Forty-two completions.
Sixty-eight attempts.
That was Indiana’s passing game against the Ohio State defense last Thursday. If you think about it, that’s basically two games of work in one evening for a brand new Buckeye secondary.
Not every member of the secondary is new, of course, as cornerback Denzel Ward and Damon Webb were starters a year ago. For cornerbacks Damon Arnette and Kendall Sheffield, and strong safety Jordan Fuller, however, this was their first real stretch of action, and they got their money’s worth.
Because of the way the Hoosiers attacked the Ohio State corners, Sheffield and Arnette led the Buckeyes in tackles with seven and six, respectively. They gave up some catches, but they were right there to make the tackle when they did. Indiana quarterback Richard Lagow was almost flawless in the first half, fitting footballs into windows that cat burglars wouldn’t even try.
Lagow attacked Ward as well, and he bested him a couple of times, but Ward still knocked five passes down and intercepted a sixth. His six passes defended is two more than anybody else in the country, and more than about 70 other entire teams.
Lagow also found Simmie Cobbs in the end zone for a touchdown with Ward defending him.
“When you play corner, it’s not the five plays you make, it’s the two you don’t make,” said defensive coordinator Greg Schiano. “That’s the position. (Denzel Ward) made a couple great plays, but he has a couple he wished he could have back.”
The Buckeye cornerbacks gave up a large number of receptions against Indiana. They weren’t necessarily out of place, they just weren’t doing enough to dislodge the football from the receiver. Perhaps that is why none of Ohio State’s corners graded out as champions.
Give credit to Lagow for placing the ball well, but the defense still has a job to do.
“The obvious is we have to knock some balls down,” Urban Meyer said. “The one thing about IU, that quarterback is extremely accurate. I said after the game, that’s one of the most accurate games I’ve ever seen a quarterback play. The receivers made a bunch of great catches. We’ve got to knock some more balls away.”
Facing 68 passes in 60 minutes was a crash course in pass defense. It has done nothing but help the Ohio State defense get ready for the best quarterback they will face during the regular season.
Three Oklahoma quarterbacks combined to complete 32-of-36 passes for 496 yards and four touchdowns last week against UTEP. Starter Baker Mayfield went 19-for-20 for 329 yards and three touchdowns. Fourteen different players caught a pass in OU’s 56-7 win.
Even though the Buckeyes faced a gauntlet against Indiana, the quality of business should pick up a bit this week. The good news is that they received a ton of work last week to help get them ready. They also received a little something else, too.
“I mean, it gives our corners some humbling,” Meyer said. “Players, you come here to be great. Our coaches coach here to be great. In some areas we did not play great. To answer your question, I think to beat a team 70-0 right now is not what we need. A lot of guys played 90-plus plays. I’m glad we played them on a Thursday now because now they gave us a couple extra days to get healed up.”
The untested Ohio State secondary got enough work against Indiana that walking into a game against Oklahoma’s passing attack won’t be foreign to them. They have already faced adversity. Things will not go perfectly and they will see some things that the Sooners haven’t yet shown. That’s just the way things go.
Fortunately for the Buckeyes, they have the talent to compete, and now they know they have the mentality to overcome as well.