There is so much newness to this season, and especially to this game.
Oregon State has a new head coach and new coordinators, which means that when the Ohio State coaches were preparing for it, they were looking at film from the places where those coordinators used to be. Then the Buckeye coaches take those schemes and try to figure out how the Beaver coaches will mesh them with their players.
Despite all of the mystery, Ohio State’s best plan of attack should simply be to attack and worry about themselves.
The talk all camp long has been “Win the Moment” and that’s where the Buckeyes’ focus will be on Saturday.
Where will my focus be? Well, it depends on what the press box meal is, but I will also be focused on these five things when the Buckeyes and Beavers take the field on Saturday.
1. Is Dwayne Haskins actually the second coming of Tom Brady and Muhammad Ali?
Look, I’m not saying Dwayne Haskins isn’t the second coming of Tom Brady and Muhammad Ali, but we don’t have all that much to go on. And what we do have to go on is old news. How far the Buckeyes go this year depends on Haskins being the quarterback that everyone is expecting him to be. Until we see that he is that quarterback, there are going to be questions. Does he come out right away in this one and answer some of those questions? Almost certainly. The ultimate question for Haskins, however, is if he can take this offense further than J.T. Barrett could.
2. How will the offensive line hold up?
I don’t know if Oregon State’s 3-4 defense will be an attacking defense or hesitant to attack because they’ll be afraid to give up big plays. Regardless, the Buckeyes will be starting a brand new left side and a brand new center. How will they hold up against a 3-4 defense that even if it isn’t overly aggressive, which still throw some twists and turns at the OSU offensive line? If Thayer Munford isn’t ready to go at left tackle, will fourth-year junior Josh Alabi be up for the challenge? Can left guard Malcolm Pridgeon continue his fall camp into a tremendous final season as a Buckeye? And can Michael Jordan win a third Rimington in a row for Ohio State?
3. How do the new starters at linebacker perform?
If Tuf Borland isn’t good to go on Saturday, the Buckeyes will be starting three brand new starters at linebacker. Now, for the sake of complete accuracy, junior Malik Harrison does have one start to his credit, but he appears to be the man all by himself at the Will this year. He should lead the team in tackles given his position. Sophomore Pete Werner at the Sam has impressed everyone, but his ability to cover receivers and maintain strength on the edge in the running game will be put to the test. Maybe not this week, but eventually. Then there is sophomore Baron Browning at middle linebacker. He is essentially holding a spot just like Ryan Day is, but he’s still going to be fun to watch while he’s out there. And it won’t just be the starters you’ll want to watch. Greg Schiano has talked about a rotation at linebacker, which means we could see a couple of other guys out there in the first half as well.
4. How will Oregon State choose to return kickoffs?
Greg Schiano said he wasn’t sure what Oregon State would do when it came to returning kickoffs on Saturday. The new rule allows teams to fair catch the ball anywhere inside the 25-yard line and receive the ball at the 25-yard line. He did mention, however, that during last week’s games, there was only one fair catch where the ball was caught outside of the end zone. They probably have also charted Thursday night’s games to see if that pattern held true. They will still likely do what they prefer — which is pin teams inside the 5-yard line, but it will be up to the Beavers to follow through on the rest of the Buckeyes’ plan.
5. How are the strong safeties holding up?
This was the biggest worry of spring camp, so we’ll see if it continues to be a worry during the season as well. Sophomores Isaiah Pryor and Jahsen Wint have apparently had a solid competition since the spring, and it will continue on Saturday. They will be lined up on the short side of the field, so if Oregon State is hitting a lot of big shots down that side of the field or down the middle, that could be an indicator that things aren’t going all that well. Of course, if the guys down there \/\/\/ get to the quarterback as expected, there may not be enough time to throw all that deep all that often.
Bonus: Let’s see those defensive ends.
If you’re going to talk about this 2018 Ohio State Buckeyes, you have to talk about defensive ends Nick Bosa and Chase Young. And if you’re going to talk about Bosa and Young, you also need to talk about Jonathon Cooper. This is Ohio State’s defensive end rotation at the moment, and it should be very, very good. While we’re watching the defensive ends, let’s also watch the true freshmen Tyler Friday and Tyreke Smith. Both have earned praise this camp from Greg Schiano.
Bonus: When does Tate Martell play?
For me, this is an interesting decision for Ryan Day. I wouldn’t interfere with any positive momentum that Dwayne Haskins has going on, but I do think it is important for Tate Martell to get some snaps with the first-team offense. Day said there are no packages at the moment for Martell, which means there is likely no intention to sprinkle him in, unless they do it for the read option. Whenever he does finally take the field, all eyes will be on him, and this time he won’t be playing two-hand touch.