Off-field issues made this year’s fall camp one of the quietest in memory as far as information about the progress of the team is concerned.
All fall the talk was about the Urban Meyer situation, not the team’s progress. As a result, there were a lot of questions to be answered in the season-opener against Oregon State.
The questions got answered in Ohio State’s 77-31 lopsided win over the Beavers, but not all the answers were what Buckeye fans were looking for.
The Buckeye offense broke in a new starting quarterback, two new starters on the offensive line and a returning offensive line starter playing a new position. Additionally, they played the game with a first-time head coach.
All those questions got answered with a resounding positive result.
Quarterback Dwayne Haskins went 22 of 30 for 313 yards and five touchdowns while throwing one interception. Haskins was downright impressive and played like a seasoned veteran from start to finish.
On the offensive line, new starters Thayer Munford at left tackle and Malcolm Pridgeon at left guard helped pave the way for a massive 721 yards of total offense that including 346 passing yards and 375 on the ground. The OSU offensive line gave up no sacks. Michael Jordan, who started at guard last year, played well at center, which was his first start at that position.
Offensively, it was an impressive day and the answers to the questions coming into the game should give OSU fans reason for optimism.
Defensively, however, it was a different story.
As was expected, OSU’s front four played extremely well and dominated up front.
The questions the defense centered on the new starting linebackers as well as the youth in the defensive backfield. Those groups played well at times, but too often got exposed when they gave up big plays in both the running and passing games.
Oregon State running back Artavis Pierce rushed the ball just 11 times but went for 168 yards including touchdown runs of 80 and 78 yards on which the OSU linebackers were invisible and the defensive backs were outrun. Oregon State put up 392 yards of total offense despite five sacks and a total of six tackles for loss by the OSU defensive front.
Linebacker Tuf Borland, last year’s starter at middle linebacker, played very sparingly as he continues to recover from off-season injury. His replacement, Baron Browning, was frequently out of position and was exploited in both the running game and short passing game.
Additionally, safety Jordan Fuller did not play due to injury. Fuller is a returning starter and was expected to be the leader of this year’s secondary. He was replaced by Jahsen Wint who appeared to struggle at times against both the pass and the run.
The return of Borland and Fuller should help shore up the Ohio State defense, but until then there will be questions about the Buckeye back seven.
Despite the defensive struggles, the offense was impressive. OSU’s 77 points tied an Ohio State record for the most points scored in a season-opener. The 721 yards of total offense is the second-most in Ohio State history, behind 776 against Bowling Green in 2016.
The previous scoring record was also established in that same game against the Falcons.