Indiana Recap

1. On a cold and snowy day in the Horseshoe, Ohio State trounced Indiana by the final score of 56 to 14, which marked the Buckeyes' 28th victory in a row against the hapless Hoosiers. In the series, Ohio State now owns a record of 79-12-5 (.849 winning percentage) and has outscored Indiana 2,655 to 1,096 (27.7 to 11.4 on a per game basis).

2. As you might imagine from the final score, Ohio State did pretty much everything right in yesterday's game. Quarterback C.J. Stroud did nothing to hurt his Heisman chances, connecting on 17 of 28 passes (.607 completion percentage) for 297 yards (10.6 yards per attempt), 5 touchdowns, no interceptions, and no sacks. If we're going to be completely honest, Stroud was a little bit off at times and a couple of his touchdown passes were called primarily to pad his stats for the benefit of Heisman voters, although each pass did in fact have a secondary purpose as well (more or those later).

3. Marvin Harrison Jr. once again proved that he is the best wide receiver in college football (and would probably be a top-10 wide receiver in the NFL if he were playing in the League today). Harrison had 7 receptions for 135 yards (19.3 average), including a 58-yard touchdown (his career-long reception). Harrison's best catch of the day came along the sideline when (reminiscent of Michael Thomas in the 2015 Sugar Bowl) he was somehow able to get one foot down in bounds while all of his momentum was carrying him out:

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4. Emeka Egbuka had a quiet day with just 2 receptions for 38 yards and a touchdown. Julian Fleming had 2 receptions for 24 yards, but also dropped what would have been a 45-yard touchdown. Jayden Ballard added a 24-yard reception from backup quarterback Kyle McCord.

5. The first of Stroud's stat-padding touchdowns was a one-yard pass to tight end Cade Stover in the third quarter. Showing a "heavy" look (I-formation, three tight ends), Stroud faked a handoff to the I-back and then lobbed a pass to Stover who blocked, released late, and found himself wide open in the corner of the end zone for the score. While Stroud was able to add an easy touchdown to his résumé, the play was also a nice constraint to the power running attack which once again failed to produce the necessary results in short yardage situations (see below). For the game, Stover had 3 receptions for 45 yards and a pair of touchdowns.

6. The second of Stroud's "gravy" touchdowns came with 8:49 left in the game with the Buckeyes maintaining a commanding 49-14 lead. Under normal circumstances, Stroud would have been on the bench watching the reserves mop up the Hoosiers, but Ryan Day dialed up a feel-good play worthy of the Hallmark Channel:

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7. Miyan Williams had his best day as a Buckeye, with 15 carries for 147 yards, including a 48-yard touchdown. However, Williams suffered the dreaded "lower body injury" in the second half and was helped off the field and carted to the locker room. With TreVeyon Henderson already out of the game with an injury of his own, true freshman Dallan Hayden saw extended action and racked up 102 yards and a touchdown on 19 carries. When Hayden got dinged up, wide receiver Xavier Johnson filled in and promptly broke off a 71-yard touchdown run (with a key downfield block provided by Marvin Harrison Jr); Johnson added two receptions for 47 yards and recovered a blocked punt on special teams.

8. Although the running attack accounted for 345 yards and 3 touchdowns on 41 attempts (8.4 average), the Buckeyes still had problems in short yardage situations. The Buckeyes ran the ball seven times with one or two yards needed for a first down, with the following results (in game order):


To recap: seven short yardage situations, two successes (one first down, one touchdown), five failures (including a turnover on downs). Not good, which is why we will probably see more play action passing from heavy formations.

9. The Buckeye defense generally played a great game, surrendering only 14 points, 269 total yards (4.2 per play), and 11 first downs while forcing 12 punts (nine after three-and-out drives) and holding Indiana to 3 of 18 (16.7%) on third and fourth down conversions. The defense recorded ten TFLs (including 4 sacks) for 38 yards lost, but they did not force any turnovers and allowed two long gains (a 49 yard pass and a 44 yard run). Safety Lathan Ransom led the way with 9 tackles and 1.5 sacks; linebacker Tommy Eichenberg had 7 tackles and 3 TFLs; linebacker Steele Chambers had 10 tackles and a sack; and end Jack Sawyer had 1.5 sacks.

10. The special teams blocked a punt (Lathan Ransom) that was recovered at the Indiana 2-yard line (Xavier Johnson) and led to a quick touchdown, but also muffed two punts (one recovered by the Hoosiers that they converted into seven points).

11. The refs let both teams play, calling only five penalties all game (three against Ohio State for 15 yards; two against Indiana for 20 yards).

A 2023 DE from Indy that is committed to LSU.

Apparently was offered and on campus today.

No idea what that means as it relates to the big 3 DE’s on our board.

enjoy

In todays game thread some folks were referencing the increase in injuries since we went back to artificial turf. I just stumbled on the following article referencing how the NFL Players union wants to ban, “Slit firm turf fields.” Does anyone know if that’s the type we have in the Shoe?


https://www.foxnews.com/sports/nflpa-calls-immediate-replacement-ban-slit-firm-turf-fields

Play Like a Girl podcast: Justin Fields is finally figuring it out
Meredith Hein via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here


Jamie Sabau-USA TODAY Sports

Alexis also shares her thoughts on if the Eagles could win it all, plus a recap of this weekend’s best games.

On LGHL’s Play Like a Girl podcast, Alexis and Meredith talk everything from Ohio State sports to advocacy for women in sports and all the happenings in between.

Check out the podcast below, and make sure to subscribe wherever you get your podcasts:


Welcome back to the Play Like a Girl podcast! This week, Alexis and Meredith caught up on NFL news, including an update on Alexis’ undefeated Philadelphia Eagles and her thoughts on completing the season undefeated, making it to the Super Bowl, and winning the Super Bowl.

Plus, the pair talk about our resident favorite quarterback Justin Fields’ record-breaking rushing performance Sunday — and how another Ohio State quarterback performed on the ground in Chicago Saturday.

They also review how Team Cat did vs. Team Dog this week and talk about what we expect from Ohio State this weekend against Indiana. Hopefully more offense.


Contact Alexis Chassen
Twitter: @lovelybuckeye

Contact Meredith Hein
Twitter: @MeredithHein

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MC&J: TCU will try and stay undefeated when they take on Texas on Saturday
Brett Ludwiczak via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here


Photo by G Fiume/Getty Images

Plus, picks for six other interesting games outside the Big Ten on Saturday.

Last week ATS: 11-3 (4-3 B1G, 7-0 National)

Season ATS: 75-75-3 (35-39-1 B1G, 40-35-2 National)

If only I could make picks every week like I did last week. Thanks to the huge week, our record is back to even with a month of games left to go, as well as bowl season.

National games:


(All lines courtesy of Draftkings Sportsbook.)

No. 7 LSU (-3.5) v. Arkansas - 12:00 p.m. - ESPN

LSU enters this matchup coming off the emotional win over Alabama last week. After a tough start to the season, Jayden Daniels has become more comfortable in the LSU offense. Not only has Daniels recorded 24 total touchdowns this year, the Arizona State transfer has done a great job at limiting mistakes, only throwing one interception.

After starting the season with a ton of promise, Arkansas has fallen apart, losing four of their last six games The most recent loss came last week when they were defeated in Fayetteville by Liberty. KJ Jefferson has the ability to match Daniels on the ground and through the air, the Arkansas quarterback just isn’t getting much help.

Normally I’d say this game is a textbook scenario to take the Razorbacks. While the idea of taking an unranked home underdog hosting a ranked team coming off a huge win sounds great, this LSU team feels a little different. The Tigers look like they are buying into Brian Kelly’s coaching. Arkansas could make things interesting for a while, I just think LSU ends up winning this game by 7-10 points.

LSU 31, Arkansas 21


Louisville v. No. 10 Clemson (-7) - 3:30 p.m. - ESPN

Are we really sure that Clemson is that much better of a team than Louisville right now? The Cardinals have found a bit of a rhythm, winning their last four games. Malik Cunningham isn’t going to wow anybody with his passing, but he can keep opponents off balance with his ability to run the football. The Louisville offense is pretty balanced, throwing for 221 yards per game, while running for 202 yards per contest.

Clemson is in a lot of trouble right now. The Tigers looked listless in a 35-14 loss to Notre Dame last week. Even though the Tigers are still in the driver’s seat to make the ACC Championship Game, it is obvious they had a bigger goal for this season. It’ll be interesting to see if Dabo Swinney sticks with D.J. Uiagalelei, or turns to freshman quarterback Cade Klubnik.

Some may think the loss to the Fighting Irish might wake the Tigers up. I’m not so sure since Clemson has a number of problems. The Tigers don’t have playmakers on either side of the football that they have had in the past. A dynamic quarterback like Cunningham could cause fits for the Tigers, who are already dealing with confidence issues.

Louisville 28, Clemson 24


No. 9 Alabama (-11.5) v. No. 11 Ole Miss - 3:30 p.m. - CBS

We have all seen this snuff film before. Alabama drops a game and Sabanbot2000 has his team ready to murder in their next game. The Crimson Tide obviously don’t have the receivers that we have seen from them over the last few years. What they do have is Bryce Young. Even though the quarterback isn’t in the Heisman Trophy conversation after winning last year, he is still one of the most dangerous players in college football.

Ole Miss is one of the best teams in the country at running the football. Unfortunately for the Rebels, Alabama doesn’t give up much on the ground, with opponents averaging 104 yards per game rushing against the Crimson Tide. If Alabama is able to slow down Quinshon Judkins, that puts more pressure on Jaxson Dart, who has thrown seven interceptions this year.

Even though Ole Miss has just one loss this year, they haven’t really played anyone aside from LSU. I’m not convinced the Rebels are ready to win, or even keep a game like this close. The Crimson Tide keep themselves in position in the SEC West in case LSU falters down the stretch. Alabama wins their six straight against the Rebels by at least 15 points.

Alabama 45, Ole Miss 23


No. 22 UCF v. No. 17 Tulane (-1.5) - 3:30 p.m. - ESPN2

If at the beginning of the year you told me I’d be writing about this game in November, I would have thought you were crazy. Saturday’s contest in New Orleans will go a long way at determining the New Year’s Six Group of Five representative.

UCF has an offense that is averaging over 500 yards per game. What we don’t know is who is going to be taking the snaps for the Knights. Last week, John Rhys Plumlee missed the 35-28 win over Memphis with a concussion. In Plumlee’s place, Mikey Keene threw for 219 yards and three scores, while running back RJ Harvey rushed for 151 yards and a touchdown.

Tulane does a lot of little things well. The Green Wave are allowing just over 300 yards per game this year, while scoring 33 points. I’m just not convinced this is a good matchup for them. UCF has a lot of tough wins over the last few years, while Tulane hasn’t been tested all that much. I feel like Plumlee will be back, which makes things even tougher for the Green Wave in this game.

UCF 34, Tulane 30


No. 1 Georgia (-16) v. Mississippi State - 7:00 p.m. - ESPN

Under Mike Leach, Mississippi State seems to make a name for themselves by putting up a bunch of points against bad teams, and then folding like a cheap tent against good team. Hell, Leach was even folding chairs himself on the sidelines because he didn’t think his wide receivers deserved to sit in them.


Aside from a road game against Missouri last month, Georgia hasn’t really been tested this year. The Bulldogs destroyed Oregon in the opener, and in the last two weeks they’ve easily handled Florida and Tennessee. Even though Georgia lost a lot of the stars from last year’s title team to the NFL, Stetson Bennett is still in Athens, running an offense that doesn’t make many mistakes.

While there will be plenty of cowbells ringing in Starkville, Georgia is too good to be effected by the road trip and the Mississippi State fans. As we saw last week, Kirby Smart’s team can shut down the pass. It’s not like Mike Leach’s squad can hurt you any other way when you take away their air attack.

Georgia 38, Mississippi State 14


No. 25 Washington v. No. 6 Oregon (-13.5) - 7:00 p.m. - FOX

After dropping games to UCLA and Arizona State, Washington has rebounded with wins in their last three games. The victories might have not been runaways, with the Huskies winning the games against Arizona, Cal, and Oregon State by a combined 20 points, but wins are wins. Amazingly, last week against the Beavers saw Michael Penix Jr. fail to throw for at least 300 yards in a game for the first time this season. Penix finished with 298 yards passing in the win.

If you take away the 49-3 loss to Georgia in the opener, and there is no way the Ducks would be outside the top-four in the CFP rankings. Oregon has scored at least 40 points in each of the eight games following the drubbing by the Bulldogs. With four total touchdowns last week against Colorado, Bo Nix now has 35 scores on the season.

Oregon has largely dominated this series of late, winning 15 of the last 17 meetings with their neighbors to the north. The only two Washington wins during that span came in 2016 and 2017. I feel like the Ducks are going to earn another win on Saturday night, I’m just not sure it will be by two touchdowns. The last three games between the rivals have been decided by a combined 17 points. Washington has the firepower to at least keep the Ducks from running away with the game.

Oregon 41, Washington 31


No. 4 TCU v. No. 18 Texas (-7) - 7:30 p.m. - ABC

Honestly, I’m not even sure why they are playing this game. All I’m hearing is how it is a lock that Texas is going to win, and the College Football Playoff committee is going to be so relieved when the Longhorns hand the Horned Frogs their first loss of the season. I must have missed where Texas became such a reliable team.

Not that I don’t get why people are already burying TCU. The Horned Frogs have been playing with fire for the last month, with all five of their wins coming by 10 points or less. In most of those games, TCU was trailing in the second half. While some might knock the Horned Frogs for needing so long to get things together in games, I actually credit them for never giving up.

Texas certainly is a different team with Quinn Ewers at quarterback. Let’s not kid ourselves though, Bijan Robinson is what makes the Longhorn offense tick. Robinson has 1,129 yards and 12 touchdowns on the ground this year. Even with Robinson and Ewers, Texas still has to work way too hard to win games. The Longhorns almost lost to Iowa State and Kansas State, while dropping an extremely winnable game against Oklahoma State.

I know Austin is going to be rocking on Saturday. It’s not anything TCU can’t handle, though. It just seems like everybody and their mom is on the Longhorns in this game, which makes it hard to pass up taking the touchdown with the Horned Frogs against a Texas team that loves making a meal out of everything they do.

TCU 37, Texas 34

Odds/lines subject to change. T&Cs apply. See draftkings.com/sportsbook for details.

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Contextual Comparisons

Like any sports message board, Buckeye Planet is full of people who are convinced that they're right and that anyone who disagrees with them is not only wrong but also stupid, insane, evil, downright un-American, or combination thereof. What sets us apart is that we also have a few people who have a sense of perspective. I'm not one of them, but I hear they're out there.

This time of year the discussions and arguments among college football fans are about who deserves to be ranked where in the CFP rankings. Statistics can't end those discussions and settle those arguments, because everyone has a different definition of that elusive word "deserves". Even for those who believe that being the best makes you deserving, stats can provide only data, not answers.

Unlike what you'll get from most sports media, we here at BP prefer stats with context. Rather than just compare teams to whom they've played, we prefer numbers that compare teams to everyone whom their opponents have played.

Take scoring offense: Just scoring more than other teams doesn't mean much if you don't answer the age-old question: "Who have they played?" But if you look at Differential Scoring Offense (DSO), the answer to that question is built into the statistic. A DSO of 1 means that you score exactly what your opponents usually give up; a DSO of 2 means you score twice as much; a DSO of 0.5 means you only score half as much. To add more context to the discussion, rigidity is a number from -100 to 100 that indicates how well your DSO holds up against better competition. For more information on BP-Style Stats, see this Glossary.

Rushing Offense

While our example above was scoring offense, the principle works the same for rushing offense. In Differential Rushing Offense (DRO), Air Force is number one in the country. The point here however is to provide context for playoff ranking discussions, so the table below shows the DRO rankings for the top twelve in CFP rankings:

Team	DRO ratio	DRO Rank	CFP Rank
Michigan	1.771	2	3
Mississippi	1.696	4	11
UCLA	1.631	5	12
Oregon	1.407	16	6
Georgia	1.382	18	1
Ohio State	1.382	19	2
Tennessee	1.350	20	5
Alabama	1.314	26	9
TCU	1.263	31	4
LSU	1.209	39	7
Clemson	1.132	46	10
USC	1.132	47	8

Many people prefer to compare teams by yards per carry rather than yards per game. This does add a bit of context, and using differential stats adds even more. The following table shows the top twelve in Differential Yards Per Carry (offense):

Team	DYpC ratio	DYpC Rank	CFP Rank
Michigan	1.457	1	3
Ohio State	1.447	2	2
Alabama	1.421	3	9
UCLA	1.411	4	12
Georgia	1.368	8	1
Oregon	1.290	12	6
Mississippi	1.276	15	11
TCU	1.257	19	4
USC	1.204	23	8
LSU	1.164	28	7
Tennessee	1.100	40	5
Clemson	1.033	56	10

Stats are okay. Stats with context are great. Stats with context that are surprising are among my favorite things. Stats with context that show something surprising about how great Ohio State is.... That's life.

Based on DYpC alone, I could argue that Ohio State has the second-best rushing attack in the country. Does this mean that the Buckeyes' running game doesn't need work? Of course not. This is where rigidity comes into play. Despite being number two in DYpC, the Buckeyes have a subpar rigidity of -35.736, while their prime opponent (Michigan) not only has a slightly better DYpC but also a decent rigidity of 19.254. The upshot is that the Buckeyes have done better against the lesser teams but have struggled, relatively speaking, against the better rushing defenses on their schedule (Penn State, Iowa). Regardless, these differential numbers do show that the Ohio State running game is a good one; the Buckeyes just need to shore up a few things in order to become truly elite on the ground. Buckeye fans seem to love to panic, and the running game has been a prime source of that panic lately. But a little numerical context can provide some much needed perspective, no?

Rushing Defense

Rushing defense is more of a mixed bag for the top twelve:

Team	DRD ratio	DRD Rank	CFP Rank
Georgia	0.476	1	1
Michigan	0.506	3	3
Tennessee	0.549	4	5
Alabama	0.574	7	9
Oregon	0.656	15	6
Louisiana State	0.666	18	7
Ohio State	0.679	21	2
Clemson	0.728	29	10
UCLA	0.789	45	12
Texas Christian	0.834	57	4
Southern Cal	0.909	78	8
Mississippi	1.043	104	11

As with the offense, the Yards Per Carry comparison is probably more valid, and it comes with some surprises:

Team	DYpC ratio	DYpC Rank	CFP Rank
Tennessee	0.681	1	5
Michigan	0.687	2	3
Alabama	0.688	3	9
Georgia	0.705	5	1
Ohio State	0.788	13	2
Louisiana State	0.838	22	7
Oregon	0.845	23	6
UCLA	0.928	41	12
Texas Christian	0.946	52	4
Clemson	0.951	55	10
Mississippi	1.082	98	11
Southern Cal	1.084	99	8

Would you have guessed that the Vols are #1 in the country in Differential Yards per Carry defense?

Yeah... Me either

The most striking thing to me about the rushing defense numbers though is how poor some of the top twelve teams are at stopping the run. There was a time not so long ago when the rushing defense rankings didn't look all that different from the AP top-20.

Passing Offense

Having finally gotten the DSA spreadsheets cranked up for the first time in over a decade, it's a shame that they churned out their first FBS-wide numbers right after the Buckeyes played a starring role in The Perfect Storm II, or at least that's what it looked like from the comfort of my recliner in my man cave. Doubtless, the Buckeyes would have utterly dominated these rankings before Saturday's game against Northwestern. Nevertheless, here they are, with that horrible day included. (North Carolina, with top-five quarterback Drake Maye running the show, is number one in the country in DPO):

Team	DPO ratio	DPO Rank	CFP Rank
Tennessee	1.515	2	5
Ohio State	1.403	9	2
USC	1.328	13	8
Georgia	1.259	17	1
Oregon	1.185	24	6
Alabama	1.168	28	9
LSU	1.126	37	7
Clemson	1.092	45	10
UCLA	1.062	50	12
TCU	1.025	56	4
Mississippi	1.012	61	11
Michigan	0.919	83	3

For decades now, pass efficiency has been considered a better measure for comparing quarterbacks than simple passing yards per game. It's even better when some context is added, as with Differential Passing Efficiency:

Team	DPE ratio	DPE Rank	CFP Rank
Tennessee	1.550	1	5
Ohio State	1.534	2	2
USC	1.246	7	8
Michigan	1.204	11	3
TCU	1.197	13	4
UCLA	1.185	14	12
Oregon	1.174	16	6
LSU	1.163	18	7
Georgia	1.163	19	1
Mississippi	1.121	29	11
Alabama	1.118	30	9
Clemson	1.104	33	10

Of all the comparisons that we've done so far, it is interesting that Offensive Differential Pass Efficiency is the only one where all of the top twelve teams are in the top 33 nationally.

While C.J. Stroud is ahead of Hendon Hooker in this metric, it is notable that the Volunteers as a team are actually ahead of the Buckeyes (in large part due to the nor'easter the Buckeyes played through on Saturday). It is also remarkable how far in front of everyone else those two teams are. North Carolina is third at 1.414, and no one else is above 1.3. It is also noteworthy that Ohio State's Rigidity in this metric is 12.461 while Tennessee's is -23.590, meaning that Ohio State has held up better to their tougher competition than Tennessee has (spoiler: three of Ohio State's opponents are in the top ten in DPE-defense).

Passing Defense

If you were expecting the top teams to be bunched near the top in Pass Defense the way they were for offense, you'll be disappointed. The only thing notable about the Differential Pass Defense numbers is that just two of the top twelve were in the top ten for DPD, with Ohio State being tops among them at number six with a DPD of 0.766, and Alabama at number nine with a DPD of 0.792. Below is the chart for DPE defense. (Illinois is #1 in FBS with DPE of 0.698):

Team	DPE ratio	DPE Rank	CFP Rank
Georgia	0.747	2	1
Alabama	0.765	3	9
Michigan	0.822	8	3
Ohio State	0.869	16	2
Louisiana State	0.882	22	7
Clemson	0.882	23	10
Texas Christian	0.933	48	4
Tennessee	0.947	52	5
Southern Cal	0.948	54	8
UCLA	0.966	60	12
Oregon	1.013	73	6
Mississippi	1.063	91	11

Of note is the presence of three of Ohio State's opponents in the top ten in FBS in Differential Pass Efficiency – Defense: Penn State is at #4, Iowa at #9, and Notre Dame at #10 (Wisconsin, another Ohio State opponent, checks in at #24).

Scoring

Finally we come to the most important numbers: Differential Scoring, both offense and defense, and the the composite number that combines them (see the previously-mentioned Glossary if these things are new to you). In addition to the top twelve, some other teams of note are included:

Team	DSO ratio	DSO Rank	DSD ratio	DSD Rank	DSC power	DSC Rank	CFP Rank
Georgia	1.493	8	0.387	1	3.854	1	1
Ohio State	2.044	1	0.600	7	3.406	2	2
Michigan	1.679	3	0.530	4	3.170	3	3
Tennessee	1.899	2	0.701	20	2.709	4	5
Alabama	1.595	4	0.591	6	2.698	5	9
Illinois	0.991	66	0.476	2	2.080	6	21
Penn State	1.449	10	0.708	21	2.046	7	14
Texas	1.284	23	0.688	16	1.866	8	18
Louisiana State	1.284	22	0.710	22	1.808	10	7
Notre Dame	1.145	42	0.699	19	1.638	14	20
Southern Cal	1.485	9	0.914	47	1.625	16	8
Wisconsin	1.384	13	0.852	39	1.623	17	NR
Clemson	1.352	14	0.855	40	1.581	18	10
Minnesota	0.992	65	0.629	9	1.577	19	NR
Iowa	0.884	81	0.566	5	1.561	20	NR
Oregon	1.421	11	0.981	57	1.448	23	6
UCLA	1.411	12	0.997	59	1.415	26	12
Texas Christian	1.290	19	0.917	49	1.407	27	4
Maryland	1.127	47	0.826	34	1.365	33	NR
Michigan State	1.127	49	0.838	35	1.345	35	NR
North Carolina	1.580	5	1.274	113	1.240	45	15
Mississippi	1.284	24	1.037	72	1.238	46	11
Kentucky	0.869	84	0.717	23	1.212	49	24

There are so many interesting comparisons one could make in the above table. I will point out two and leave the rest to the reader's imagination. First, observe how almost absurdly biased the committee is toward offense. When it comes to the "eye test", they seem to notice only one side of the ball. The second point is something we already knew intuitively, but I don't think I've ever seen it spelled out so dramatically. Compare each B1G team's DSC to its ranking. Some might say that all of those impressive DSC rankings come from playing in a bad conference. I would say that those people don't know how DSC really works. It is a mathematical impossibility for a conference to have that many teams that highly ranked in DSC by beating up on each other, or even by beating up on the weaker members of their own conference, because whatever those better teams are doing to the lesser teams is hurting every other B1G team's differential numbers.

There are many other observations that can be made, but half the fun is discovering things for yourself. Go nuts. If there are specific rankings that you would like to know or perhaps additional calculations you would like to see, just ask.

Jacy Sheldon leads Ohio State’s toppling of Rocky Top
1ThomasCostello via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here


Joseph Scheller/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK

The Dublin, Ohio guard’s defensive play is the foundation of Ohio State’s signature win against the University of Tennessee.

There was an electricity about Tuesday’s Ohio State Buckeyes game even before the clock started to run. In the weeks leading up to the game, Ohio State pushed to get their fans into the Schottenstein Center on Election Day, while Tennessee Volunteers orange stood out throughout the arena. There were pyrotechnics, a loud student section, and a small part of the Best Damn Band in the Land heightening the atmosphere. Once the game began though, it was guard Jacy Sheldon pulling in the collective attention.

The Vols started the game as expected, getting to the hoop. Tennessee featured a starting lineup including transfer student Rickea Jackson who led the SEC in points per game last season, 6-foot-6 center Tamari Key in the paint and local Columbus-area high school star Jordan Horston leading head coach Kellie Harper’s side.

Tennessee struck first, going up four points. Combine that with a tough start for the Scarlet and Gray, missing their initial three shots and earning an early turnover and foul. In response, the Schottenstein Center was reduced to the cavernous multipurpose arena that it is, instead of a sixth player in the stands. In stepped an unforgiving Sheldon.

Why unforgiving? All night Sheldon made the Vols regret any small mistake within her reach.

Down four, Sheldon earned two quick steals turned to assists to Taylor Mikesell and Taylor Thierry. The first, Sheldon anticipating a pass from Jackson beyond the arc, creating a fast break. The second, the guard making even a simple inbound pass difficult for the visitors, quickly finding the outlet to Mikesell. It was the start of a defensive performance that surprised everyone but Sheldon’s teammates.

“I’m used to Jacy being a defensive player,” said Mikesell after the 87-75 victory. “I think we’ve gotten used to playing with each other in our little press and then bringing Madison (Greene) back, it’s good to have three defensive players in the back. We got a lot of stops that helped us on our offense.”

It wasn’t necessarily a surprise that Sheldon was strong defensively. After all, she was named to the B1G All-Defensive Team in 2021-22 on top of her unanimous First Team All-B1G honor. The surprise was how Tennessee couldn’t stop it.

Sheldon met her career high in takeaways Tuesday, in the first half alone. Then in the second she doubled it. The Naismith watch list player’s eight steals came in a variety of ways. Outside of a couple anticipated passes, Sheldon dived to the ground, forced drops and wrestled the ball away from players seven to 12 inches taller.

There was no hesitation. Sheldon was laser-focused on the court, which is nothing new. After making her 1,000th career point last year in another marquee victory, against the Maryland Terrapins, Sheldon appeared annoyed when the announcer shared her accomplishment with the crowd, and pushed attention away following that highlight 21/22 win. On Tuesday, she shifted the focus again.

After a team shooting half of 10% from deep and 39% overall in the first half, Mikesell scored 15 third quarter points and forward Rebeka Mikulášiková’s game-tying three turned the decibel levels up to the ceiling. As every Buckeye began finding their shots, making timely blocks and frustrating the Vols, Sheldon quietly had eight points, four assists and four steals in the second half to maintain the firm foundation she built in the first half.

Tuesday could have been a star player finding a new level to meet an occasion or this season’s Sheldon is different.

“She plays so hard,” said head coach Kevin McGuff. “I don’t think people realize how good of an athlete she is, she’s so quick up the court. She’s got a great first step. She just seemed to make some timely plays on both ends of the floor.”

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How the College Football Playoff picture looks from here
David M Wheeler via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
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Adam Cairns/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK

The 9-0 Buckeyes are ranked No. 2, right in the thick of things.

Coming into the 2022 season – or any season, for that matter – it was easy to say of Ohio State’s team, if they win all of their games, including the Big Ten Championship game, they’re in the playoffs. Sure. The Bucks are in a power conference, play a decently strong schedule, and carry a big reputation. After nine games, that mandate of winning every game still holds. Beat Indiana, beat Maryland, beat TTUN, beat whatever the Big Ten West sends to Indianapolis, and they’re in.

We’re now well into November, and we have a much clearer look at the playoffs — who’s likely to participate and who’s not. The four unbeaten teams occupy the top four positions in the CFP rankings released Tuesday night. That seems right, but what else can we say about the playoff picture?

We can laugh at Oklahoma and Texas A&M, preseason contenders who fell by the wayside long ago. We can at least smile at the recent misfortunes of perennial playoff participants Alabama and Clemson. And when it comes to the Buckeyes, we can certainly smile at the season so far. But we’d better also cross our fingers, because there’s football left to play. Let’s look at how the playoffs stack up.

Any non-Power Five conference teams this year?


The short answer is “no.” In 2021 Cincinnati became the first such team to participate in the CFP, which has been in place since the 2014 season. Cincinnati had a multi-season history of success, they were undefeated, and they had the big win at Notre Dame. There’s nobody this year who meets those criteria, and, let’s face it, an independent (not named Notre Dame) or a team from the Sun Belt, All-American Conference, Conference USA, MAC, or Mountain West would have to be unbeaten with a jaw-dropping win against somebody.

There are currently three one-loss teams: independent Liberty, Coastal Carolina from the Sun Belt, and surprising Tulane, leading the AAC. Although the Green Wave are the only team in this week’s CFP rankings (at No. 17), all three of these teams are engaged in great seasons. For me, Liberty is the most intriguing because of its schedule and because it’s one point away from being undefeated, having lost to a ranked Wake Forest team, 37-36. Liberty has wins over BYU and Arkansas and will face Virginia Tech in a couple of weeks. Not giants, you say? True, but a legitimate schedule that makes Liberty the best of the rest.

What about a two-loss team in this year’s playoffs?


It’s never happened and I’m counting on precedent to keep the Crimson Tide out. But there is a scenario, and one that’s not really unlikely, that would place two-loss LSU in the playoffs. Let’s say that Georgia and LSU win out over their final three games (although LSU must play at Texas A&M, a team desperate, I would think, to have something redeeming to point to). The Dawgs and Tigers would meet in the SEC Championship. While we all might expect Kirby Smart’s guys to keep rolling, what if LSU beat Georgia? Surely, the SEC champs (with wins over Georgia, Alabama, and Ole Miss) are in and, I would think, Georgia too.

I don’t see any other two-loss team with any chance of making the playoffs. Unless, of course, something really weird happens to all of the frontrunners.

So, who’s likely to get in?


The SEC champ, and, if that is LSU, then Georgia as well. If Georgia wins, a one-loss Tennessee, with wins over LSU and Alabama, would also get a berth, I think. The Vols have a pretty easy final three games, with only a trip to Columbia, SC posing any threat. Without unforeseen upsets, I predict two SEC teams from among Georgia, Tennessee, and LSU. Sorry, Bama.

Oops, did I overlook Ole Miss? No. The Rebels are 8-1 (4-1 in the SEC) and play Alabama this weekend. The game is in Oxford, but I think that the Tide will win pretty big. Even if Ole Miss wins – a very big win, no question – they would lose the SEC West tiebreaker to LSU, who beat them by 25, and be shut out of the championship game. The Rebels’ only chance is to win out and have LSU stumble. Then, of course, beat Georgia for the title. As the Brits are so fond of saying, “not bloody likely.”

The winner of the Ohio State vs. Michigan game. We assume that the winner will also win the Big Ten Championship, but what if they lose to, say, Illinois or Wisconsin? I think that OSU or Michigan, with one loss, still gets into the playoffs unless they somehow get blown out in Indianapolis.

That leaves only one spot available for the other three Power Five conferences (and maybe the loser of the Ohio State-Michigan game). TCU is the only unbeaten in this group, and if they win out, they’re in the playoffs. An undefeated conference champ is in. The Frogs have a tough stretch, however, playing at Texas (a team clearly on the rise) and then at home against Baylor and Iowa State. I think that they’ll lose to Texas and maybe one of the others. A one-loss TCU isn’t that appealing. While their strength of schedule is a very respectable No. 42, their wins over then-ranked Oklahoma, Kansas, Oklahoma State, and Kansas State don’t look as impressive as they once did.

Ah, Clemson. Can Dabo sneak in once again? Although they looked bad against Notre Dame and barely beat Syracuse, Florida State, and Wake Forest, I fear that Clemson with one loss and an ACC Championship trophy would get into the playoffs. But it won’t be easy for this not particularly strong team. While their final three games are all at home, Louisville, Miami (FL), and South Carolina won’t be cakewalks. Clemson could also lose to North Carolina in the ACC Championship game.

What about the Tar Heels? Well, they’re sitting at 8-1, 5-0 in the conference. Their one loss was to Notre Dame, 45-32, but they haven’t really got a top-quality win. UNC, too, has a pretty tough finish to their season: at Wake Forest, Georgia Tech in Chapel Hill, and NC State also at home. Winning those three and then beating Clemson for the title would put them in probably. In short, they still have a shot.

The PAC-12 is, as usual, a bit of a mess. No one is undefeated. Oregon, USC, and UCLA are all 8-1; Utah is 7-2. All are good teams. And they’ve all got tough games to go. UCLA has the best chance, with the easiest schedule. If they beat USC, they could claim that fourth playoff slot. The Trojans, on the other hand, would have to beat UCLA and Notre Dame. USC’s one loss was to Utah, by one point. Oregon closes out the regular season against two ranked teams, No. 13 Utah and No. 25 Washington, both at home, and then at rival Oregon State. I wouldn’t be surprised if, when the dust clears out west, there aren’t any PAC-12 teams remaining with a single loss. Oregon is the best of the teams, with its 45-30 win over the Bruins.

Here’s my take, with current CFP rankings in parentheses.

Playoff prediction


1. Georgia (1)
2. Ohio State (2)
3. Tennessee (5)
4. Oregon (6)

But nobody wants to see a replay of the Georgia-Oregon game (49-3, if you don’t remember), so I going to change it.

Second playoff prediction


1. Georgia (1)
2. Ohio State (2)
3. Tennessee (5)
4. Clemson (10), with Oregon (6), Michigan (3), USC (8), in that order, as the next likely teams in

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Class: 2026
Position: Defensive End
School: Loganville (GA) Grayson
Height: 6-foot-3
Weight: 205 lbs

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QB:
Brady Palmer: 6'3" 195 lbs; San Diego (CA) Cathedral Catholic
Brady Smigiel: 6'5 205 lbs; Newbury Park (CA) Newbury Park (Florida St. Decommit)

RB:
Javian Mallory: 6'0" 200 lbs; Boca Raton (FL) West Boca Raton
Savion Hiter: 5'11" 180 lbs; Woodberry Forest (VA) Woodberry Forest
Raycine Guillory: 5'10" 180 lbs; Aledo (TX) Aledo
Carsyn Baker: 6'1" 195 lbs; Fairburn (GA) Langston Hughes
Jonaz Walton: 5'9" 200 lbs; Carrollton (GA) Central
Deshonne Redeaux: 5'10" 195 lbs; Westlake Village (CA) Oaks Christian
Ja'Michael Jones: 5'11" 185 lbsl Montgomery (AL) Pike Road
Derrek Cooper: 6'1" 200 lbs; Hollywood (FL) Chaminade Madonna
Jae Lamar: 6'0" 205 lbs; Moultrie (GA) Colquitt County
Tyriq Green: 6'0" 195 lbs; Marietta (Ga) Kell

WR:
Chris Henry Jr.: 6’3” 170 lbs; Santa Ana (CA) Mater Dei
Jaeden Ricketts: 6'0" 187 lbs; Pataskala (OH) Watkins Memorial
Jabari Brady: 6'3" 185 lbs; Ft. Lauderdale (FL) Chaminade Madonna
Brody Keefe: 6'3" 185 lbs; Waxhaw (NC) Myers Park
Devin Carter: 6'0" 165 lbs; Douglasville (GA) Douglas County (Florida St. Decommit)
Cederian Morgan: 6'5" 210 lbs; Alexander City (AL) Benjamin Russell
Jabari Mack: 6'0" 190 lbs; Destrehan (LA) Destrehan
Connor Salmin: 6'1" 190 lbs; Purcellville (VA) Woodgrove
Messiah Hampton: 6'0" 170 lbs; Rochester (NY) James Monroe
Brayden Robinson: 5'8" 160 lbs; Red Oak (TX) Red Oak
Mike Brown: 5'11" 175 lbs; Spring (TX) Legacy School of Sports Sciences
Jerquaden Guilford: 6'1" 174 lbs; Ft. Wayne (IN) Northrop
Madden Williams: 6'1" 185 lbs; Bellflower (CA) St. John Bosco
Naeem Burroughs: 5'11" 160 lbs; Jacksonville (FL) The Bolles School
Ryan Mosley: 6'2" 196 lbs; Carrollton (GA) Carrollton
Kayden Dixon-Wyatt: 6'2" 180 lbs; Santa Ana (CA) Mater Dei
Jason Lopez: 5'11" 170 lbs; Hollywood (FL) Chaminade Madonna
Brock Boyd: 6'2" 180 lbs; Southlake (TX) Southlake Carroll
Jalen Lott: 6'0" 170 lbs; Frisco (TX) Panther Creek

TE:
Corbyn Fordham: 6'4" 215 lbs; Jacksonville (FL) The Bolles School
Kendre Harrison: 6'7" 237 lbs; Reidsville (NC) Reidsville Senior
Xavier Tiller: 6'4" 205lbs; Fairburn (GA) Langston Hughes
Kaiden Prothro: 6'6" 210 lbs; Bowdon (GA) Bowdon
Evan Jacobson: 6'7" 220 lbs; Waukee (IA) Waukee
Jude Cascone: 6'2" 190 lbs; Marietta (GA) Walton
Heze Kent: 6'5" 250 lbs; Brunswick (GA) Brunswick
Brock Harris: 6'6" 238 lbs; Saint George (UT) Pine View
Mack Sutter: 6'5" 225 lbs; Dunlap (IL) Dunlap
Mark Bowman: 6'4" 215 lbs; Santa Ana (CA) Mater Dei

OL:
Maxwell Riley: 6'5" 265 lbs; Avon (OH) Avon Lake
Sam Greer: 6'8" 290 lbs; Akron (OH) Hoban
Adam Guthrie: 6'7" 285 lbs; Washington Court House (OH) Miami Trace
Tyler Merrill: 6'5" 305 lbs; Mechanicsburg (PA) Cumberland Valley
Micah Smith: 6'6" 295 lbs; Ft. Pierce (FL) Vero Beach
Da'Ron Parks: 6'5" 280 lbs; Sarasota (FL) Cardinal Mooney
Jackson Cantwell: 6'8" 300 lbs; Nixa (MO) Nixa
Felix Ojo: 6'6" 285 lbs; Mansfield (TX) Lake Ridge
Grant Wise: 6'4" 310 lbs; Milton (FL) Pace
Drew Evers: 6'3" 285 lbs; Flower Mound (TX) Flower Mound
Keenyi Pepe: 6'7" 295 lbs; Bradenton (FL) IMG Academy
Darius Gray: 6'2" 277 lbs; Richmond (VA) St. Christopher's School
Immanuel Iheanacho: 6'6" 345 lbs; Rockville (MD) Georgetown Prep
John Turntine III: 6'3" 305 lbs; Ft. Worth (TX) North Crowley
Pierre Dean: 6'5" 305 lbs; Clemmons (NC) West Forsyth
Breck Kolojay: 6'5" 295 lbs; Bradenton (FL) IMG Academy
J.B. Shabazz: 6'7" 295 lbs; Kernersville (NC) East Forsyth
Sam Utu: 6'4" 295 lbs; Orange (CA) Orange Lutheran
Tommy Tofi: 6'7" 340 lbs; San Francisco (CA) Archbishop Riordan
Zaden Krempin: 6'5" 270 lbs; Prosper (TX) Prosper
Day'jon Moore: 6'3" 305 lbs; Willis (TX) Willis
Gabriel Osenda: 6'7" 320 lbs; Chattanooga (TN) Baylor School
Samuel Roseborough Jr.: 6'5" 285 lbs; Clearwater (FL) Clearwater

DL:
Deuce Geralds: 6'3" 265 lbs; Suwanee (GA) Collins Hill
Preston Carey: 6'4" 282 lbs; Huntington (NY) St. Anthony’s
Bryce Perry-Wright: 6'3" 255 lbs; Buford (GA) Buford
Zion Elee: 6'5" 225 lbs; Baltimore (MD) St. Frances Academy
Cameron Brooks: 6'4" 225 lbs; Thomasville (GA) Thomas County Central
Elijah Golden: 6'4" 260 lbs; Bradenton (FL) IMG Academy
Derek Coleman-Brusa: 6'4" 230 lbs; Seattle (WA) Kennedy Catholic
Jermaine Kinsler: 6'7" 260 lbs; Oradell (NJ) Bergen Catholic
Jake Kreul: 6'3" 230 lbs; Bradenton (FL) IMG Academy
Jamarion Carlton: 6'4" 238 lbs; Temple (TX) Temple
Carter Luckie: 6'5" 250 lbs; Norcross (GA) Norcross
Luke Wafle: 6'4" 230 lbs; Princeton (NJ) Hun School
Aiden Harris: 6'3" 240 lbs; Matthews (NC) Weddington
Andrew Harris: 6'2" 220 lbs; Matthews (NC) Weddington
Shaun Scott: 6'3" 230 lbs; Santa Ana (CA) Mater Dei
Carter Meadows: 6'6" 215 lbs; Washington (DC) Gonzaga
Rodney Dunham: 6'4" 225 lbs; Charlotte (NC) Myers Park
Jerimy Finch Jr.: 6'2" 240 lbs; Indianapolis (IN) Warren Central
Alexander Haskell: 6'3" 230lbs; Philadelphia (PA) St. Joseph's Prep
Cameron Brickle: 6'2" 305lbs; Malvern (PA) Malvern Prep
Keysaun Eleazer: 6'5" 190 lbs; Raleigh (NC) Southeast Raleigh
Elijah Littlejohn: 6'3" 215 lbs; Charlotte (NC) West Mecklenberg
Ebenezar Ewetade: 6'4" 230 lbs; Garner (NC) South Garner
Dre Quinn: 6'4" 220 lbs; Norcross (GA) Greater Atlanta Christian School

LB:
Talanoa Ili: 6'4" 215 lbs; Orange (CA) Lutheran
Keenan Harris: 6'1" 200 lbs; St. Louis (MO) University
Storm Miller: 6'3" 220 lbs; Strongsville (OH) Strongsville
Kosi Okpala: 6'1" 215 lbs; Katy (TX) Mayde Creek
Anthony Jones: 6'3" 240 lbs; Mobile (AL) St. Paul's Episcopal
Jamarion Phillips: 6'0" 220 lbs; Dallas (TX) South Oak Cliff
Jakobe Clapper: 6'2" 196 lbs; Cincinnati (OH) St. Xavier
Anthony Davis: 6'2" 200 lbs; Loganville (GA) Grayson
Shaun Scott: 6'3" 230 lbs; Santa Ana (CA) Mater Dei
Kenneth Goodwin: 6'1" 205 lbs; Las Vegas (NV) Desert Pines
Cincere Johnson: 6'3" 225 lbs; Cleveland (OH) Glenville Academic Campus
Tyler Atkinson: 6’3” 190 lbs; Loganville (GA) Grayson
Jaiden Roper: 6'1" 207 lbs; Hollywood (FL) Chaminade Madonna
Bryant Junius: 6'0" 190 lbs; Hollywood (FL) Chaminade Madonna
Brayden Rouse: 6'3" 208 lbs; Marietta (GA) Kell

DB:
Jakob Weatherspoon: 5'11" 175 lbs; Avon (OH) Avon
Jireh Edwards: 6'2" 192 lbs; Baltimore (MD) St. Frances
Elbert Hill: 5'10" 161 lbs; Akron (OH) Hoban
Zechariah Fort: 5'11" 180 lbs; Bradenton (FL) IMG Academy
Corey Sadler: 5'11" 185 lbs; Detroit (MI) Cass Tech
Victor Singleton: 6'0" 167 lbs; Toledo (OH) Central Catholic
Bralan Womack: 6'0" 185 lbs; Flowood (MS) Hartfield Academy
Blaine Bradford: 6'2" 195 lbs; Baton Rouge (LA) Baton Rouge Catholic
Samari Matthews: 6'0" 180 lbs; Cornelius (NC) William A. Hough
Jordan Thomas: 6'1" 185 lbs; Oradell (NJ) Bergen Catholic
J'Zavien Currence: 6'3" 210 lbs; Rock Hill (SC) South Pointe
Nassir McCoy: 6'2" 180 lbs; Buford (GA) Buford
Enarri White: 6'1" 190 lbs; Weldon (NC) Roanoke Rapids
Isaiah Williams: 6'0" 190 lbs; Missouri City (TX) Fort Bend Marshall
Simeon Caldwell: 6'3" 185 lbs; Jacksonville (FL) The Bolles School
Jett Washington: 6'5" 200 lbs; Las Vegas (NV) Bishop Gorman
Amari Sabb: 5'9" 165 lbs; Glassboro (NJ) Glassboro
Zaiden McDonald: 6'1" 190 lbs; Newark (NJ) Malcolm X Shabazz
Donovan Webb: 6'0" 175 lbs; Frisco (TX) Panther Creek
Joey O'Brien: 6'3" 185 lbs; Glenside (PA) La Salle College
Kaden Gebhardt: 6'2" 200 lbs; Lewis Center (OH) Olentangy

ATH:
Justice Fitzpatrick: 6'0" 165 lbs; Ft Lauderdale (FL) St Thomas Aquinas

K/P:
Noah Sidan: 5'11" 170 lbs; Hollywood (FL) Chaminade Madonna

Committed Elsewhere:
Messiah Mickens: 5'11" 185 lbs; Camp Hill (PA) Trinity (Penn State)
Tony Cumberland: 6'5'" 250 lbs; Scottsdale (AZ) Desert Mountain (Oregon)
Jared Curtis: 6'3" 210 lbs; Nashville (TN) Nashville Christian (Georgia Decommit)
Will Griffin: 6'3" 215 lbs; Tampa (FL) Jesuit (Florida)
Efrem White: 6'3" 155 lbs; Vero Beach (FL) Vero Beach (Florida St.)
Carson Sneed: 6'6" 230 lbs; Nashville (TN) Donelson Christian Academy (Tennessee)
Faizon Brandon: 6'4" 191 lbs; Greensboro (NC) Grimsley (Tennessee)
Jonas Williams: 6'3" 195 lbs; New Lenox (IL) Lincoln Way East (Oregon)
Troy Huhn: 6'4" 205 lbs; San Marcos (CA) Mission Hills (Penn St.)
Jaden O'Neal: 6'3" 215 lbs; Harbor City (CA) Narbonne (Oklahoma)
Dia Bell: 6'2" 195 lbs; Ft. Lauderdale (FL) American Heritage (Texas)
Noah Grubbs: 6'4" 188 lbs; Lake Mary (FL) Lake Mary (Notre Dame)
Jonathan Hatton Jr.: 6'0" 205 lbs; Cibolo (TX) Steele (Oklahoma)
Dorian Barney: 6'1" 175 lbs; Carrollton (GA) Carrollton (Alabama Decommit)
Ryder Mix: 6'4" 220 lbs; Frisco (TX) Lone Star (Oklahoma)
Xavier Griffin: 6'4" 210 lbs; Gainesville (GA) Gainesville (USC)
Shadarius Toodle: 6'3" 210 lbs; Mobile (AL) Cottage Hill Christian Academy (Auburn)
Brodie McWhorter: 6'2" 195 lbs; Cartersville (GA) Cass (West Virginia)
Zavion Griffin-Haynes: 6'6" 220 lbs; Rolesville (NC) Rolesville (North Carolina Decommit)
Damarius Yates: 5'9" 180 lbs; De Kalb (MS) Kemper County (Mississippi St.)
Trashawn Ruffin: 6'3' 307 lbs; Mount Olive (NC) North Duplin (Texas A&M)
Aaron Gregory: 6'2" 170 lbs; Douglasville (GA) Douglas County (Texas A&M)
Samu Moala: 6"3" 200 lbs; Lawndale (CA) Leuzinger (Texas A&M)
Camdin Portis: 6'0" 165 lbs; Charlotte (NC) Myers Park (Miami, Fla.)
Thomas Davis Jr.: 6'2" 220 lbs; Matthews (NC) Weddington (Notre Dame)
Lincoln Keyes: 6'6" 220 lbs; Saline (MI) Saline (Georgia)
Will Conroy: 6'3" 275lbs; Cleveland (OH) St. Ignatius (Oklahoma)
Denairius Gray: 6'2" 184 lbs; Hollywood (FL) Chaminade Madonna (Auburn)
Ben Nichols: 6'5" 315 lbs; Davison (MI) Davison (Notre Dame)
Peyton Dyer: 6'1" 195 lbs; Duluth (GA) Duluth (USC)

Film Preview: Ohio State takes on Indiana creating a huge bounce back opportunity for the Buckeyes
Chris Renne via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
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Photo by Michael Allio/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images

Ohio State’s struggles have been well-documented, despite having Indiana on the schedule next they still have a lot to prove as the season approaches its end.

Ohio State has survived a relatively tough stretch over the last with matchups at home against Iowa, on the road for Penn State, and finishing off the three-game stretch with a trip to Northwestern. The first two games there were expected to be physical battles, but the latter with Northwestern tested the Buckeyes more than expected.

The Northwestern game exasperated the run game issues for Ohio State, and after the third week in a row, all eyes will be on the Buckeyes’ ground game. There is not a lot that went right against Northwestern due to the weather, but the Buckeyes did find success in running quarterback C.J. Stroud. With Indiana on the horizon, there is an opportunity for Ohio State to regain its dominant form.


Indiana’s Offense


Ohio State has played well defensively the last three weeks with some incredible individual performances intertwined. The Hoosiers offense has struggled to find consistent success this season, making this a favorable matchup for the Buckeyes. Indiana has struggled to establish any semblance of a run game, this weighs on the offense, especially their downfield passing principals.

Like many teams across the country Indiana tries to establish the run using zone run game philosophy. They run a variety of inside zone and outside zone from different looks in the backfield. In this 3rd-and-1 situation, Indiana is in a two-back set in 20-personnel. This formational look widens out the defensive backs and if teams overcommit numbers to the box, Indiana will try to hurt teams throwing the ball from this formation. In this case, they run inside zone with the receivers each running a route.

The RPO game for Indiana is a significant part of their identity, and they rarely run without a passing look off of it. In this case, they choose to hand the ball off because Michigan plays man-coverage on the outside and they have enough numbers to make the run action work to gain the needed yard.


Moving on to Indiana’s matchup against Penn State, backup quarterback Jack Tuttle was running the show with starter Connor Bazelak out with an injury. Tuttle is a much more willing runner and has the ability to get out into space. Whether this is something Indiana has a package for this week or not is still to be determined.

Given Ohio State’s struggles last week stopping the quarterback keep, this is something Ohio State needs to have on its radar. Indiana runs the read option off their inside zone look, and Penn State crashes down on the running back giving Tuttle the opportunity to pull the ball. Tuttle makes a big play with his feet off a scheme that gave the Buckeyes fits last week, so it’ll be interesting to see if this look finds its way into the game plan for the Hoosiers.


In the last play on the offensive side of the ball for Indiana, the Hoosiers are down in the red zone. The next play shows how Indiana utilizes their running back as a pass catcher, but before looking at the final play, Indiana does have a solid foundation for downfield passing. Indiana tries to attack defenses vertically, this is done off RPOs and vertical passing concepts. Ohio State’s corners will be challenged this week off Indiana’s philosophies, but a strong showing can build a lot of confidence for Ohio State’s secondary.

When that vertical passing game is taken away, the Hoosiers find creative ways to get their running backs and tight ends involved in the passing game. Michigan does a good job of limiting the vertical passing game, but Indiana was keyed in on a tendency the Wolverines show in the red zone. Indiana pushes the tight end up the field vertically knowing the safety will carry him up the field and then take him in man-coverage.

The tight end breaks inside taking the safety away from that part of the field opening up space for the running back wheel route. For the running back he now just has to beat the linebacker who takes a bad angle starting the play moving toward the line of scrimmage, this gives the running back the space needed to make the catch and score. Ohio State will have to be disciplined and strong in their coverage responsibilities to limit plays like this one.

What Ohio State will look to attack in Indiana’s defense?


A good offensive performance against Indiana – just like the bad offensive performance against Northwestern – will not be an indictment of how Ohio State will fair the rest of the season. Indiana ranks a lowly 105th in opponents' yards per game and 107th in opponents' points per game defensively. Any gains made this week will need to be taken with a grain of salt.

The Buckeyes have scored more than 30 points in 18 consecutive games against the Hoosiers, so this is a great opportunity for Ohio State to have a get-right game. Indiana has struggled in keeping teams off the scoreboard. The Hoosier defense gives up scores on 80.64% of opponents trips to the red zone and 33.5 points per game. A perfect opportunity for Ohio State’s offense to find success and regain some confidence.

Looking at Indiana in the red zone to get started, they are playing Penn State who has a 1st-and-10 from the 11-yard line. Penn State is in a full house pistol look, which Ohio State doesn’t run, but the 12-personnel is a grouping that the Buckeyes run. Indiana lines up with six players on the line of scrimmage, they bring down a linebacker to the field side and a safety to the short side. Penn State runs an inside zone, they are able to equate numbers – something Ryan Day has mentioned a lot – and they get up to the second level. Indiana loses the battle and Penn State is able to find the end zone.


Indiana’s head coach Tom Allen brought an aggressive philosophy to Indiana when he was brought in as the defensive coordinator. Now as the head coach, this is a defining characteristic of his program. This shows up in short-yardage situations, and on 3rd/4th down looks as well. Indiana plays Cover-0 and brings everybody except the corner into the box. They shoot off the line at the snap and this type of aggressiveness allows them to get a tackle in the backfield. This is going to provide a huge challenge for Ohio State this week, and based on the last few weeks this might be a thorn in the side of the Buckeyes again.


Indiana runs a wide variety of coverages willing to throw basically any look, they lean on Cover-3, Cover-2, and Quarters primarily. In the first coverage look, Indiana is running Cover-3. Penn State tries to attack the coverage by running verticals, they run a tight end up the seam creating a window in between the linebacker and safety. This is an area of the field Ohio State has attacked successfully in their recent matchups against Indiana.


In the next play, Indiana is lined up in a 1-high shell trying to give the impression they will have a single high safety. Indiana rolls their safeties to 2-high and is running Cover-2, against this defense the middle of the field is the weakness of the defense and on the outside, the hole shot is where quarterbacks will look to attack. Michigan runs a switch concept to the field side crossing up the corner and forcing the safety out wide. On the backside, they run a delayed crossing route, this comes open in the middle of the field. The Michigan receiver is able to catch the ball for the big game.


There are aspects of Indiana’s team that should give Ohio State some challenges, but the overall feeling of this game should be a comfortable win. Indiana does not have a dynamic quarterback or a reliable run game which allows opposing teams to limit them offensively from base personnel packages. For the Hoosiers to find success, they will need to find a run game and pass protection to allow for their offense to push the ball downfield.

Offensively, the two main challenges will be in protecting C.J. Stroud against the blitz and picking up first downs in obvious run situations. The addition of Stroud as a runner can put Indiana’s backside EDGE defenders into a bind which should help the play side. Indiana has found success in those short-yardage situations against some talented football teams, so the Buckeyes will need to be at their best Saturday to keep drives alive.

If the Buckeyes can establish the run, protect Stroud, and play sound defense this game should never be in doubt on Saturday. For Indiana following the game plans of some previous opponents is where they should start. If the Hoosiers can stop the run, it won’t help them win, but it will tell us a lot about the Buckeyes.

For the Buckeyes, it’s time to show just how dominant a team they can be in all facets against a familiar opponent. A dominant win Saturday won’t change the prognostications of Ohio State’s season but will get them headed in the right direction to close out the year.

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LGHL Asks: How do you feel about Northwestern, TTUN, Saturday’s Indiana game?
Matt Tamanini via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here


Adam Cairns/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK

You ask, we answer. Sometimes we ask, others answer. And then other times, we ask, we answer.

Every day for the entirety of the Ohio State football season, we will be asking and answering questions about the team, college football, and anything else on our collective minds of varying degrees of importance. If you have a question that you would like to ask, you can tweet us @LandGrant33 or if you need more than 280 characters, send an email HERE.

I don’t know about you, but I’m still trying to shake off the funk that was last weekend’s game against Northwestern. Coming out of the house of horrors that is Ryan Field, undoubtedly the Ohio State fanbase has thoughts about that game, The Game, and this weekend’s Indiana game, so we have a set of questions to figure out exactly where Buckeye fans stand.

Question 1: On a scale of 1-10, how concerned were you after the win over Northwestern?


One of the themes of this college football season for me has been how emotionally volatile we are as a fan base. We here in Buckeye Nation love our team and that can manifest as anything from unbridled pride and passion to unfettered fear and frustration. So, coming out of the weird weather in Evanston last weekend, we want to see how you are processing the game.

On Twitter last Saturday, we saw everything from dismissive rationalizations to complete and utter meltdowns, but I would imagine that with the benefit of nearly a full week’s distance, some of those extreme emotions have mellowed a little.

So, let us know what your emotional takeaway was from the game as the Buckeyes head into the final quarter of the regular season.

Question 2: What best describes your feelings about The Game?


In addition to Ohio State fans’ regular emotional swings, another truth about as a collective fan base is that we are never not thinking about That Team Up North. While the Buckeyes remain ahead of the Skunk Bears in the College Football Playoff rankings and all forms of Las Vegas odds, the Corn and Blue continue to look like a team worthy of worry heading into the final game of the regular season.

Do you think that OSU is on the verge of back-to-back losses to its rival? Or, are the Harboys vastly overrated? Let us know.

Question 3: What do you think the outcome of Saturday’s game against Indiana will be?


The last time that the Hoosiers came to Columbus, Tom Allen’s squad gave the Buckeyes a little bit of a scare thanks to a fourth-quarter comeback. While that 2020 IU team was significantly better than this year’s version, Ryan Day and company will undoubtedly be on the lookout for upset potential given that history and what they dealt with last week.

So, do you think that the Buckeyes will bounce back to their true form in (hopefully) normal weather this weekend? Or, will their struggles continue against another one of the Big Ten’s bottom teams?


Have your voice heard and share your thoughts on the Buckeyes here:


Welcome to SB Nation Reacts, a survey of fans across the NCAA. Throughout the year we ask questions of the most plugged-in Ohio State fans and fans across the country. Sign up here to participate.

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Ohio State men’s basketball vs Charleston Southern: Game preview and prediction
Brett Ludwiczak via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here


Joseph Maiorana-USA TODAY Sports

Following Monday night’s win over Robert Morris, the Buckeyes return to the court tonight at Charleston Southern.

Following a season-opening 91-53 win over Robert Morris on Monday night, Ohio State is back on the hardwood tonight, hosting the Charleston Southern Buccaneers. This will be the second of three home games to open the season for the Buckeyes before they head to Hawaii to play three games in the Maui Invitational.

Ohio State couldn’t have asked for a better start to the season with the victory over Robert Morris on Monday night. After a back-and-forth first nine minutes of the game, the Buckeyes took the lead for good when Zed Key hit a three-pointer with 11:11 left in the first half to give Ohio State a 16-15 lead. The Buckeyes would extend the lead to 42-28 at halftime, and building on that lead in the second half to earn the 38-point victory.

The best story to come out of the opener was the return of Justice Sueing, who only played in two games last season. After playing a total of 31 minutes and scoring 12 points in those two games last year, Sueing scored 20 points and recorded three steals in 24 minutes on Monday night. The 20 points by the guard was his second-highest scoring output in an Ohio State uniform, with his high mark with the school coming in the 2021 Big Ten Tournament Final against Illinois, where he scored 22 points in the overtime loss.

Adam Cairns/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK

Sueing is going to be a crucial piece to the Buckeyes this year, since he is familiar with the style of basketball head coach Chris Holtmann wants to play, and he knows exactly what Holtmann expects out of his players on and off the court. This year’s Ohio State team has a ton of new pieces between the crop of talented freshmen that have joined the team, along with a number of transfers.

A couple transfers that asserted themselves on Monday night were Issac Likekele from Oklahoma State and Tanner Holden from Wright State. Likekele nearly notched a double-double in his first game with the Buckeyes, finishing with nine points and nine rebounds, as well as six assists. Likekele was in the starting lineup for Ohio State against Robert Morris, while Holden came off the bench and hit all five of his field goal attempts, finishing with 12 points in 18 minutes.

The freshmen were led by Brice Sensabaugh, who showed why he was Florida’s Gatorade Player of the Year, scoring 17 points in 18 minutes off the bench. Sensabaugh almost recorded a double-double in his first collegiate game, adding nine rebounds to his scoring output. Georgia Gatorade Player of the Year Bruce Thornton, Roddy Gayle Jr., and Felix Okpara also saw a healthy amount of time in Monday’s victory, with the trio each playing at least 13 minutes.

Along with Sueing, the other key returning player for Ohio State this year is Zed Key. After playing mostly down in the paint during his first two years in Columbus, Key used the offseason to expand his range. After not taking a three-pointer in his first 60 games in the scarlet and gray, Key attempted three triples on Monday, hitting two of his long distance shots. Key finished with 13 points and 10 rebounds, marking the third double-double of his career. Key’s first two double-doubles came against Cleveland State in 2020 and at Rutgers in February.

Preview


Tonight’s opponent is the Charleston Southern Buccaneers, who won their season opener on Monday, beating Division-II Toccoa Falls 83-52. Claudell Harris Jr. led the team with 26 points in 28 minutes off the bench. Cheikh Faye, Taje’ Kelly, and Kalib Clinton were the other three Buccaneers that were able to reach double digits in the scoring column in the easy victory. Even though Charleston Southern won by 31 points, they didn’t exactly light it up from the field, hitting 38% of their field goal attempts, and just 23.5% of their three-point attempts.

The Buccaneers are now in their 18th season under head coach Barclay Radebaugh, who has a 217-299 record during his time at the school. Radebaugh was named the Big South Coach of the Year in 2012 and 2015, but Charleston Southern has struggled recently, posting just a 9-43 record over the last two seasons. The Buccaneers are working to try and earn their first, and only, NCAA Tournament appearance since 1997 when they lost to UCLA 109-75 in the first round.

Despite their recent struggles, Ohio State head coach Chris Holtmann is familiar with the Charleston Southern head coach, who he faced during his time at Gardner Webb, posting a 4-2 record against the Buccaneers. Holtmann said in Wednesday’s press conference that Radebaugh “does a really good job” and that they “have a young group with a couple all-conference-caliber players who are really tough.” Charleston Southern beat Missouri a couple years ago, so the Buckeyes can’t take anything for granted.

Not only will Ohio State have to keep tabs on Harris, who was second the team last year with 10.3 points per game, the Buckeyes will look to lock down Tahlik Chavez. The junior guard struggled in the opener, going 1-12 from the field and scoring just five points. Last year Chavez was the team’s leading scoring with 11.7 points per game. Chavez is a big threat from behind the arc, as he was able to hit at least five three-pointers in seven games last season.

Holtmann is well aware of just how dangerous Chavez is when it comes to scoring. Taje’ Kelly is another player that Ohio State will have to keep tabs on in tonight’s game. Holtmann described Kelly as “a big kid and is a load down low”. Listed at 253 pounds, Kelly is going to give the Buckeyes a physical test in the paint.

Prediction


Much like Monday night’s game, Ohio State shouldn’t have too much trouble with Charleston Southern tonight. While we have seen the Buckeyes struggle in games against lesser competition in the past, Ohio State looked pretty locked in for the final 30 minutes of the game earlier this week.

With so many new parts on the team between freshmen and transfers, Holtmann knows how important these games are, even if they don’t have any value come March when the selection committee is deciding the NCAA Tournament field. What Holtmann’s goal is with these first three games of the year is to get all the new faces to gel with returning starters Justice Sueing, Zed Key, and Eugene Brown III, who missed Monday night’s game due to a concussion. Ohio State’s first game in Maui is less than two weeks away, and the Buckeyes will see a serious step up in competition when they take on San Diego State.

Even though the opponent is one of the weaker ones Ohio State will take on this year, the Buckeye players are hungry to state their cases for playing time. It wouldn’t be surprising to see tonight’s game look a lot like Monday’s game, especially if Charleston Southern struggles from the field, which they did at times in their opener against Toccoa Falls.


ESPN BPI: Ohio State 96.2%
Time: 6:30 p.m. ET
TV: BTN

LGHL score prediction: Ohio State 86, Charleston Southern 51

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Bucketheads Podcast: Analyzing trends from Ohio State’s first game of the season
Connor Lemons via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here


Adam Cairns/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK

After moving past Robert Morris with ease, the Buckeyes take on their next daunting challenger — Charleston Southern.

‘Bucketheads’ is LGHL’s men’s basketball podcast, hosted by Connor Lemons and Justin Golba. Every episode they give you the latest scoop on the Ohio State Buckeyes and everything else happening in the college hoops world.

Subscribe: RSS | Apple | Spotify | Stitcher | Google Podcasts | iHeart Radio


Following Ohio State’s 91-53 win Monday night, Connor and Chris — who is pinch hitting for Justin — discuss what trends we can pull from the Buckeyes’ season-opening win. Will the speed with which they played on Monday night carry over for the rest of the season? Could we see Ohio State make big leaps in tempo and defensive efficiency this season, based on what we’re seeing early?

The guys also briefly discuss Chris Holtmann’s comments from Wednesday regarding the 2023 class. Could the Buckeyes add another piece to the 2023 late in the cycle — a la a Bronny James? This would largely depend on how many players transfer out in the spring.

Which lead them into another topic — after one game, is Ohio State’s nine-man rotation already established? If not, how can the three players who currently sit on the outside of that top-nine break in?


Connect with the Podcast:
Twitter: @BucketheadsLGHL

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Twitter: @lemons_connor

Connect with Chris:
Twitter: @ChrisRenneCFB

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Ohio State returns home with visitors on tap
Caleb Houser via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here


Adam Cairns/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK

The Buckeyes are continuing to bring in several recruits for game day visits.

Ohio State is back at home this weekend after a couple week hiatus, meaning the coaching staff is once again using the opportunity to host some of their top national and in-state targets in multiple classes. As they have all season long to this point, the game day visits have been plentiful, and this weekend will be no different as more than a couple of guys have made it known that theywill be on site to see the Buckeyes take on Indiana on Saturday for the noon kickoff.

Only three regular season games left on the calendar, the end isn’t too far off and that means signing day for the 2023 class is quickly approaching. Though majority of the class is of course locked in, crunch time has been in full effect for weeks and the coaches are certainly still doing their best to add additional elite talent to the fold. Only a few more limited spots up for grabs, it’s going to be an interesting couple of weeks to see if Ohio State is able to land the few more targets that they’ve long been after.

Top in-state receiver in town this weekend to see OSU


The receiver position at Ohio State continues to not only be one of the more successful position groups in Columbus, but nationally as well. Whether it’s the current guys on the roster or position coach Brian Hartline’s efforts on the recruiting trail, receiver production is really at an all-time high for the Buckeyes. Fortunately, those efforts look to be continuing not only in the present classes, but even the future cycles as well.

Heading to Columbus this weekend, class of 2026 receiver Chris Henry Jr. shared via Twitter that he’d be making the trek from Cincinnati to see the Buckeyes in action. Son of the late Chris Henry Sr., the 6-foot-3, 170 pound in-state target already holds an Ohio State offer which he received this past summer. A handful of other offers to his name from the likes of Miami, UCONN, Marshall, and a few more, the Buckeyes are certainly the biggest suitor currently in the mix, but surely more will follow suit.

Unranked as of now on his 247Sports profile, it’s only a matter of time before the freshman is one of the higher ranked prospects in all of his class. The beneficial aspect for the Buckeyes is having yet another in-state elite player who plays the position where Ohio State is seeing some major success. Odds are this will be a recruitment that is highly talked about for the next couple of years, and with Hartline already fast at work, the likelihood of him being closely linked to the Buckeyes is pretty good.

At any rate, this is a recruitment that the staff will look to keep at home when the time comes.

Pair of under-the-radar prospects ready to see game day


Evaluation is a steady theme in the recruiting realm, and while the Buckeyes typically have their eyes set on the top players nationally, under-the-radar recruits still attract a solid amount of attention. Whether it’s their position or the prep programs they suit up for, many times these prospects that don’t have all of the high rankings turn out to be great players in their own right without all of the accolades.

In the current cycle, the staff is all set when it comes to player evaluations this late in the game, but with the future classes that are down the road, evaluations are constantly being made. Not in any rush, the Buckeyes can take their time seeing various younger players and make their early assumptions and two of those younger players will be on hand this weekend for game day visits.

First on the list, class of 2025 defensive lineman Brendon Rice (Farmington, Michigan/North Farmington) is set to arrive on Saturday to see Ohio State, and the state up north native will have an up close and personal look at Larry Johnson’s defensive line.

A 6-foot-3, 260 pound prospect, Rice is only a high school sophomore and though he doesn’t currently hold any offers to his name, there are programs taking notice of his play on the field which bodes well for his future recruitment. Additionally, taking these game day visits based on an invite shows that schools are interested and a solid junior campaign next season could be all coaches need to see before throwing their names into the mix.


Also attending this weekend, in-state offensive tackle Mark Nave will be making the trip south from Toledo to see all the Buckeyes have to offer. A massive high school junior, Nave is an impressive 6-foot-4, 325 pounds which clearly is a college level frame at the position. Holding nearly double-digit offers from many of the MAC schools, Nave is a player that the Buckeyes will keep their eyes on because of his in-state ties for one, but also the size that was mentioned.

A Toledo Central Catholic product, Nave is being coached by a solid Ohio prep program and getting the development there is worth keeping tabs on. Position coach Justin Frye was able to use Ohio well in the 2023 class and though a more national approach in 2024 is expected, in-state players like Nave are not only worth having on campus, but really keeping in communication with as well.


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Hangout in the Holy Land Podcast: Ohio State looks to return to form against Indiana
Gene Ross via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here


Adam Cairns/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK

The Buckeyes are back home on Saturday.

The latest episode of Land-Grant Holy Land’s flagship podcast ‘Hangout in the Holy Land’ is here! Join LGHL’s co-managing editor Gene Ross alongside his co-host Josh Dooley as they cover everything from football to basketball to recruiting and more!

Listen to the episode and subscribe:

Subscribe: RSS | Apple | Spotify | Stitcher | Google Podcasts | iHeart Radio


In hindsight, Ohio State’s 21-7 performance against Tennessee wasn’t all that bad considering what happened around the rest of the college football world. The Buckeyes remained undefeated on a weekend that saw the likes of Clemson, Alabama and Tennessee all take L’s while Michigan trailed at halftime to Rutgers. Ohio State now returns to the friendly confines looking to make a few tweaks as its season continues to hurtle rapidly towards a date with the Wolverines in the finale with all of its goals still on the horizon. On deck: the Indiana Hoosiers.

“Hangout in the Holy Land” will be posting two episodes per week during the regular season, with an episode before and after each Ohio State game to give you all the preview and recap content you may need. Be sure to download and listen in wherever you get your podcasts, and leave us a review on Apple to let us know your thoughts and how we can make things even better!

You can also follow us on Twitter @HolyLandPod, where we will want to hear from you guys even more! If there’s anything you’d like us to talk about on the show, @ us and let us know!

As always, Go Bucks.


Connect with the Podcast:
Twitter: @HolyLandPod

Connect with Gene:
Twitter: @Gene_Ross23

Connect with Josh
Twitter: @jdooleybuckeye

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Indiana Defensive Player to Watch: Linebacker Bradley Jennings Jr.
Josh Dooley via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here


Photo by James Black/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images

This veteran linebacker has stepped up and filled in admirably when called upon, becoming an unexpected leader for the Hoosiers’ defense.

Ohio State is set to face Indiana on Saturday, and for the Hoosiers’ defense, this particular game could turn out to be a classic example of bringing a knife to a gun fight. I say that because IU is not – and has not – been in the business of slowing many opponents down this season, which is less than ideal with C.J Stroud and company on the schedule. The Buckeyes will not be looking to spare any feelings in The Shoe, as they continue their march toward Big Ten supremacy. So buckle up, Hoosier fans.

The most frustrating part for Tom Allen and his team has to be the fact that they absolutely do have talent on the defensive side of the ball. Tiawan Mullen was an All-American cornerback in 2020. His partner on the other side, CB Jaylin Williams, earned All-Big Ten recognition the same year. Safeties Bryant Fitzgerald and Devon Matthews have more experience than arguably any other duo in the Big Ten, Dasan McCullough is likely a Freshman All-American up front, and linebacker Aaron Casey is a tackle-for-loss machine.

And yet, Indiana’s defense is a turnstile! They have given up at least 20 points in every game, and allow an average of 32.2 per, good for 114th (!) in the country. Closing out the season with Penn State, Ohio State, Michigan State, and Purdue certainly will not help matters, but such is life in the Big Ten East (I do realize that Purdue is in the West, keep it movin’).

Regardless of how or why this concerning trend has continued – IU finished No. 109 in PPG allowed last season – it is now fair to question whether or not Allen will be around (employed) to witness a potential Hoosier-sance. I, for one, believe that he has earned the benefit of the doubt... for another year or two, at least. But the respected head coach likely felt walls closing in around him, so he took multiple actions to address last year’s poor performance. Much of his coaching staff is comprised of new faces, including new defensive coordinator Chad Wilt.

The program also brought in a number of experienced transfers from notable P5 schools. One of those players was Bradley Jennings Jr. The sixth-year linebacker experienced a mini-breakout for Miami (FL) in 2020, but took a major step back during the 2021 season. Now in Bloomington, he has become a jack of all trades, earning this week’s title of Defensive Player to Watch.

Photo by Jeremy Hogan/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images

Jennings Jr. was a three-star recruit all the way back in 2017, out of Jacksonville, Florida. He saw limited action from 2017-2019, but made great strides for the Hurricanes in 2020. While starting 11 games at middle linebacker, he totaled 39 tackles, with 7.5 tackles for loss and three sacks. A far cry from elite production, but Jennings Jr. had seemingly turned a corner. However, 2021 did not go according to plan, and the super duper senior found himself in search of a new college football home. He eventually settled in Bloomington, and although not a full-time starter right away, has made a significant and much-needed impact for this Indiana football team.

After a six-tackle, one-sack performance in his Hoosier debut, Jennings Jr. went radio silent for much of September. He totaled just six tackles in three games against Idaho, Western Kentucky, and Cincinnati, while (Aaron) Casey and Cam Jones dominated snaps at linebacker. Unfortunately, Jones suffered an injury during IU’s game at Nebraska, knocking the three-time captain and Big Ten’s leading tackler (at the time) out of the lineup. Jennings Jr. has taken the majority of those snaps, and played very well ever since.

Against TTUN, Indiana gave up 31 points, but held their opponent to 10 in the first half. The Wolverines put up three scores after halftime, all of which came through the air. Blake Corum was held to “just” 124 yards rushing, and Jennings Jr. was one of the players who made it tough(er) sledding for him. The former Miami Hurricane racked up 13 tackles against Corum and company, limiting the star RB to his lowest rushing total (at the time) in Big Ten play. Was it an award-worthy performance for Jennings Jr. and his teammates? No, but I’m sorry, this Hoosiers defense just doesn’t have much to hang their hat on.

The veteran LB continued his strong play for the duration of October and into November. At Rutgers on Oct. 22, he totaled 10 tackles and three pass breakups, giving him five PBU on the year. After his team’s bye, Jennings Jr. returned to the field last week and added five tackles against Penn State. All things considered, he has been one of IU’s unsung heroes on defense, even if the team stats do not reflect that of a heroic effort. And it is unfortunate that it took a Cam Jones injury for Jennings Jr. to receive additional playing time, but he is certainly making the most of his opportunity.

Jennings Jr. might not be most talented defender on his team. He might not even crack the top-5, but he has arguably been one of Indiana’s most influential and consistent players on that side of the ball, since taking over as a FT starter. The 6-foot-1, 210 pounder is averaging 8.5 tackles per game over the Hoosier’s last four, while adding four of his five PBU. And while his play might not dictate the outcome of the game, it is always great to see a player perform well after sticking with it for so long. I will have an eye on Jennings Jr. come Saturday, but hopefully as he is making downfield tackles against a successful Ohio State rushing attack.

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You’re Nuts: What was the biggest positive to come out of the Northwestern game?
Matt Tamanini via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here


Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images

Your (almost) daily dose of good-natured, Ohio State banter.

Everybody knows that one of the best parts of being a sports fan is debating and dissecting the most (and least) important questions in the sporting world with your friends. So, we’re bringing that to the pages of LGHL with our favorite head-to-head column: You’re Nuts.

In You’re Nuts, two LGHL staff members will take differing sides of one question and argue their opinions passionately. Then, in the end, it’s up to you to determine who’s right and who’s nuts.

Today’s Question: What was the biggest positive to come out of the Northwestern game?

Jami’s Take: Miyan Williams Can Shoulder the Load


There was ugly weather and an even uglier win in Evanston last Saturday, but hey guys — it’s not all bad. Adversity is good — it builds character (or so I hear).

But this game was a good opportunity for the Buckeyes to work out some kinks and to really hone in on our weak spots just weeks before the Michigan game. Because if we play the way we played Saturday against the Wolverines? It’s goodbye, Big Ten Championship.

But one positive takeaway from Saturday’s game was the knowledge that even a banged-up Miyan Williams is a good Miyan Williams.

With TreVeyon Henderson out with a foot injury, Williams, a junior running back, has done the bulk of the leg work for this year’s running game (and to that end, he couldn’t have chosen a better time to have a breakout season).

However, he left the Penn State game in the first half with a right hand/arm injury and did not return, so Saturday gave us a chance to see how well he has recovered since he left the field.

And it was particularly good to see that even coming off an injury, Williams is still capable of putting up 100+ yards and two touchdowns.

Given how critical the run game is likely going to be against Michigan, it was good to see Williams put up some decent numbers in a game where very few Buckeyes did. And while it was nice to see CJ Stroud run the ball, it will likely be Williams doing the heavy lifting against TTUN.

We already know he’s good – he’s put up insane numbers including one game with five touchdowns (against Rutgers, who led Michigan at the half before being blown out this past week), so in many ways, Saturday might have felt like an underwhelming performance. And by no means will Saturday’s numbers be good enough against Michigan.

But we can also hope that OSU won’t be facing winds so bad they had to ground planes at the nearest airport when the Wolverines come to the ‘Shoe, and Williams still has a few more weeks to get back to tip-top shape. At least we know there will be some semblance of a run game as long as he’s on the field.

Matt’s Take: C.J. Stroud ready, willing, and able to run the ball


Despite the fact that C.J. Stroud’s first career touchdown was a 48-yard touchdown run, fans have been clamoring for the Buckeye quarterback to run the ball more ever since. However, given the elite wide receiving corps that he has had at his disposal since becoming Ohio State’s starter, running the ball hasn’t really been necessary for him.

Granted, I will admit that there are generally a handful of times each game that Stroud could probably have scampered for first downs rather than sitting in the pocket and waiting for WRs to get open. However, I have never been too worried about Stroud’s lack of rushes — either designed or via scramble — mainly because they are rarely necessary with all of the other playmaking talent that he has around him.

But, given how awful the weather was last week, it was obvious that the passing game wasn’t going to be effective, so the Buckeyes needed to focus on the ground game. However, much like we have seen in recent weeks, for a large portion of the game, the rushing attack was pretty bland and uncreative, so the threat of a Stroud run was effective.

On the day, he ran the ball six times for 79 yards — with the help of a 44-yard, fourth-quarter rush. Of course, I don’t expect the Buckeyes to play in weather like that again this season (or likely even this decade), but knowing that Stroud is still capable of making a difference with his legs is incredibly valuable. The Mitten Men’s defense leads the country in rushing yards allowed per game giving up only 72.44. So, if Ohio State wants to have anything resembling a balanced offensive attack in The Game, it would certainly be aided by the possibility of a Stroud keeper here and there.

Just the fact that the Buckeyes got that on film means that the Harboys will have to account for it in some form or fashion on Nov. 26. On Saturday, Ryan Day called more designed QB runs than he probably has since his first season in Columbus working with J.T. Barrett, so his willingness to open the playbook and throw in that wrinkle shows that the option is on the table when things aren’t going according to plan offensively.

Ohio State will undoubtedly need to be at least semi-efficient both running and passing to beat TTUN and to potentially win a national title, so when opposing defenses get better, having the threat of Stroud running the ball will be very valuable. While I still don’t want to see him running it 12 time per game or being a human battering ram, keeping those calls in the rotation and Stroud being more willing to take off could pay major dividends down the road.

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Column: Does a running C.J. Stroud have to become part of Ohio State’s repertoire?
Meredith Hein via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here


Adam Cairns/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK

The schemes will only get more complex.

When C.J. Stroud took off for a 44-yard run in the fourth quarter against Northwestern, it took everyone off guard: Ohio State fans, analysts and, most importantly, the Northwestern defense. He didn’t score on that play, but the drive did end in an Ohio State touchdown that effectively sealed the win for the Buckeyes in their ugliest game of the season.

Earlier in the game, Stroud also had a 16-yard run on 4th-and-1 in the second quarter to keep a drive going. That drive would eventually lead to another Ohio State touchdown.

It was shocking to see Stroud, the archetypal pocket passer, carry out a designed run so successfully. It was also surprising to see him execute the read-option on 4th-and-1 for 16 whole yards. It’s perhaps even more absurd that we are so in awe of a quarterback running for a total of 79 yards against a 1-7 opponent. But that’s also coming from someone who hadn’t hit 10 net rushing yards in a single game this season and who had -4 cumulative yards on the season heading into Saturday.

Those plays were necessary, and showed that the Ohio State offense in general and Stroud in particular may have more tools at their disposal than we’re giving them credit for. And the Buckeyes will need a sizable tool box heading into the remainder of their schedule.

Ohio State’s win over Northwestern is a microcosm of why. The weather Saturday was horrendous. Strong winds meant throwing was almost out of the question and the Wildcats could sell out to defend the run. The fact TreVeyon Henderson was a late scratch meant that the effectiveness of the Buckeyes’ two-headed monster at running back was attenuated. There had to be another way to score points, or at least get down the field.

As a result, the Buckeyes needed to retool their offense (and fast). That’s where Stroud’s legs came in.

In this case, the aforementioned factors helped to level the playing field for the Wildcats, but think ahead to what Ohio State has coming in its season finale versus Michigan. If the Buckeyes emerge with a win at home, it means a matchup in the Big Ten Championship possibly with Illinois which has put forward a really good defense for most of the season. And of course, then we have the College Football Playoff, where mediocrity has no place.

The fact Ohio State’s rushing game has stalled in recent weeks is troubling. And while weather will not always be a factor, Saturday was a demonstration of why a one-dimensional passing offense can be ineffective. This season, one of the Buckeyes’ biggest advantages is that its offense is so multidimensional when everyone is healthy. While it didn’t feel that way, that multidimensional aspect was a factor with both a traditional run game and a rushing quarterback.

Ohio State won’t always be able to count on good weather or a full-strength lineup, which makes building flexibility even more important.

For Stroud, Saturday’s performance could still improve his draft stock. He demonstrated an ability to make plays under duress when the pocket collapses—something he has generally not experienced with a strong offensive line at Ohio State, last year’s matchup against Michigan notwithstanding. And when it comes to the NFL, even Tom Brady has the occasional rushing play

For those critics who blasted Stroud for not being able to play in the wind, he was still able to make plays and get the job done.

Stroud’s performance in Evanston this weekend happened to coincide with that of another Ohio State quarterback in Chicago. Justin Fields broke the NFL regular season quarterback rushing record, tallying 178 yards and a touchdown.

With his success on the ground, it was easy to forget that Stroud did not have a single touchdown pass Saturday—the first time that’s been the case with Stroud as a starter.

Does that mean we’ll see more designed runs for Stroud as we get to the homestretch of the season? Perhaps not against Indiana or Maryland, but breaking out that extra layer of offense against Michigan or in the CFP might just be enough to overwhelm defenses the way we saw earlier this season for Ohio State.

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