Happy Monday, everyone.
It’s Nebraska week, but there’s a lot still from the Penn State game that needs to be talked about.
Here’s what I’m thinking about this Monday morning.
Yes, the approach for Ohio State remains the same: one game at a time.
It’s “one-game seasons.” It’s March Madness.
But as Ohio State closes the book on its return back to earth against Penn State, one filled with fireworks in a sea of scarlet that surrounded Ohio Stadium Saturday night, one game’s book seemingly got a whole lot bigger.
Michigan State at home Nov. 20.
The Spartans — with a Heisman candidate at running back and two weapons at wide receiver, along with the worst pass defense in the Big Ten — are the final undefeated team in the Big Ten, fighting for a chance at their first conference title since 2015.
It seemed as though Ohio State was not planning for its bout with Michigan State to be this big, creating as electric an atmosphere Ohio Stadium has seen in recent memory, treating the more than 50 recruits in the ground to a spectacle surrounding a game the Buckeyes had to grind through Saturday night.
But when eyes are on Columbus, Ohio State has not been the same team.
Short completions into the Buckeyes’ soft zone defense are magnified into issues that need to be fixed. Redshirt freshman quarterback C.J. Stroud seemed to lose the accuracy he showed in his three games after missing the Akron game resting his throwing shoulder, leading to balance issues for an offense that had previously been all-systems-go.
In the two games the Buckeyes play between Penn State and Michigan State, the college football world will be focused elsewhere. Even if Ohio State looks like the team Rutgers, Maryland and Indiana faced when it takes on Nebraska and Purdue over the next two weeks, there will still be questions surrounding their ability to step up when they have the country’s attention.
But that’s still two books away.
So what’s the focus now offensively?
Offensively, it’s simple. It’s Stroud.
The numbers were not bad, throwing 300 yards for the fourth time with his young career, continuing his touchdown streak of at least one in his first seven games, along with recording his fourth-straight game without an interception.
But there was something off with the redshirt freshman. And no stat says that more than wide receiver Chris Olave’s stat line Saturday night: Three receptions on nine targets for 44 yards — 38 of which came on one single touchdown reception.
Whether he was missing high, overthrowing receivers, or throwing a ground ball to Olave at the beginning of the fourth quarter, giving Penn State the ball back with only a three-point lead and more than 12 minutes to play, Stroud was inconsistent. It wasn’t enough for Ohio State to lose, and he was not helped by the inefficiencies of the offensive line or the overall ineffectiveness of the run game.
The signs that Stroud was a freshman were still there. But the signs of hope were still there too, none more clear than the one 38-yard touchdown pass to Olave: stepping up into the pocket and hitting the senior in stride in the end zone.
While the message will not change between Stroud and head coach Ryan Day — continuing to stay steady, continuing not to ride the highs and lows of the roller coaster that has been this season — it will need to pay off against bigger and better defenses down the road.
And Stroud’s challenges will continue to come.
Ohio State has faced only two teams in the top-50 in terms of passing yards allowed in No. 25 Penn State and No. 45 Minnesota.
Just for reference, in those games combined, Stroud has completed 62.5% of his passes — 4.6 percentage points lower than his season average — for an average of 299.5 passing yards, five touchdowns, four of which came against Minnesota, and one interception.
In the final four games, Ohio State will face two defenses in the top-20 in the country in passing yards allowed: No. 10 Purdue, which allows 174 passing yards per game, 6.66 yards per attempt, 12.74 yards per completion and five passing touchdowns; and No. 16 Michigan, which allows 184.1 passing yards per game, 6.27 yards per attempt, 11.24 yards per completion and nine passing touchdowns.
So what’s the focus now defensively?
It’s defending the pass in the middle of the field.
Ohio State’s defensive strategy seems to match the trend of defenses across college football: allowing check-downs and short passes to be completed and rallying to the football when caught, limiting the damage and keeping opposing offenses behind schedule.
Now in those soft pockets of Ohio State’s zone defense against Penn State, the Nittany Lions found momentum in its pass game. Quarterback Sean Clifford completed 67.2% of his 52 pass attempts — the most he’s tried since Nov. 7, 2020 against Maryland — for 360 yards, a touchdown and an interception.
Of Clifford’s 35 completions against the Buckeyes, 19 led to tackles by either a safety or a linebacker, 10 of which were for 10 or more yards.
Ohio State safeties and linebackers made their fair share of stops. Sophomore safety Ronnie Hickman recorded his fourth double-digit tackling performance of the season, while slot cornerback Marcus Williamson and safety Lathan Ransom each recorded sacks.
However, there were also many plays that allowed the Penn State offense to continue to move downfield, especially in the middle of the defense.
Of Ohio State’s seven missed tackles Saturday night, six came from the linebacker room: Cody Simon, who missed three; Teradja Mitchell, who missed two; and Tommy Eichenberg, who missed one along with senior cornerback Sevyn Banks.
And hold onto your hats. This stat is unreal.
Mitchell was graded out as Ohio State’s worst defender in coverage Friday night by a lot, being credited for 11 receptions on 11 targets for 93 yards and a touchdown.
Simply, if opposing defenses are going to beat Ohio State’s No.93 pass defense, a group that has allowed 247.1 passing yards per game, 6.68 yards per attempt, 11.04 yards per completion and 12 passing touchdowns, it’s going to be in the middle of the field.
Back to the offense for a second.
Before the game, Day called for Ohio Stadium to be as loud as possible, creating an atmosphere that would mess up Penn State’s offensive rhythm and momentum.
In turn, that could have been detrimental for the Ohio State offense too.
The Buckeyes recorded six false starts: two by Olave and wide receiver Garrett Wilson, one by running back TreVeyon Henderson, pushing Ohio State back from the Penn State 1-yard line to the 6 and leading to three points instead of six, and three offensive linemen: center Luke Wypler, left guard Thayer Munford and right tackle Dawand Jones.
By the end of the nine-point Ohio State victory, the Buckeyes recorded 10 penalties for 76 yards, mental mistakes that kept Penn State in the game into the fourth quarter,
So who’s next?
Nebraska: a team that has lost each of its last three games by less than a touchdown.
The Cornhuskers’ offensive numbers have been staggering, averaging 29.9 points per game (No. 4 in the conference), 470.1 yards per game (No. 2) and 6.7 yards per play (No. 3)
Nebraska has beaten opposing defenses with the run, averaging 203.4 yards per game on the ground (No. 4) with 4.8 yards per rush (No. 4) and 24 rushing touchdowns (No. 2 behind Michigan’s 25). Nebraska has beaten opposing offenses through the air, averaging 266.7 passing yards per game (No. 5), completing 63% of pass attempts (No. 5) for 9.4 yards per attempt (No. 2 behind Ohio State’s 10.5).
The common denominator: Adrian Martinez, who the Buckeyes limited to 105 yards passing, 85 yards rushing and one touchdown in their 52-17 win Oct. 24, 2020.
Nebraska’s defense has been in the middle of the pack in the Big Ten, allowing 20.3 points per game (No. 8), 348.4 yards per game (No. 7) and 5.0 yards per play (No. 9, tied with Michigan).
But it’s a team heading into its 10th game of the year 3-6, losing all four of its games on the road. In the Cornhuskers’ six losses this season, they have lost by a combined margin of 33 points, never larger than a one-score margin, including an overtime loss to Michigan State.
Time to take a look at how that team up north did this week.
We touched on it earlier, but Michigan State seemed to end any hope of Michigan making its first college football playoff.
But the thing is, Michigan saw a lot of things go right against the Spartans.
Facing the worst pass defense in the Big Ten, Michigan quarterback Cade McNamara feasted, throwing a career-high 383 yards for two touchdowns and a reception. Freshman wide receiver Andrel Antony became a star, recording 155 yards and two touchdowns on six receptions.
But Michigan State seemed to take away Michigan’s offensive bread-and-butter, limiting Blake Corum and Hassan Haskins to 3.9 yards per carry and no touchdowns. With that, the Wolverines failed to convert close as Jake Moody hit all four field goal attempts from an average of 33.8 yards away.
Instead, Michigan State’s run game feasted, as running back Kenneth Walker III had 197 yards and five touchdowns on 23 carries. Add that to a Michigan defense that only recorded three sacks and no tackles for loss in the run game, the Wolverines struggled to stop the Spartans.
Speaking of field goal units…
Noah Ruggles has been consistent as all get out this year for Ohio State. And the Buckeyes needed him Saturday night.
While the offense scored 12 points and the defense scored six, Ruggles hit three extra-point tries and four field goals from an average of 27.3 yards away.
Ruggles, a graduate transfer from North Carolina, is one of eight kickers left in FBS play to have hit each of his field goal tries and the only one left in the Big Ten conference, something people seem to take for granted until its desperately needed, like the Buckeyes did Saturday night.
Humor me, would you?
I’m writing this column as I watch Game 5 of the World Series.
From the outside looking in, it’s a traditional superhero story: the protagonist, the underdog Atlanta Braves facing the antagonist, the villain Houston Astros.
But villains have hearts too, right?
I’m a Houston native, making the 30-mile trip from my house in a northwest suburb to Minute Maid Park. As my love grew for this team, they got worse and worse. It got to a point where it was cheaper to get my family of four into a ballgame than it was to get a hot dog at that ballgame.
It was where I truly learned and experienced sports for the first time, leaving many games feeling heartbroken with my parents and brother knowing not to talk to me after a loss.
The Astros’ playoff surge didn’t come until I moved to Ohio. I experienced playoff games from the comfort of a dorm room couch, looking dumb walking around campus in a full-fledged blue and orange jersey with a flat-bill batting practice cap.
2017 was a great season. I remember watching Game 7 in my off-campus duplex, collapsing to the floor when the Astros achieved what I believed was impossible.
2020 was not so fun: a season filled with allegations about that World Series, questions swirling about the team that I followed and loved since I was a kid.
This isn’t to convince you of the validity of that title. This is just a reminder of why sports is beloved: the storylines, the highs, the lows.
As I watch the Houston Astros play in their third World Series in five years, I remember what it’s like to be a fan: watching every pitch, every at-bat like it’s life and death.
This team is why I’m doing what I’m doing now. And that’s why it’s OK if I’m a villain in this story.
Finally, the song of the week:
This month is going to have a theme.
My brother introduced me to a tradition that I have picked up over the past few years. On Thanksgiving, or as close to it as possible, I sit down and watch “The Last Waltz,” Martin Scorsese’s 1978 documentary depicting a Nov. 25, 1976 farewell concert by The Band at Winterland Ballroom in San Francisco.
Over the next four weeks, I’ll be picking my favorite songs from this show.
The first is actually The Band’s final song it plays: “Don’t Do It,” a cover of Marvin Gaye’s “Baby Don’t You Do It,” which he released in 1964. It’s the first song shown in the film, and sets the tone perfectly.
See you guys on the board this week.
It’s Nebraska week, but there’s a lot still from the Penn State game that needs to be talked about.
Here’s what I’m thinking about this Monday morning.
Yes, the approach for Ohio State remains the same: one game at a time.
It’s “one-game seasons.” It’s March Madness.
But as Ohio State closes the book on its return back to earth against Penn State, one filled with fireworks in a sea of scarlet that surrounded Ohio Stadium Saturday night, one game’s book seemingly got a whole lot bigger.
Michigan State at home Nov. 20.
The Spartans — with a Heisman candidate at running back and two weapons at wide receiver, along with the worst pass defense in the Big Ten — are the final undefeated team in the Big Ten, fighting for a chance at their first conference title since 2015.
It seemed as though Ohio State was not planning for its bout with Michigan State to be this big, creating as electric an atmosphere Ohio Stadium has seen in recent memory, treating the more than 50 recruits in the ground to a spectacle surrounding a game the Buckeyes had to grind through Saturday night.
But when eyes are on Columbus, Ohio State has not been the same team.
Short completions into the Buckeyes’ soft zone defense are magnified into issues that need to be fixed. Redshirt freshman quarterback C.J. Stroud seemed to lose the accuracy he showed in his three games after missing the Akron game resting his throwing shoulder, leading to balance issues for an offense that had previously been all-systems-go.
In the two games the Buckeyes play between Penn State and Michigan State, the college football world will be focused elsewhere. Even if Ohio State looks like the team Rutgers, Maryland and Indiana faced when it takes on Nebraska and Purdue over the next two weeks, there will still be questions surrounding their ability to step up when they have the country’s attention.
But that’s still two books away.
So what’s the focus now offensively?
Offensively, it’s simple. It’s Stroud.
The numbers were not bad, throwing 300 yards for the fourth time with his young career, continuing his touchdown streak of at least one in his first seven games, along with recording his fourth-straight game without an interception.
But there was something off with the redshirt freshman. And no stat says that more than wide receiver Chris Olave’s stat line Saturday night: Three receptions on nine targets for 44 yards — 38 of which came on one single touchdown reception.
Whether he was missing high, overthrowing receivers, or throwing a ground ball to Olave at the beginning of the fourth quarter, giving Penn State the ball back with only a three-point lead and more than 12 minutes to play, Stroud was inconsistent. It wasn’t enough for Ohio State to lose, and he was not helped by the inefficiencies of the offensive line or the overall ineffectiveness of the run game.
The signs that Stroud was a freshman were still there. But the signs of hope were still there too, none more clear than the one 38-yard touchdown pass to Olave: stepping up into the pocket and hitting the senior in stride in the end zone.
While the message will not change between Stroud and head coach Ryan Day — continuing to stay steady, continuing not to ride the highs and lows of the roller coaster that has been this season — it will need to pay off against bigger and better defenses down the road.
And Stroud’s challenges will continue to come.
Ohio State has faced only two teams in the top-50 in terms of passing yards allowed in No. 25 Penn State and No. 45 Minnesota.
Just for reference, in those games combined, Stroud has completed 62.5% of his passes — 4.6 percentage points lower than his season average — for an average of 299.5 passing yards, five touchdowns, four of which came against Minnesota, and one interception.
In the final four games, Ohio State will face two defenses in the top-20 in the country in passing yards allowed: No. 10 Purdue, which allows 174 passing yards per game, 6.66 yards per attempt, 12.74 yards per completion and five passing touchdowns; and No. 16 Michigan, which allows 184.1 passing yards per game, 6.27 yards per attempt, 11.24 yards per completion and nine passing touchdowns.
So what’s the focus now defensively?
It’s defending the pass in the middle of the field.
Ohio State’s defensive strategy seems to match the trend of defenses across college football: allowing check-downs and short passes to be completed and rallying to the football when caught, limiting the damage and keeping opposing offenses behind schedule.
Now in those soft pockets of Ohio State’s zone defense against Penn State, the Nittany Lions found momentum in its pass game. Quarterback Sean Clifford completed 67.2% of his 52 pass attempts — the most he’s tried since Nov. 7, 2020 against Maryland — for 360 yards, a touchdown and an interception.
Of Clifford’s 35 completions against the Buckeyes, 19 led to tackles by either a safety or a linebacker, 10 of which were for 10 or more yards.
Ohio State safeties and linebackers made their fair share of stops. Sophomore safety Ronnie Hickman recorded his fourth double-digit tackling performance of the season, while slot cornerback Marcus Williamson and safety Lathan Ransom each recorded sacks.
However, there were also many plays that allowed the Penn State offense to continue to move downfield, especially in the middle of the defense.
Of Ohio State’s seven missed tackles Saturday night, six came from the linebacker room: Cody Simon, who missed three; Teradja Mitchell, who missed two; and Tommy Eichenberg, who missed one along with senior cornerback Sevyn Banks.
And hold onto your hats. This stat is unreal.
Mitchell was graded out as Ohio State’s worst defender in coverage Friday night by a lot, being credited for 11 receptions on 11 targets for 93 yards and a touchdown.
Simply, if opposing defenses are going to beat Ohio State’s No.93 pass defense, a group that has allowed 247.1 passing yards per game, 6.68 yards per attempt, 11.04 yards per completion and 12 passing touchdowns, it’s going to be in the middle of the field.
Back to the offense for a second.
Before the game, Day called for Ohio Stadium to be as loud as possible, creating an atmosphere that would mess up Penn State’s offensive rhythm and momentum.
In turn, that could have been detrimental for the Ohio State offense too.
The Buckeyes recorded six false starts: two by Olave and wide receiver Garrett Wilson, one by running back TreVeyon Henderson, pushing Ohio State back from the Penn State 1-yard line to the 6 and leading to three points instead of six, and three offensive linemen: center Luke Wypler, left guard Thayer Munford and right tackle Dawand Jones.
By the end of the nine-point Ohio State victory, the Buckeyes recorded 10 penalties for 76 yards, mental mistakes that kept Penn State in the game into the fourth quarter,
So who’s next?
Nebraska: a team that has lost each of its last three games by less than a touchdown.
The Cornhuskers’ offensive numbers have been staggering, averaging 29.9 points per game (No. 4 in the conference), 470.1 yards per game (No. 2) and 6.7 yards per play (No. 3)
Nebraska has beaten opposing defenses with the run, averaging 203.4 yards per game on the ground (No. 4) with 4.8 yards per rush (No. 4) and 24 rushing touchdowns (No. 2 behind Michigan’s 25). Nebraska has beaten opposing offenses through the air, averaging 266.7 passing yards per game (No. 5), completing 63% of pass attempts (No. 5) for 9.4 yards per attempt (No. 2 behind Ohio State’s 10.5).
The common denominator: Adrian Martinez, who the Buckeyes limited to 105 yards passing, 85 yards rushing and one touchdown in their 52-17 win Oct. 24, 2020.
Nebraska’s defense has been in the middle of the pack in the Big Ten, allowing 20.3 points per game (No. 8), 348.4 yards per game (No. 7) and 5.0 yards per play (No. 9, tied with Michigan).
But it’s a team heading into its 10th game of the year 3-6, losing all four of its games on the road. In the Cornhuskers’ six losses this season, they have lost by a combined margin of 33 points, never larger than a one-score margin, including an overtime loss to Michigan State.
Time to take a look at how that team up north did this week.
We touched on it earlier, but Michigan State seemed to end any hope of Michigan making its first college football playoff.
But the thing is, Michigan saw a lot of things go right against the Spartans.
Facing the worst pass defense in the Big Ten, Michigan quarterback Cade McNamara feasted, throwing a career-high 383 yards for two touchdowns and a reception. Freshman wide receiver Andrel Antony became a star, recording 155 yards and two touchdowns on six receptions.
But Michigan State seemed to take away Michigan’s offensive bread-and-butter, limiting Blake Corum and Hassan Haskins to 3.9 yards per carry and no touchdowns. With that, the Wolverines failed to convert close as Jake Moody hit all four field goal attempts from an average of 33.8 yards away.
Instead, Michigan State’s run game feasted, as running back Kenneth Walker III had 197 yards and five touchdowns on 23 carries. Add that to a Michigan defense that only recorded three sacks and no tackles for loss in the run game, the Wolverines struggled to stop the Spartans.
Speaking of field goal units…
Noah Ruggles has been consistent as all get out this year for Ohio State. And the Buckeyes needed him Saturday night.
While the offense scored 12 points and the defense scored six, Ruggles hit three extra-point tries and four field goals from an average of 27.3 yards away.
Ruggles, a graduate transfer from North Carolina, is one of eight kickers left in FBS play to have hit each of his field goal tries and the only one left in the Big Ten conference, something people seem to take for granted until its desperately needed, like the Buckeyes did Saturday night.
Humor me, would you?
I’m writing this column as I watch Game 5 of the World Series.
From the outside looking in, it’s a traditional superhero story: the protagonist, the underdog Atlanta Braves facing the antagonist, the villain Houston Astros.
But villains have hearts too, right?
I’m a Houston native, making the 30-mile trip from my house in a northwest suburb to Minute Maid Park. As my love grew for this team, they got worse and worse. It got to a point where it was cheaper to get my family of four into a ballgame than it was to get a hot dog at that ballgame.
It was where I truly learned and experienced sports for the first time, leaving many games feeling heartbroken with my parents and brother knowing not to talk to me after a loss.
The Astros’ playoff surge didn’t come until I moved to Ohio. I experienced playoff games from the comfort of a dorm room couch, looking dumb walking around campus in a full-fledged blue and orange jersey with a flat-bill batting practice cap.
2017 was a great season. I remember watching Game 7 in my off-campus duplex, collapsing to the floor when the Astros achieved what I believed was impossible.
2020 was not so fun: a season filled with allegations about that World Series, questions swirling about the team that I followed and loved since I was a kid.
This isn’t to convince you of the validity of that title. This is just a reminder of why sports is beloved: the storylines, the highs, the lows.
As I watch the Houston Astros play in their third World Series in five years, I remember what it’s like to be a fan: watching every pitch, every at-bat like it’s life and death.
This team is why I’m doing what I’m doing now. And that’s why it’s OK if I’m a villain in this story.
Finally, the song of the week:
This month is going to have a theme.
My brother introduced me to a tradition that I have picked up over the past few years. On Thanksgiving, or as close to it as possible, I sit down and watch “The Last Waltz,” Martin Scorsese’s 1978 documentary depicting a Nov. 25, 1976 farewell concert by The Band at Winterland Ballroom in San Francisco.
Over the next four weeks, I’ll be picking my favorite songs from this show.
The first is actually The Band’s final song it plays: “Don’t Do It,” a cover of Marvin Gaye’s “Baby Don’t You Do It,” which he released in 1964. It’s the first song shown in the film, and sets the tone perfectly.
See you guys on the board this week.
