Minnesota 2021
Ohio State opened on the road at night in the rain against a Big Ten opponent and won by 14 points and covered the spread (by half a point, according to the BP Bookie). So, great victory and nothing to complain about, right? Well, not so fast, my friend....
1. In his first career start, freshman QB C.J. Stroud posted some decent numbers: 13 completions in 22 attempts for 294 yards, 4 touchdowns, and an interception. However, Buckeye receivers had an incredible 203 yards after the catch (69% of passing yards), which means that Stroud wasn't exactly throwing laser beams into tight windows (unlike, for example, Dwayne Haskins in his first significant game action, vs Michigan in 2017). Here's a look at each of Stroud's TD passes:
A quick word on Stroud's interception. Stroud made a bad pass - high and late to Olave over the middle - but he was somewhat the victim of bad luck, as the tipped pass went right to a Minnesota defender. On a similar play back in September of 2018, Dwayne Haskins threw high and late over the middle to Binjimen Victor, who somehow not only made a miraculous catch but also subsequently wove his way through the Penn State defense en route to a 47-yard touchdown, one of the greatest Buckeye highlight reel plays in one of the greatest Buckeye comeback victories. A game of inches, my friends....
2. Running back Miyan Williams had a borderline great game in his first career start, with 9 carries for 125 yards and a 71-yard TD run where Williams went essentially untouched around right end. The misdirection play completely fooled Minnesota's defense, which was expecting the run to go to the left. Apparently, the play also fooled Ohio State's offense, as the run was designed to go to the left. Williams ran the wrong way, essentially creating his own counter action, and cruised into the end zone. Maybe Ryan Day should add that add that one to the playbook.
3. In addition to his 70-yard touchdown on a swing pass, true freshman TreVeyon Henderson also had 2 carries for 15 yards. I know that it's very early, but Henderson already looks like a special athlete and a future All American.
4. Poor Master Teague (6 carries, 29 yards). He would probably rush for 1,800 yards between the tackles if he played for Wisconsin, but at Ohio State he's clearly the #3 running back and will probably be relegated to short yardage and garbage time action. Marcus Crowley had 6 carries for 19 yards as Ohio State ran out the clock at the end of the game.
5. Chris Olave and Garrett Wilson are the best WR duo in the country. Olave had 4 receptions for 117 yards and 2 TDs, while Wilson had 5 receptions for 80 yards and a TD. As long as the quarterback can keep getting them the ball, those two will continue to make big plays for the Buckeye offense. Jaxon Smith-Njigba had 2 receptions for 12 yards, and TE Jeremy Ruckert had 1 reception for 15 yards on a nice check down. Highly-touted reserves Julian Fleming, Marvin Harrison, Jr., and Emeka Egbuka did not catch a pass.
6. The offensive line played a nearly flawless game (even with starting center Harry Miller being absent), opening many holes for the running backs and giving C.J. Stroud a very clean pocket all night long.
7. The defensive line, on the other hand, was routinely pushed around by the Minnesota offensive line. Gopher running back Mohamed Ibrahim, a very good player, had 30 carries for 163 yards and kept the chains moving. Ibrahim was the Gophers' one threat on offense but the Buckeye defense simply could not stop him, and that failure started with the guys in the trenches getting manhandled. With the lone exception of a strip sack by Zach Harrison, which was scooped and scored by Haskell Garrett, the DL also did next to nothing in the passing game. The Buckeye defense has known deficiencies and inexperience in the back seven, so the supposedly star-studded DL will have to be more disruptive up front. It's not enough for guys to play assignments, fill gaps, and occupy blockers; eventually, someone will have to start making some big plays (more than the one sack and one TFL that they posted last night).
8. Linebacker Cody Simon flashed from time to time, especially with an 11-yard sack. Tommy Eichenberg looked like a guy who was trying to adjust to the speed of the game. The defensive backs did not surrender any big plays (long reception of 22 yards) and allowed only 80 yards after catch (39% of Minnesota's 205 passing yards).
9. Freshman punter Jesse Mirco averaged 43.0 yards on 2 punts, while rookie PK Noah Ruggles (transfer from North Carolina) connected on all 6 extra points as well as a 35-yard field goal.
10. With 10:39 left in the second quarter, trailing 10-0 and facing 4th-and-1 from his own 29-yard line, Minnesota head coach P.J. Fleck whipped out his big swinging dick and started waving it in the faces of the Ohio State defense. Instead of delivering a Chuck Norris roundhouse kick to the nuts to bring a quick end to his ostentatious display, the Buckeyes gave up a 56-yard run to Mohamed Ibrahim, a play on which the DL got dominated, CB Lejond Cavazos took a bad angle and missed a tackle close to the line of scrimmage, and safety Bryson Shaw took a bad angle but finally made the tackle well downfield to save the touchdown (Minnesota eventually scored 7 on that possession). If the Buckeye defense holds on fourth down, it's game over and likely a 56-13 romp. Even if the defense gives up the first down on a short gain, there's still plenty of time to recover and kill the drive. But Ibrahim's 56-yard jaunt clearly swung the momentum in Minnesota's favor, and Ohio State wasn't able to fully regain control of the game until the strip sack scoop six with 2:28 left in the 3rd quarter (that's over 23 minutes of game time). Lesson: When a chump is begging you to deliver the knockout blow, just do it, dammit!
Ohio State opened on the road at night in the rain against a Big Ten opponent and won by 14 points and covered the spread (by half a point, according to the BP Bookie). So, great victory and nothing to complain about, right? Well, not so fast, my friend....
1. In his first career start, freshman QB C.J. Stroud posted some decent numbers: 13 completions in 22 attempts for 294 yards, 4 touchdowns, and an interception. However, Buckeye receivers had an incredible 203 yards after the catch (69% of passing yards), which means that Stroud wasn't exactly throwing laser beams into tight windows (unlike, for example, Dwayne Haskins in his first significant game action, vs Michigan in 2017). Here's a look at each of Stroud's TD passes:
- Chris Olave, 38 yards: Stroud did a nice job of finding Olave, and despite the back-foot throw under minimal pressure, he delivered the ball on time 18 yards in the air and Olave took it the final 20 yards to the house.
- Garrett Wilson, 56 yards: This play went exactly like the coaches drew it up, as the best WR in CFB had single coverage from a safety, beat him easily, and was wide open in the middle of the field. From a very clean pocket, Stroud made an easy throw (40 yards in the air) and Wilson walked the final 16 yards into the end zone.
- TreVeyon Henderson, 70 yards: This was a simple swing pass on 3rd-and-5, thrown 4 yards behind the line of scrimmage, that Henderson took 74 yards basically on his own (Henderson didn't even encounter a defender until midfield, then he made one man miss and outran everybody else). On a side note, Henderson's play was so amazing that the FOX broadcast team awarded him with nine points for the TD instead of the customary six.
- Chris Olave, 61 yards: With 4:50 left in the game, Ohio State had the ball 1st-and-10 with a 7-point lead; in other words, it was an obvious run situation. Day called play action, Stroud rolled right and hit a wide open Olave (literally, no defender within 10 yards). The pass covered 20 yards in the air, and Olave made several nifty moves over the final 41 yards to pay dirt.
A quick word on Stroud's interception. Stroud made a bad pass - high and late to Olave over the middle - but he was somewhat the victim of bad luck, as the tipped pass went right to a Minnesota defender. On a similar play back in September of 2018, Dwayne Haskins threw high and late over the middle to Binjimen Victor, who somehow not only made a miraculous catch but also subsequently wove his way through the Penn State defense en route to a 47-yard touchdown, one of the greatest Buckeye highlight reel plays in one of the greatest Buckeye comeback victories. A game of inches, my friends....
2. Running back Miyan Williams had a borderline great game in his first career start, with 9 carries for 125 yards and a 71-yard TD run where Williams went essentially untouched around right end. The misdirection play completely fooled Minnesota's defense, which was expecting the run to go to the left. Apparently, the play also fooled Ohio State's offense, as the run was designed to go to the left. Williams ran the wrong way, essentially creating his own counter action, and cruised into the end zone. Maybe Ryan Day should add that add that one to the playbook.
3. In addition to his 70-yard touchdown on a swing pass, true freshman TreVeyon Henderson also had 2 carries for 15 yards. I know that it's very early, but Henderson already looks like a special athlete and a future All American.
4. Poor Master Teague (6 carries, 29 yards). He would probably rush for 1,800 yards between the tackles if he played for Wisconsin, but at Ohio State he's clearly the #3 running back and will probably be relegated to short yardage and garbage time action. Marcus Crowley had 6 carries for 19 yards as Ohio State ran out the clock at the end of the game.
5. Chris Olave and Garrett Wilson are the best WR duo in the country. Olave had 4 receptions for 117 yards and 2 TDs, while Wilson had 5 receptions for 80 yards and a TD. As long as the quarterback can keep getting them the ball, those two will continue to make big plays for the Buckeye offense. Jaxon Smith-Njigba had 2 receptions for 12 yards, and TE Jeremy Ruckert had 1 reception for 15 yards on a nice check down. Highly-touted reserves Julian Fleming, Marvin Harrison, Jr., and Emeka Egbuka did not catch a pass.
6. The offensive line played a nearly flawless game (even with starting center Harry Miller being absent), opening many holes for the running backs and giving C.J. Stroud a very clean pocket all night long.
7. The defensive line, on the other hand, was routinely pushed around by the Minnesota offensive line. Gopher running back Mohamed Ibrahim, a very good player, had 30 carries for 163 yards and kept the chains moving. Ibrahim was the Gophers' one threat on offense but the Buckeye defense simply could not stop him, and that failure started with the guys in the trenches getting manhandled. With the lone exception of a strip sack by Zach Harrison, which was scooped and scored by Haskell Garrett, the DL also did next to nothing in the passing game. The Buckeye defense has known deficiencies and inexperience in the back seven, so the supposedly star-studded DL will have to be more disruptive up front. It's not enough for guys to play assignments, fill gaps, and occupy blockers; eventually, someone will have to start making some big plays (more than the one sack and one TFL that they posted last night).
8. Linebacker Cody Simon flashed from time to time, especially with an 11-yard sack. Tommy Eichenberg looked like a guy who was trying to adjust to the speed of the game. The defensive backs did not surrender any big plays (long reception of 22 yards) and allowed only 80 yards after catch (39% of Minnesota's 205 passing yards).
9. Freshman punter Jesse Mirco averaged 43.0 yards on 2 punts, while rookie PK Noah Ruggles (transfer from North Carolina) connected on all 6 extra points as well as a 35-yard field goal.
10. With 10:39 left in the second quarter, trailing 10-0 and facing 4th-and-1 from his own 29-yard line, Minnesota head coach P.J. Fleck whipped out his big swinging dick and started waving it in the faces of the Ohio State defense. Instead of delivering a Chuck Norris roundhouse kick to the nuts to bring a quick end to his ostentatious display, the Buckeyes gave up a 56-yard run to Mohamed Ibrahim, a play on which the DL got dominated, CB Lejond Cavazos took a bad angle and missed a tackle close to the line of scrimmage, and safety Bryson Shaw took a bad angle but finally made the tackle well downfield to save the touchdown (Minnesota eventually scored 7 on that possession). If the Buckeye defense holds on fourth down, it's game over and likely a 56-13 romp. Even if the defense gives up the first down on a short gain, there's still plenty of time to recover and kill the drive. But Ibrahim's 56-yard jaunt clearly swung the momentum in Minnesota's favor, and Ohio State wasn't able to fully regain control of the game until the strip sack scoop six with 2:28 left in the 3rd quarter (that's over 23 minutes of game time). Lesson: When a chump is begging you to deliver the knockout blow, just do it, dammit!
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