isn’t portrayed or isn’t shown in the game, I think it definitely fires the guys up a little bit,” Hinzman said. “I truly believe the guys we have, if we’re playing at our best level, can play with anyone in the country. So absolutely, it does fire us up, and it’s been the message throughout the room – get back to who we were.”
And awfully close to who this unit was last year. One that can make a hole on first-and-10, second-and-long, third-and-short and fourth-and-one, one that gives Sayin time.
Which brings us to Sayin. Yes, he’s had a fine season. More than fine for a redshirt freshman. But is he ready to lead a team like Howard did last year?
“You definitely saw the leadership aspect from him in the playoffs, and then the preparation aspect and knowing where he’s going with the football every play,” Sayin said.
Now it’s Sayin’s turn to apply what he’s learned. Be the forceful leader. Get on the O line’s case if they need it. And lead by not giving up on a play, by making the most out of every play, by leading the team into the breach.
When the protection breaks – because it will – put the team on your back and run for a first down, get out of the pocket in time to create a positive play, be a rallying cry.
Remember when C.J. Stroud couldn’t run until he did? Sayin, we’re told, is athletic enough to do it. Now is the time to help the line against the swarm of rushers that will come, to be an aggressive leader, to play the best football of his life.
“Definitely you have to be aware because they can cause problems for you as a quarterback,” Sayin said. “As a quarterback, you have to be quick in your decision-making. Can’t be holding on to the ball forever and putting the offensive line in stress.”
If the line performs at a championship level, and if Sayin is poised, leads with fire and runs with desire, this will be a complete team.
A juggernaut.
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