| PASSING | CP/ATT | YDS | TD | INT |
| 13/20 | 166 | 0 | 1 | ||
| 0/3 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| RUSHING | ATT | YDS | TD | LG |
| 11 | 58 | 0 | 15 | ||
| 3 | 25 | 0 | 21 | ||
| 10 | 15 | 0 | 4 | ||
| 1 | 12 | 0 | 12 | ||
| 9 | -3 | 0 | 13 |
| RECEIVING | REC | YDS | TD | LG |
| 4 | 93 | 0 | 46 | ||
| 3 | 46 | 0 | 21 | ||
| 1 | 13 | 0 | 13 | ||
| 1 | 6 | 0 | 6 | ||
| 3 | 5 | 0 | 4 | ||
| 1 | 3 | 0 | 3 | ||
| 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| PASSING | CP/ATT | YDS | TD | INT |
| 20/25 | 224 | 2 | 0 | ||
| 2/2 | 14 | 0 | 0 |
| RUSHING | ATT | YDS | TD | LG |
| 17 | 141 | 2 | 60 | ||
| 11 | 60 | 0 | 13 | ||
| 9 | 42 | 2 | 12 | ||
| 2 | 16 | 0 | 12 | ||
| 5 | 11 | 0 | 5 | ||
| 1 | 2 | 0 | 2 |
| RECEIVING | REC | YDS | TD | LG |
| 5 | 69 | 0 | 20 | ||
| 2 | 60 | 0 | 39 | ||
| 8 | 57 | 1 | 26 | ||
| 3 | 24 | 0 | 10 | ||
| 1 | 9 | 1 | 9 | ||
| 1 | 9 | 0 | 9 | ||
| 1 | 5 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 1 | 5 | 0 | 5 | ||
| 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
5 Things from Cincy
www.elevenwarriors.com
By Chris Lauderback
J.K. GOTTA SAY TODAY WAS A GOOD DAY
A week after averaging just 4.3 yards per carry against Florida Atlantic and having Ryan Day challenge both his vision and ability to generate yards after contact, J.K. Dobbins responded with 141 yards on 17 first half carries, good for 8.3 yards per carry against the Bearcats.
Dobbins added a pair of touchdowns on the ground as well, one coming via a 60-yard jaunt around left end making it 21-0 midway through the second quarter. That score came on the heels of a 4-yard plunge giving him touchdowns on back-to-back carries.
He also added a pair of 8-yard runs, a 12-yard burst and a 24-yard tote, oftentimes finding lanes created by left tackle Thayer Munford.
Last weekend, too many of his carries were meant to go up the gut behind left guard Jonah Jackson and center Josh Myers who simply aren't the road-graders Munford is. Today, Dobbins feasted behind Ohio State's best lineman.
Overall, hell of a bounceback performance from Dobbins. On first watch, I didn't see him miss a hole all day and he definitely ran like a pissed off player.
LOOKS LIKE THE BULLETS MIGHT INDEED BE BACK
Last year's defensive collapse has been well-chronicled as has the talk all summer that basically the same group of players, with a host of new assistant coaches, would turn the ship around.
While I expected improvement, I absolutely admit I didn't expect what we saw yesterday which was a complete demolition of Cincinnati's offense.
When the game was sort of a game – aka the first half – the Bullets flat out suffocated the Bearcats holding them to 18 rushing yards on 1.3 per carry and 0-fer-7 on third down conversion tries.
Five of Cincinnati's six drives failed to gain at least 20 yards with two 3-and-outs and two 4-and-outs.
While all three levels of Ohio State's defense played outstanding football, the defensive line was absolutely spectacular. Young had three stops including 1.5 sacks on the day, Tyreke Smith added a sack and Davon Hamilton did all kinds of dirty work in the middle. I still say Smith can be the most impactful complement to Young on the opposite edge even when Jonathon Cooper returns to health.
At the second level, Malik Harrison (5 tkls, 2.5 TFL) and Baron Browning (5 tkls) again looked like the two clear-cut best linebackers on the team and in the secondary, I'll get to Shaun Wade in just a bit.
If the defense can approach today's level of dominance as the competition stiffens, Ohio State will be a national title contender.
FIELDS IS RIDICULOUS
I tried to stay level-headed after quarterback Justin Fields lit up Florida Atlantic for 295 total yards and five touchdowns in a very controlled debut but after what he just did to Cincinnati, it's hard not to froth at the mouth a little.
Fields shredded the Bearcats defense going 20-of-25 through the air for 224 yards and a pair of scored and added another 42 yards and two touchdowns on the ground in a stellar performance.
He legitimately only threw one bad pass the entire day which came on his 19th attempt of the afternoon.
Other than that, dude looked like a seasoned vet with a host of highlight plays. I can't list them all or Five Things would approach 3,000 words. That said, a few of his most notable efforts included:
- A gorgeous play to open the scoring as he dropped back from the UC 7-yard line, went through two progressions – first to the right and then across the field to the left – before tucking and running straight ahead for a touchdown. His decision making on that play can't be understated.
- An excellent read on a 3rd-and-1, carrying the ball for eight yards to move the chains followed by a first down throw to Austin Mack on a swing pass that was perfectly placed just as Fields took a pop.
- On Ohio State's last full possession of the first half, Fields bought time in the pocket before hitting Chris Olave with a perfect throw for 39 yards to the Bearcat 11. Three plays later, he navigated the pocket and stood tall in the face of a blitz before hitting Garrett Wilson with a top-shelf throw in the back of the end zone for a 28-0 lead. Hell of catch by Wilson taboot.
- During Ohio State's first possession he rolled right, dropped his arm angle and hit K.J. Hill on what was just a 6-yard completion but was just another glimpse of his accuracy, maturity and ability to keep his eyes downfield while on the run.
He also had a few intelligent throwaways and slides on the run. This guy is already damn good and is going to be really special.
WADE TO GO
A lot of folks don't realize Shaun Wade led Ohio State in interceptions last season (and tied for second in PBUs) despite playing just the fifth-most snaps within the secondary.
The redshirt sophomore was all over the field yesterday with a sack, two PBUs and a forced fumble.
On 1st-and-10 of Cincinnati's fourth possession of the afternoon, Wade dashed around the right edge on a corner blitz and sacked Desmond Ridder, forcing a fumble in the process on what became a 7-yard loss. The Bearcats would have to punt two plays later.
On Ohio State's next defensive series, Wade deflected a 3rd-and-4 pass intended for Michael Warren with the ball nearly intercepted by Chase Young. Instead of a turnover it was still a 3-and-out leading to another touchdown by Fields and company.
Moving to the second half, Wade was back at it on Cincinnati's third series as he deflected another throw, this time with the carom falling into the waiting arms of Tuf Borland for an interception deep in OSU territory to preserve the shutout.
A truly outstanding effort from Wade all day long.
SPECIAL TEAMS RISE UP
It takes all three phases and Ohio State's special teams joined the party today led by punter Drue Chrisman and the field goal block team.
Chrisman made his presence known early. Ohio State's offense was rolling on the opening possession of the game until a Jonah Jackson holding got the Buckeyes off schedule. From the Bearcat 39, Chrisman bounced a rainbow at about the five and Olave calmly downed it at the one yard line.
With Ohio State leading 7-0 early in the second quarter, the Bearcats marched all the way to the OSU 14 before the drive stalled forcing a 32-yard field goal try. Chase Young tore through the line and blocked Sam Crosa's effort and the Buckeye offense would score six plays later to take a 14-0 lead.
On Ohio State's first offensive series of the second half, the Buckeyes stalled at their own 46 and Chrisman booted a rainmaker to the Cincinnati eight yard line that Ryan Montgomery could only fair catch.
10 Things from OSU Cincy
by Tony Gerdeman www.theozone.net
1. The Buckeyes still have more in the tank.
This week the Ohio State offense added some more tweaks to the offense, including the pistol formation. They continued to find room running the ball in two tight end sets from under center, and more will continue to come from those play-action possibilities. Defensively, we saw some more blitzes this weekend, particularly from Shaun Wade. There were more moving parts against Cincinnati than there were against Florida Atlantic, and it feels like this is just the beginning.
2. Chase Young is Bosaing.
Before the season, somebody on the message board asked about Chase Young being on Nick or Joey Bosa’s level at the start of the season. I laughed it off because the notion was a little optimistic. And then the season began. Young has tallied 1.5 sacks in each of the Buckeyes’ two games and would have more if holding wasn’t allowed. He looks every bit as good as either of the Bosa brothers as juniors and he is bad news for the Big Ten this year.
3. The gunners have potential.
Drue Chrisman punted from Cincinnati’s 39-yard line on Ohio State’s first drive. He put enough air under the ball that sophomore receiver Chris Olave was waiting for the ball to come to him at the goal line. At one point I think I even saw Olave check his watch. He coaxed the ball to him and downed it at the 1-yard line. Chrisman’s second punt was fair caught at the 8-yard line because of the coverage. His third punt just made it into the end zone ahead of Jeff Okudah. Against FAU, Olave arrived at the same time as a punt and was almost a bit out of control. Both Okudah and Olave have a standard to uphold and while they aren’t quite there yet, they’re working hard (and fast) to get there.
4. Baron Browning has found a home.
Give credit to Baron Browning and Tuf Borland sharing the middle linebacker spot equally, and both being able to slide over to Will whenever needed. This is a versatile group of linebackers who can do many different things. Baron Browning is one of the best examples of that. He can cover ground well, which allows him to be used in both pass coverage and blitzing. You know how it took Curtis Grant four years to look like he belonged? Browning beat him by a year.
5. Binjimen Victor is turning into a go-to guy.
The thing I like most about Binjimen Victor right now is that when he catches the ball — no matter where that is — he is looking to do something with the ball after the catch. He isn’t satisfied with simply getting the first down and moving the chains. He wants more and he’s putting moves on defensive backs to get it. But he isn’t doing it at the expense of protecting the football. If there is nothing there, he gets down. Victor is doing a nice job of being in control.
6. Master Teague runs with purpose.
The way I phrased it on the Buckeye Weekly podcast after the game was that Master Teague runs like he has been disrespected or insulted by the end zone and wants to fight it, but people (tacklers) are trying to hold him back from that fight. He continues to try to rip himself free because there’s no way he’s going to let what the end zone said to him go unanswered.
7. Jeff Hafley trusts Pete Werner.
When you watch the Buckeyes next week — or if you want to watch either of the two games that have already been played — let me recommend a game to you called “Where in the world is Pete Werner?” It’s endless fun and not as easy as it may sound. There are times when Werner will be in the box, times when he’s flexed out into the slot, and there are yet other times when he is rotating or dropping back as a safety. He could be rushing the passer, or he could be 15 yards deep. Ohio State already has a hybrid safety/linebacker on the defense, and so when they ask Pete Werner to move around as much as they do, that should give you a pretty good idea of how much his coaches trust him and how much he does exactly what they want him to.
8. The Buckeyes can win with these corners.
With Damon Arnette, Jeff Okudah, and Shaun Wade, the Buckeyes have their best trio of cornerbacks since they had Denzel Ward, Gareon Conley, and Marshon Lattimore rotating in 2016. It is still early and nobody is perfect yet. Damon Arnette gave up a deep catch after he had already been removed from the game and unbuckled his shoulder pads. Okudah gave up a couple of decent-sized catches. And Wade had his back turned to the quarterback on what would have been an easy pick six. But more than enough has already been seen to feel comfortable with all three. They are making plays at the line of scrimmage and also covering well enough to make completions downfield atypical.
9. The offensive line is in control.
Justin Fields was sacked once on Saturday, but the Buckeye offensive line had nothing to do with it. With just two receivers running a route on the play, Fields knew he had time to throw the ball, but both Binjimen Victor and Austin Mack were covered. He was waiting for one or both to break free on his scramble, but it didn’t happen and rather than throw the ball away after about seven seconds, he ended up taking the sack. In terms of the running game, there were some gigantic holes in this game, and not only were there holes, but the Cincinnati defensive line was getting pushed back as well. It was a long afternoon for the Bearcats because of the Ohio State offensive line.
10. Malik Harrison would get a lot more tackles in a bad defense.
Malik Harrison is one of the best linebackers in the Big Ten and is being talked about as a first-round NFL Draft pick next spring, but he is currently tied for 34th in the Big Ten with just 10 tackles. Harrison has probably played about six quarters so far this season and the Buckeye defense isn’t allowing too many sustained drives under his watch. And even when the opposing offense is moving the ball, Harrison has constant competition getting to tackles. On a lesser defense, he would be doubling his tackle numbers. He will get more productive in conference play, but it might be tough for him to get to the 81 tackles he had last year. Harrison is second in the Big Ten with 4.5 tackles for loss right now, however, so what he lacks in quantity, he makes up for in quality.
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