Thanks for your patience. Here's the first quarter.
C.J. Stroud’s afternoon against Nebraska actually started off well.
From a couple of short-yardage targets of sophomore wide receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba to a six-yard handoff to running back TreVeyon Henderson the redshirt freshman quarterback seemed to keep the offense ahead of schedule against the Nebraska offense.
Then came the run play.
Facing a third down with two yards to go, Stroud ran the option, taking it himself. Nebraska outside linebacker Caleb Tannor had it played perfectly, keeping his eyes on the ball and tackling Stroud after a one-yard gain.
On fourth down, head coach Ryan Day kept his offense on the field. But instead of taking it himself or handing the ball off for a single yard, Stroud took advantage of a one-on-one between Jeremy Ruckert and middle linebacker Luke Reimer. The ball was nice, but Reimer broke up the grab that fell out of Ruckert’s hands.
Turnover on downs; officially an offense off schedule.
It didn’t get much better for Stroud and the pass defense. Instead of balance, the quarterback attempted 15 passes compared to six rushes, forcing the ball into tight windows leading to pass breakups by Jojo Domann and Cam Taylor-Britt and a beautiful sideline interception by Domann against Smith-Njigba in coverage, all of which happened in the same drive.
Stroud’s confidence was seemingly shot for the rest of the quarter. On his first throw after his first interception in over 150 pass attempts, he threw at Smith-Njigba’s feet.
The redshirt freshman was rattled.
Two quick notes on the Ohio State defense: Nebraska quarterback Adrian Martinez’s first pass of the day to Samori Toure was a sign of things to come: a 24-yard gain in man coverage against Cameron Brown.
For the remainder of the quarter, though, the Buckeyes did a very good job at containing Martinez in and around the pocket. There really was no room for him to go outside, find space and make plays himself, leading to sacks by Jack Sawyer and Ronnie Hickman.
What this means for Purdue
You saw early how one-dimensional Ohio State’s offense can be. And for Purdue, this is the way it would like to have it.
The Boilermakers’ pass defense has been solid, allowing 185.3 passing yards per game — third lowest in the Big Ten — and seven passing touchdowns with opposing quarterbacks completing 54% of throws: tied with Wisconsin for the lowest in the conference.
In terms of stopping the run, Purdue is one of five teams in the Big Ten, along with Northwestern, Rutgers, Maryland and Illinois, to allow more than four yards per carry.
If Ohio State relies on the pass as much as it did in the first quarter against Nebraska when it faces Purdue, the Buckeyes could be in for a rough day. And that’s not on Stroud or Henderson or the offensive line. It’s about the offensive play calling, making it clear that there’s not a lot of trust in the running game right now.
C.J. Stroud’s afternoon against Nebraska actually started off well.
From a couple of short-yardage targets of sophomore wide receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba to a six-yard handoff to running back TreVeyon Henderson the redshirt freshman quarterback seemed to keep the offense ahead of schedule against the Nebraska offense.
Then came the run play.
Facing a third down with two yards to go, Stroud ran the option, taking it himself. Nebraska outside linebacker Caleb Tannor had it played perfectly, keeping his eyes on the ball and tackling Stroud after a one-yard gain.
On fourth down, head coach Ryan Day kept his offense on the field. But instead of taking it himself or handing the ball off for a single yard, Stroud took advantage of a one-on-one between Jeremy Ruckert and middle linebacker Luke Reimer. The ball was nice, but Reimer broke up the grab that fell out of Ruckert’s hands.
Turnover on downs; officially an offense off schedule.
It didn’t get much better for Stroud and the pass defense. Instead of balance, the quarterback attempted 15 passes compared to six rushes, forcing the ball into tight windows leading to pass breakups by Jojo Domann and Cam Taylor-Britt and a beautiful sideline interception by Domann against Smith-Njigba in coverage, all of which happened in the same drive.
Stroud’s confidence was seemingly shot for the rest of the quarter. On his first throw after his first interception in over 150 pass attempts, he threw at Smith-Njigba’s feet.
The redshirt freshman was rattled.
Two quick notes on the Ohio State defense: Nebraska quarterback Adrian Martinez’s first pass of the day to Samori Toure was a sign of things to come: a 24-yard gain in man coverage against Cameron Brown.
For the remainder of the quarter, though, the Buckeyes did a very good job at containing Martinez in and around the pocket. There really was no room for him to go outside, find space and make plays himself, leading to sacks by Jack Sawyer and Ronnie Hickman.
What this means for Purdue
You saw early how one-dimensional Ohio State’s offense can be. And for Purdue, this is the way it would like to have it.
The Boilermakers’ pass defense has been solid, allowing 185.3 passing yards per game — third lowest in the Big Ten — and seven passing touchdowns with opposing quarterbacks completing 54% of throws: tied with Wisconsin for the lowest in the conference.
In terms of stopping the run, Purdue is one of five teams in the Big Ten, along with Northwestern, Rutgers, Maryland and Illinois, to allow more than four yards per carry.
If Ohio State relies on the pass as much as it did in the first quarter against Nebraska when it faces Purdue, the Buckeyes could be in for a rough day. And that’s not on Stroud or Henderson or the offensive line. It’s about the offensive play calling, making it clear that there’s not a lot of trust in the running game right now.
