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Ohio State will be without a junior defensive end Zach harrison and 12 other players for his game against visiting Tulsa on Saturday (3:30 p.m. ET; FS1). Also, senior linebacker Teradja mitchell is a playing time decision. Three hours before each game, the Buckeyes issue a status report that simply lists players who are not available or who will be the subject of decisions during the game. The schedule doesn’t specify why the players are listed, so it’s unclear at this time why Harrison isn’t playing.
Another new name on the unavailable list is the third-year second-year running back. Marcus Crowley who appeared to be suffering from a head injury against Oregon last week. Crowley had been the backer for the fourth string, but had been a mainstay of special teams (he was injured in special teams).
Also, junior center Harry miller remains absent for unspecified reasons (although the head coach Ryan day Miller said does not deal with injury or COVID).
Here is the full status report:
UNAVAILABLE
WR Kamryn babb
RB Marcus Crowley
OF Tyler Friday
OF Zach harrison
OL Jacques Jacques
FIND Jaylen johnson
OL Trey Leroux
KG Mitchell melton
VS Harry miller
DL Noah Potter
PURE Josh proctor
OL Ryan smith
OL Toby Wilson
GAME DECISION
KG Teradja mitchell
What this means for the Buckeyes
It means JT Tuimoloau and Jack sawyer are going to have a much bigger role this week. Harrison had struggled with the exception of a massive sack-fumble against Minnesota, and we’ll see if real freshmen are up for prime time. Or, at least ready for 3:30 p.m.
I have been impressed with Tuimoloau so far. Even with his incredible talent, I thought it would take him a while to acclimatize to the college game since he’s arrived at Ohio State so late. But during the few shots he played in the first two games, he played well. He certainly doesn’t look out of place at all.
Frankly, I expected more from Sawyer so far, but it’s not like he’s played a lot. That should change today and it will be interesting to see what he can add to the Buckeyes’ anemic passing rush.
The only guy who really needs to step up today and for the rest of the season is senior DE Tyreke smith. I had high expectations of him this year after playing so well against Northwestern and Clemson last year (missed the National Championship game against Alabama for something COVID-related). Smith didn’t perform well in the first two games. He’s got to play at an All-Big Ten first-team level for that defense and he’s not even close to that yet. It’s a long season though and I’m sure he will get better.
In the center, rookie redshirt Luke Wypler will get his third straight start and I’m not sure he will give up the job even after Miller returns. Wypler played well for the most part, especially considering his age and inexperience. He could end up being a four-year-old starter for the Buckeyes.
As for Mitchell, we’re told he was added late to the Status Report, which means he’s likely struggling with some sort of injury or illness. The last thing OSU can afford is linebacker injuries, a group that hasn’t performed well in the first two weeks.
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