Ohio State football beat up on the Akron Zips Saturday in Week 1 action, winning 52-6. While it didn’t cover the spread, it did dominate in the trenches on both sides of the ball.
The Buckeyes gave five or more carries to three different running backs, using TreVeyon Henderson and Quinshon Judkins the most.
The former ended with 65 yards on 8 carries, an 8.1 yards-per-carry average. The latter went for 13 carries and 55 yards, a 4.2 yards-per-carry average. James Peoples was the third back who ended with 6 carries for 30 yards.
Ryan Day praised Chip Kelly, who called his first game as the Buckeyes offensive coordinator, for sticking to the run throughout the game. However, that might be more difficult to do against Western Michigan.
The Broncos, who lost 28-14 to the Wisconsin Badgers in their Week 1 battle, allowed 196 rushing yards. However, for the most part, they still did a good job against the run. The Badgers ran the ball an incredible 46 times with two players getting at least 15 carries.
Ohio State should be more effective, but Western Michigan held Chez Mellusi, the top Wisconsin back, to just 3.9 yards per carry. The Broncos also had five tackles for a loss which compared favorably to the Badgers just one.
The Buckeyes want to run the ball, and Kelly is going to push that. However, the Broncos held up well against the onslaught against Wisconsin, and it’s unlikely the Buckeyes are going to get 45-plus carries Saturday.
Ohio State is back in The Shoe for primetime on Saturday 🔥🏈
This will be the first time since 2015 that the teams have played one another. The Buckeyes were coming off of a National Championship title 🏆 and beat Western Michigan 38-12‼️
See you Saturday Buckeye Nation… pic.twitter.com/UYu0kFKzpc
— Ohio State Buckeyes 🌰 (@OhioStAthletics) September 3, 2024
While they have a strong offensive line and talented running backs, getting quarterback Will Howard going early to avoid difficult third downs like Wisconsin had many of will be ideal for the Buckeyes.
Western Michigan can at least limit big plays on the ground and did so against Wisconsin. Either Ohio State will have to pound like Wisconsin or find a way to succeed with Howard through the air.
The better bet is the latter there.
