Well, that was more like it on the offensive side of the ball.
After some grinding and smoking through the first two games of the year, Ohio State, and it’s newly minted starting quarterback, Kyle McCord, found a little rhythm. They staged an ambush at the end of the first half and finally showed the potential of all the weapons on the roster in a 63-10 victory.
Buy Buckeyes TicketsIt’s exactly what we wanted to see heading into the massive matchup with Notre Dame next week and, hopefully, a very encouraging sign of better days ahead.
At the end of every Ohio State football game, we try to give you five things we think we learned from observing the action on the field, and it’s time to dissect what we saw once again.
Here are five things we think we learned after watching OSU breakout against Western Kentucky Saturday afternoon.
Kyle McCord will be just fine, thank you
Another one for Egbuka 🌰🙌
The @OhioStateFB offense isn't holding anything back in this one 😤 pic.twitter.com/dg8zKVOul1
— FOX College Football (@CFBONFOX) September 16, 2023
What we think we learned
If you weren’t encouraged by what you saw last week with Kyle McCord, you should be taking notice after this week. Yes, there are numerous caveats about the competition here, but McCord was poised, made the right reads more often than not, and stood in the pocket when several pressures got in his face. He was on point, accurate and in command, no matter the opponent. Hopefully, that carries over to next week. The final stat line is impressive: 19-of-23 (82.6%) passes completed for 318 yards and three touchdowns.
Marvelous Marvin had added a superpower
Absolute dart 🎯
Kyle McCord hits Marvin Harrison Jr. on the deep @OhioStateFB TD.
📺: FOX/@CFBOnFOX pic.twitter.com/4SAUT1Sb44
— Big Ten Football (@B1Gfootball) September 16, 2023
What we think we learned
Is it just me, or is Marvin Harrison Jr. faster than what he was last season? I know he was never slow, but he seems to be hitting another gear this season, pulling away from the back end of the defense and running away. It was on display again Saturday, and the coaching staff is even getting him involved in other ways with jet sweeps and in the slot. And we thought he couldn’t get any better …
The defense is still searching for an identity
Missed opportunity by Ohio State to recover a fumble in the red zone, and Western Kentucky scores a touchdown as a result.
Ohio State’s defense has allowed multiple scores for the first time this season. Buckeyes lead 14-10 with 8:10 to play in the second quarter.
— Dan Hope (@Dan_Hope) September 16, 2023
What we think we learned
Stay with me here. I know, I know, there weren’t that many points surrendered on the scoreboard, so the end result was pretty good. But it feels like the defense is kind of between understanding what it wants to be this year. There aren’t as many blitzes, and there isn’t a ton of pressure coming without pressure packages.
Sometimes the defense will sit back in reactionary mode, and it resulted in a lot of opportunities for Western Kentucky on Saturday that, frankly, I’m not sure the Hilltoppers took advantage of. Yes, the defense looks like it’s not going to give up so many big plays this season, but I still don’t know what it is. We’ll maybe know more next week against Notre Dame on the road.
Yet, the defense forced more turnovers, something that will need to continue
The Buckeyes can't stop scoring 🌰🔝
The @OhioStateFB defense adds on a TD 🔒 pic.twitter.com/4IvF8rU6lK
— FOX College Football (@CFBONFOX) September 16, 2023
What we think we learned
The turnovers never really flowed freely last year like you would expect from an aggressive scheme Jim Knowles brought to Columbus. And through the first two games, they didn’t either. But that turned around Saturday. The Ohio State defense forced three turnovers — two for a touchdown — and that’s more like it.
As the season goes on, you can’t bank on turnovers, but you can sure make it a part of the culture and use it to force big, big swings in games. With the new clock rules, there aren’t as many possessions and plays for a team that has the offensive firepower that Ohio State does, so creating turnovers can tilt the field back the Buckeyes’ way.
Let’s hope this is a sign of more of those momentum changing turnovers becoming a part of that identity being formed.
The offensive line looked much, much better
Justin Frye wants the Ohio State offensive line to be more violent pic.twitter.com/K1NM413tPe
— Marcus Hartman (@marcushartman) September 13, 2023
What we think we learned
Again, it was against a smaller roster, but the offensive line did a lot of good things. Kyle McCord more or less had the time he needed to make throws down the field, but maybe more importantly, there were more running lanes for TreVeyon Henderson and Chip Trayanum.
And before we wipe it all away based on the opponent, we have to remember there were struggles moving people off the ball with violence against two teams that it shouldn’t have struggled against. So, again — there is something to take away as a positive.
Now, the challenge is to keep it going.
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