The size of the OL won't make an iota of difference. Tennessee came into the Swamp last year with an OL that would've been the 2nd largest OL in the friggin NFL, and they were absolutely shredded. I think our front 7 is better than Michigan's, they along with a bend-but-don't-break and opportunistic secondary is what carried us through the year. The loss of Marcus Thomas is definitely huge, but luckily, DL is our deepest position and we've been able to get by without him. Here's my analysis:
Florida offense vs. Ohio State defense:
WRs vs. DBs
I think Florida has an advantage in the passing game. If you guys play a bend-but-don't-break type of defense, I think it'll actually really play into our hands. UF's OC, Dan Mullen, seems to have a phobia when it comes to passing over 20 yards. We're a dink-and-dunk type of offense, relying almost entirely on playmakers getting YAC for big plays. Baker is our go-to guy, while Caldwell and Harvin are our home run guys. Cornelius and Ingram need to be accounted for as well, as one has tremendous speed while the other is a real bull, hard to bring down.
QB/OL vs. DL:
Leak performs abnormally badly when he's pressured. Of course most QBs don't perform well when they're under pressure, but Leak is just absolutely terrible. However, if you give him time, he'll pick you apart. I advise blitzes when we go 5-wide, as our OL absolutely needs advantage in numbers to have a chance to simply not allowing a guy unblocked. We use Tebow mainly for short-yardage situations. The reason he's used is because just running straight-ahead, he's as tough as any RB we have. But he also has the added threat of passing, so it keeps the defenses on their heels a little bit.
RBs vs. Defensive Front 7
Our RBs suck, which is why we use Percy Harvin at RB quite a bit. I don't expect to get consistent rushing yardage against you guys. Maybe Percy will break one here and there, but overall, the running game isn't enough of a threat IMO. The running game is better with Tebow in, as now defenses have to account for the QB, one that can actually get some yardage when he keeps the ball on an option play. But of course, he isn't quite at Leak's level when it comes to passing.
Ohio State offense vs. Florida defense
WRs vs. DBs
Your receivers against our secondary is mostly a mismatch. We don't really have the speed in our secondary to stay with your WRs for long, so we'll be depending on our front 4 generating pressure on Troy Smith. We play a bend-but-don't-break style of defense, as our CBs simply cannot be relied upon in man coverage. CB Ryan Smith has great skills and is very opportunistic, and Reggie Nelson is just a freak of nature. Smith will be called upon to cover your best WR, while Nelson will be called upon to make sure big plays don't happen. I see Gonzales having a great day, as Smith and Nelson will likely cover Ginn's side, leaving Reggie Lewis and Tony Joiner on the other side. Overall, I see you guys have little trouble moving the ball on us through the air.
QB/OL vs. DL
Troy Smith is obviously the best QB we'll face all year. We've been bailed out quite often by poor QB play when we went up against elite receivers of the SEC, but that won't happen with Smith at QB. Your OL is obviously pretty good, but the Florida DL is one of the top units in the nation. Cohen and Harris at DT are both seniors who have plenty of experience. McDonald and Moss are both very athletic DEs who can stop the run and generate a tremendous pass rush. Our first guy off the bench(he may even start if we move McDonald to DT), Derrick Harvey, is an amazing pass rusher, as he leads the SEC in sacks while this is his first year with major playing time. I think overall, it's a pretty even matchup, with Troy Smith doing his magic avoiding the pass rush and launching bombs.
RBs vs. Defensive front 7
Pittman and Wells are excellent RBs, but I don't think they're much better than Tennessee's or LSU's RBs. We relied mostly on our front 7 to stop the run against those 2 teams, and we'll be trying to do the same against you guys. Our linebackers are all fast, smart, and disciplined. No one has broken off a long run on us, so it'll be tough for you guys to run on us. I know you broke a couple big ones on Michigan, but the guys we have don't miss tackles. Siler and Everett have been starting since they were true freshmen, they've seen all sorts of RBs, so I think if you guys will have trouble in the running department. That only means you'll have to depend on your Heisman quarterback and amazing receivers to win the game, not a bad deal really.