Buckeye Recap: Indiana
By Chris Lauderback
GROUNDED
With the Buckeye rushing attack struggling to get much going over at least the last three weeks, the belief was that Meyer would come out looking to establish the run and while the effort was indeed made, the results were once again decidedly meh.
The ground game fell short of 200 yards for the fourth-straight week with 154 and the yards per carry mark of 3.2 tied last week's season low.
J.K. Dobbins again found tough sledding with 82 yards on 26 carries (3.4 ypc) including a long of nine yards while Mike Weber was again noticeably better posting 70 yards on 13 attempts, or 5.4 per pop with a long of 21 yards.
| OPPONENT | RUSH ATT | RUSH YARDS | YARDS PER CARRY | TOUCHDOWNS |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| OREGON STATE | 53 | 375 | 7.1 | 5 |
| RUTGERS | 40 | 225 | 5.6 | 2 |
| TCU | 42 | 182 | 4.3 | 1 |
| TULANE | 38 | 151 | 4.0 | 2 |
| PENN STATE | 37 | 119 | 3.2 | 1 |
| INDIANA | 48 | 154 | 3.2 | 1 |
The reality is the guys in the middle of Ohio State's offensive line – left guard Malcolm Pridgeon, center Michael Jordan and right guard Demetrius Knox – aren't getting much of a surge which isn't helped by blitz-happy defenses often bringing a safety near the box to crowd the line.
Getting to the second-level clean with any consistency has been almost impossible for Dobbins and Weber. Yesterday, the duo combined for 39 carries with 12 of those (31%) resulting in two yards or less.
Watching Haskins sling it all over the field is fun but if the Buckeyes can't mount an improved ground attack, I don't see how they can be a legit national title contender.
J.K.Dobbins once again found tough sledding averaging just 3.2 yards per carry on 26 attempts.
BUSTED COVERAGE
A trend continued as the Buckeye defense yielded eight pass plays of at least 15 yards including four of 30+ yards.
The first half was made particularly painful by Indiana quarterback Peyton Ramsey who carved up the Buckeyes completing 17-of-29 passes for 239 yards and two touchdowns.
Ohio State's top cornerback, Damon Arnette, fell asleep allowing Peyton Hendershot to slip past him for a 32-yard touchdown before Nick Westbrook beat Jeffrey Okudah for a 19-yard score in the second quarter.
Even the anchor of the Buckeye secondary, Jordan Fuller, took a turn giving up a 30-yard reception, as did Kendall Sheffield as part of his up-and-down day.
Linebacker Malik Harrison nearly gave up a 70-yard touchdown as he allowed Reese Taylor to get five yards past him but Ramsey overshot his wide open target on Indiana's third possession of the day.
All of these shenanigans occurred in the first half as the defensive line failed to generate much pressure tallying only one hurry and zero tackles, sacks and TFLs.
The second half was a much different story. The defensive line turned it on posting three TFL, a sack and a hurry which helped the back seven hold Ramsey to 9-of-20 passing for 83 yards over the final two quarters.
Sheffield gave up a 38-yarder and it looked like Isaiah Pryor got lost when he was supposed to give Sheffield inside help on a short slant for six but other than that, the back seven was much improved down the stretch. Linebacker Pete Werner was particularly solid in coverage with three PBUs while Sheffield and Arnette each had a pair.
The secondary remains a huge concern after Ramsey threw for 322 yards and three touchdowns though it took him 49 attempts to register those numbers.
SETTING THE PACE
Parris Campbell is on fire.
After setting a career-high with 147 receiving yards against Tulane, Campbell set a personal best with nine receptions against Indiana for 142 yards and two scores including a 71-yarder giving Ohio State a 35-20 lead early in the third quarter.
With two 100-yard receiving games in the last three weeks, Campbell now has four in his Buckeye career.
Through six games in 2018, Campbell leads the team in receptions (35), yards (501) and receiving touchdowns (7) which compares quite favorably to his entire 2017 season when he tallied 40 grabs for 584 yards and three touchdowns in 13 games.
Over his last three games alone, Parris has 24 catches for 349 yards and four touchdowns.
Averaging 83.5 receiving yards per game, Campbell is on pace to finish the 12-game regular season with 1,002 yards which would put him in rarefied air. Just four Buckeyes have posted 1,000+ yard receiving seasons in Columbus and while its far from a lock that Campbell will accomplish the feat, its been fun to watch him blow up this year especially knowing he's such a quality dude.
Parris Campbell has 24 catches for 349 yards and four touchdowns over his last three games.
3RD-AND-STRONG
For all the shortcomings within the Ohio State defense, it has done a hell of a job stopping opponents on third down the last few weeks.
Penn State converted just 3-of-17 opportunities (18%), facing an average of 9.6 yards to go and Trace McSorley connected on just 3-of-9 tosses on third down.
This week, the Buckeyes were almost as good stopping the Hoosiers on 3-of-14 third down tries (21%) with average of 8.8 yards to go.
The Buckeyes did keep two Hoosier drives alive with penalties and gave up a touchdown on 3rd-and-Goal via a short slant pass but mostly had solid moments on the key down highlighted by Pete Werner's efforts.
The linebacker made plays on three different third downs while Damon Arnette and Malik Harrison posted PBUs and Dre'Mont Jones notched a sack and forced fumble forcing Indiana into fourth down situations.
Over the last two weeks the Buckeye defense is 25-of-31 in stopping opponents on third down and now sit 17th-nationally holding opposing offenses to a 30.3% conversion rate.
SAFETY NET
As Ohio State continues its struggles in finding a dependable safety opposite Jordan Fuller, all Fuller is doing is leading the team in tackles through six games while seeing time at both the boundary and field spots.
This shouldn't be much of a surprise considering Fuller finished No. 2 on the squad in tackles a season ago with 70, just two stops behind Jerome Baker, despite missing a full game and parts of others down the stretch.
This year, at the midway point of the regular season, Fuller leads the team with 27 tackles (and is tied for the team-lead with 18 solo stops) while Harrison, who left the game on a cart, sits just two behind with 25.
I'm not sure Fuller has been quite as good in pass coverage this year compared to last but I applaud his ability to, at times, be a one-man band anchoring the back line for an Ohio State defense that had endured its share of struggles and he remains a sure-tackler in space which is something we've seen very little of from the other names trotted out alongside him.
Which reminds me, while we're all crushing Bill Davis over the linebackers – which have far outperformed one safety spot and been at least on par with the play from the corners – at one point do we start questioning what Alex Grinch and Taver Johnson are getting out of their position groups?
by Tony Gerdeman
1. The defense was lost at times.
Greg Schiano had to call three timeouts in the first quarter because he didn’t like what he was seeing from his defense and himself. That’s never great. And that was just before the snap. After the snap, the Buckeye corners had a rough go of it. Kendall Sheffield got turned around once for a touchdown. The four plays of 30+ yards in the first half were also an indicator of a defense having difficulty finding the the football. The second half — as has been the case throughout the season — was a different story.
2. Jahsen Wint isn’t ready.
Jahsen Wint is an outstanding special teams player, and outstanding special teams play is usually what it takes to get on the field for scrimmage downs. Unfortunately, Wint’s play this season at safety has not be up to Ohio State’s standard at the position. He is just a redshirt sophomore, so there is no shame in that. Heck, there’s no shame in any of it, but a better option may have been Jordan Fuller and Shaun Wade, which is what Alex Grinch and Greg Schiano went to late in the first half. Interestingly, Fuller was moved back to strong safety when Wade came in. Wade’s experience at corner and nickel makes him a better fit at free safety in this defense. Fuller told me after the game he’s willing to go back to his old position if he is asked. Isaiah Pryor returned from his first-half suspension and played well in the second half, delaying the need for Wade to move into a starter’s role. There is still going to be a competition in practice, however.
3. This team isn’t winning a national title.
The defense won’t allow it and neither will the running game. You need both and Ohio State doesn’t have either for more than two quarters per game this year. Granted, this isn’t the finished Ohio State football product, but the same issues from game one are still evident and not getting better. And the road is only going to get more difficult.
4. This must be the first year ever defenses have set out to stop the Ohio State run.
Ohio State can’t run the ball because defenses are setting out to stop the Buckeye running game, which begs the question of why didn’t defenses ever think of this before? The answer, of course, is that defenses have always set out to stop the Ohio State run, and generally failed. And now with Ohio State’s most prolific passing attack in school history, for some reason the Buckeyes can’t run the ball.
5. Terry McLaurin is going to be missed.
After taking out two defenders with a block two weeks ago and three defenders last week, Terry McLaurin was asked if there were any plays where he took out four defenders this week. He said no, but then added with a smile that he had two knockdowns on defensive ends. Imagine recruiting wide receivers and telling them that we’re going to need you to plant some defensive ends along the way. How many do you think return Ohio State’s calls?
6. The Buckeye linebackers were targeted, and will continue to be.
Because of Ohio State’s man-to-man defense, Indiana did a great job of isolating slot receivers and running backs on the OSU linebackers. Several times throughout the game, Pete Werner’s man was split out near the sideline, and then they would run in-routes or slants against him. That’s a tough ask for any linebacker. Every level of the pass defense struggled on Saturday, and as Urban Meyer said after the game, it began with a lack of pass rush. We will find out on Monday where Jonathon Cooper and Malik Harrison are with their injuries. The Buckeyes cannot afford to lose either player for long.
7. J.K. Dobbins should continue to be used in the passing game.
J.K. Dobbins is only averaging 4.7 yards per carry, but he is still a dynamic playmaker for the Buckeyes. Since he isn’t making those plays between the tackles, Ryan Day needs to continue calling his number in the passing game. Dobbins has had two catches in each of the last three games, and could have had an even bigger day on Saturday with a bit more accuracy from Dwayne Haskins.
8. A big back wouldn’t be so bad.
The short-yardage concerns continue after the Buckeyes failed to pick up a fourth-and-one. I know Dwayne Haskins has said he is willing to run whenever asked, and that may very well be true, but if it’s not in the best interest of success, then there’s no point. Enter the big back. Under Urban Meyer, the Buckeyes have always had a guy who could pound the ball. It began with Carlos Hyde, then to Ezekiel Elliott, and finally ending with J.T. Barrett. All three players were at least 6-feet tall and over 220 pounds. The Buckeyes just lost a big back commit on Sunday. Or maybe instead of a “big back” they need a “small quarterback.”
9. This won’t be Dwayne Haskins’ last 400-yard passing game this year.
A few weeks back — and maybe even before the season — Tom Orr and I discussed on Accost the Field whether or not Dwayne Haskins would have a 400-yard passing game this season. Tom doubled down and said Haskins was more likely to have two than none. Now he’s saying he’s been proven correct, but I have to disagree. At least until the next one. As long as the Ohio State defense allows 300 yards of total offense in the first half, the Buckeyes will keep throwing the ball. Tom and I aren’t the only ones who believe Haskins isn’t done with 400-yard games this year. Johnnie Dixon told me he expects another this year as well, but declined to name which team it would happen against.
10. The Buckeyes have five games to figure out how to run the ball.
I know Dwayne Haskins beat Michigan by throwing the ball last year, but there was very little scouting done on him back then. That is not the case any longer. Don Brown and the Michigan defense will know every single tendency and attack each of them in various ways. So far this season, the best way to make Haskins human is through pressure. That is no different than any other quarterback, but when given time, Haskins is very different from most every other quarterback. There are areas to attack the Michigan defense through the air, but it will require Ohio State’s best pass blocking. If the Buckeye offense is one dimensional, however, there probably won’t be enough pass blocking to keep Haskins upright enough times to get the win. In other words, the Buckeyes need to get the running game going, or they can kiss The Game goodbye.
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