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Two Big Ten challenges up and two down for Ohio State so far.
The third comes in the form of 4-1 Maryland, a team that rose high to start the year before suffering a loss to Iowa last weekend.
The Buckeyes, on the other hand, appear to be gaining momentum at the start of Week 6, just coming off the best record of himself by Ohio State all season long against Rutgers on the road there. has a week.
Ahead of Saturday’s noon kickoff at Ohio Stadium in Columbus, the Eleven warriors the staff share some final thoughts, questions and predictions regarding the Buckeyes’ encounter with the Terrapins.
Final thoughts
Ohio State returns to its dominant self
Over the past two weeks, the Buckeyes have dominated their opponents 111-20. It will play.
The young contributing players continue to improve every week, and the Buckeyes are feeling blood in the water for a third straight win with a team from Maryland coming to Columbus to heal their wounds after an unbalanced loss to Iowa last week. . OSU has yet another opportunity for a declaration victory.
– Garrick Hodge
Ohio State’s performance will be measured against that of Iowa
From the Buckeyes’ perspective, Iowa’s beating against Maryland last week can be a tough act to follow.
After a 4-0 Terrapin start to the year, the Hawkeyes quickly reversed the program’s momentum with a 51-14 blowout on Oct. 1. Iowa quarterbacked Taulia Tagovailoa, who looked to be one of the best in the conference ahead of the game, has perhaps the worst game of his life with five interceptions, and the Hawkeye defense added two. other reversals, even beyond.
Of course, Ohio State should be far more concerned with its own events than third-placed Iowa, but the two teams could be on a collision course in December. If the Buckeyes do wrestle with Maryland, it’s not a sure sign that they would fall into the hands of Kirk Ferentz and his company. However, an equally dominant performance against the Terps may indicate that Ohio State is in tune with the Big Ten’s highest-ranked program.
– Griffin Strom
We will learn today if the defense has really improved
The Ohio State defense has looked much better in its last two games than in the first three games of the season, but it has helped the Buckeyes play against Akron and Rutgers, both of whom have had little offensive success this season. season, except against opponents of FCS. and Temple. Maryland, on the other hand, will be the first Ohio State team to play all season to place in the top 25 nationally in total infractions.
The reassignment of play call responsibilities to Matt Barnes, the use of deeper defensive appearances and the start of consolidation of the defensive lineup all seem to have paid off for the Buckeyes, but I need to see a Another strong performance against Maryland today to be really confident that the Ohio State defense has improved rather than just beaten bad competition.
-Dan Hope
This is a really handy stretch for the Buckeyes
Honestly, this schedule couldn’t have worked out better for the Buckeyes as they try to sort out their defense, hone attacking, and improve both patterns and execution.
Starting with Akron, Ohio State’s opponents gradually improve until this Oct. 30 game with Penn State, giving the Buckeyes a chance to work their way into increasingly better competition ahead of what will likely be. their biggest game of the season against the Nittany Lions.
Today marks the middle of this stretch. If the state of Ohio is more beautiful than last week, today is a success.
-Kevin Harrish
Questions
Did CJ Stroud get it?
It was difficult for CJ Stroud to play better than last week, ending calls for Kyle McCord to replace him. The injured shoulder that plagued him earlier in the season looked pretty healthy to me. Can he accumulate consecutive successful weeks?
– Garrick Hodge
Is the Maryland Pass Rush a Threat?
Something must give.
Only one team other than Maryland has at least 18 sacks among the Big Ten (Michigan State) teams, but Buckeye’s offensive line has hardly given up the pressure in abundance this season. The Terps have more sacks than any of Ohio State’s previous opponents at this point in the season, which could mean Maryland will be the toughest pass protection challenge of the year. Buckeye.
Alternatively, Ohio State and its current rotation of six linemen could prove it’s on another level. Either way, curbing the disruptive nature of Maryland sack leader Sam Okuayinonu – who has five in as many games this season – will be a priority for Buckeye’s pass attack.
– Griffin Strom
Will the defensive ends intensify?
Five games in the season, the Ohio State defensive ends have combined for just two sacks. With a defensive end squad that includes three seasoned veterans (Zach Harrison, Tyreke Smith and Javontae Jean-Baptiste) and three five-star rookies (Harrison, JT Tuimoloau and Jack Sawyer), it’s just not good enough.
Sacks don’t always tell the whole story of the pressure the defensive fins actually generate, but the Ohio State defensive wing rotation should be able to dominate games, and it hasn’t happened yet. If the Buckeyes are to force Tagovailoa to make mistakes and stop the Maryland offense like Iowa did last week, more pressure on the rim would go far.
-Dan Hope
How is this secondary Buckeye going to hold up?
Even though Buckeye’s defense struggled early in the season, the downstream pass defense was actually pretty strong. When Ohio State was beaten in the passing game, it was mostly beaten below with short passes behind the sticks.
Even in the losses, Ohio State cornerbacks and safeties were actually a bright spot in coverage, breaking plenty of passes and causing plenty of interceptions. But today will be the biggest test yet for this young high school kid, and we’ll find out if high school is really a strength of the team.
-Kevin Harrish
Predictions
Buckeyes score over 50 points in three straight games
Ohio State hasn’t gone over 50 points in three straight games since 2017, but I think that changes today against the Terrapins, who have allowed at least 49 points in each of their previous six games against Ohio State.
Maryland’s defense has actually been strong this year – the 51 points Iowa scored last week had a lot to do with how many shortfields the Hawkeyes managed to turn around – but I’m not convinced the Terrapins will have consistent responses for the Ohio State offense. The Buckeyes were never stopped when Stroud was still in the game against Rutgers (excluding final possession in the first half when Ohio State let time run out), and I would expect the starters to play at least a little longer against Maryland.
– Dan Hope
The mountain pass rush comes to life
The Ohio State pass rush has been noticeably lacking so far this season, especially at the limit. I think that will change today.
Part of the problem the pass rush faced in terms of pace is that the Buckeyes really haven’t faced a team that just likes to back down and throw the ball into the field. Instead, they faced teams mostly happy with short and quick under passes.
But this is not the game of Maryland. The Terrapins love to broadcast it, and they’re going to give this Ohio State defensive line plenty of opportunities to rush the passer, and I think the Buckeyes will live up to it.
-Kevin Harrish
OSU spends four consecutive weeks with a defensive touchdown
At this point, why not, right? Especially after that turnover party Maryland threw against the Hawkeyes. As for who gets it, I will say that Ronnie Hickman gets his second defensive score of the year.
– Garrick Hodge
Ohio State keeps interception streak alive
The Buckeyes missed an assist in the first two games of the year. In the last three games, Ohio State has quickly racked up seven interceptions, including three pick-sixes and an INT trio against Rutgers alone.
As you’ve surely heard it time and time again now, Maryland quarterbacks combined to throw six interceptions in one game last week. Unfortunately for Tagovailoa, the Terps won’t face a much less opportunistic secondary than Iowa’s when it comes to passing.
Tagovailoa threw just one interception the year before the Hawkeyes game, but I’d be surprised if we didn’t see at least one INT Buckeye on Saturday.
– Griffin Strom
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