If you’re an Ohio State fan, you could be in for a long October. The Buckeyes came out flat and the offense wasn’t able to get anything going until late in the game. Despite the late rally, Ohio State fell short 10-7.
For its part, the defense did play an excellent game.
They did a great job shutting down the run and putting pressure on Kirk Cousins. With the exception of a few breakdowns in coverage, they played well against the pass. Overall, they continue to show signs of improvement.
The same doesn’t apply to the offense.
To his credit, Braxton Miller had no chance this week. Michigan State stacked the box daring Ohio State to pass. When they attempted to the Spartans’ secondary easily covered the Buckeyes’ inexperienced receivers. The result was an offense that couldn’t establish a passing game and an offensive line that couldn’t protect its quarterback.
The results are shameful. The Buckeyes ran for just 35 yards. The one highlight, Carlos Hyde didn’t even carry the ball much in the second half. Why would they prevent a running back averaging six yards a carry more touches? The play calling bordered on atrocious as many times they continued to run the same three of four plays and getting nowhere with them.
One interesting aspect emerged at the end of the game. It’s the curious case of Joe Bauserman.
Bauserman came in later in the second half and made some plays. He finished with 87 yards passing and led the Buckeyes to their lone touchdown drive. Still, it’s hard to put his performance into meaning as it was late in the game and it’s easier to perform when the pressure is off. The fact he played means the Buckeyes are back to square one, which isn’t encouraging given it’s the fifth week of the season.
From coaching to execution, the offense was awful. Can they regroup before a huge trip to Lincoln?
Honestly, it’s not likely. While the returns of DeVier Posey, Mike Adams and Dan Herron should help this unit, they haven’t evolved the way a unit should over the course of the season. They don’t have a reliable quarterback or consistent offensive line play. This means the Buckeyes are going to struggle scoring points and that’s a real problem considering they play three consecutive games against ranked opponents.
Today’s game shows Ohio State’s defense is good to enough to keep them in games. However, until the offense makes any strides in improvement, they’ll keep the Buckeyes from winning.
Photo by Kirk Irwin/Getty Images
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