Oller: Ohio State whipped Western Kentucky, but where is the pass rush?
Let’s see, what can Buckeye Nation complain about now? Oh, I know. Not enough sacks.
Ohio State trash compacted Western Kentucky Saturday afternoon – and into the evening, unfortunately for WKU – just the way OSU fans want a directional school opponent to be crushed. After sleep-walking against Indiana and Youngstown State, the Buckeyes’ offense slid the snooze button to “off” and proceeded to go off on the Hilltoppers.
Final: The Brotherhood 63, Little Sisters of the Commonwealth 10. And on the 16th day of September 2023, all was right with the world of scarlet and gray.
The passing game passed muster: Kyle McCord looked like a quarterback who can beat a really good team. A great team? Stay tuned, but so far the junior is making enough plays to avoid having to look over his shoulder at back-up Devin Brown.
McCord completed 19 of 23 passes for 318 yards and three touchdowns, including a handful of hyper-explosive plays – my definition: 25 yards or more – that got the offense off the “we need more points” snide.
Marvin Harrison Jr. was, well, himself. Seven catches for 126 yards and a 75-yard touchdown. True, a defense coached by Taylor Swift could have defended more ably, but Harrison makes a lot of cornerbacks and safeties look bad.
The running backs? TreVeyon Henderson romped for 88 yards on 6.8 yards per carry. Chip Trayanum called Henderson’s 6.8 and raised it, averaging 11.2 yards on five attempts. (It should be noted that in the name of objectivity WKU came in ranked 131st of 133 FBS schools in run defense). Still the tailbacks ran downhill, uphill and sidehill with passionate want-to.
The offensive linemen played more aggressively after getting a good talkin’ to last week from O-line coach Justin Frye. Turns out Frye wanted his 300-pound plows to do more punching and less primping.
Frye’s finger wagging worked. Offensive summary: 562 total yards (204 on the ground, 358 through the air). A hard week of introspection paid off.
The defense, meanwhile, did its job. With a cherry on top. Finally forced to deal with an opponent more interested in scoring points than milking the clock, the No. 6 Buckeyes gave No. 9 Notre Dame something more to think about Saturday in South Bend, scoring twice on Western Kentucky turnovers and proving it can defend the pass with bad intention. Junior Denzel Burke, who after his sophomore slump increasingly looks like the lockdown cornerback OSU needs, was especially effective.
Jim Knowles’ Silver Arrows – can’t call them bullets just yet – also showed their defensive coordinator they can pressure the quarterback, forcing senior Austin Reed into hurrying his throws beyond what his already quick-release is comfortable with. (Mark it down, Reed will be one of the most efficient quarterbacks Ohio State faces this season.)
The official stat package showed the Buckeyes with only two quarterback hurries, but clearly someone cannot see clearly. This next part probably isn’t true, but I heard Reed immediately qualified as a certified palm reader after seeing so many OSU paws in his face. Who knows?
So in most every way things clicked for the Buckeyes. Except for their starting defensive ends, Jack Sawyer and JT Tuimoloau for a third consecutive game failed to record a sack. Technically, OSU still has zero sacks from the DE position entering Week 4; defensive Mitchell Melton brought down WKU backup quarterback Bronson Barron behind the line of scrimmage against WKU’s second-team offense with just under 10 minutes left, but on his sack Melton lined up at the “jack” position, as a stand-up pass rusher, not as a true end. The other sack came from defensive tackle Tyleik Williams, who also recovered a fumble for a touchdown, then celebrated by rubbing his stomach. Who can blame him? The man has an appetite for making big plays.
The defensive ends? Not so much, although they are not alone. Ohio State’s defense has only five sacks total, a 1.7-per-game rate that gives ammunition to those who argue that struggling to tackle the QB in the backfield will cost the Buckeyes in the biggest games.
Legit concern? Lunatic fringe nitpicking? Try both.
Not having an elite Bosa-type defensive end on one side and/or an elite Chase Young-type DE on the other does not mean everything, but it means something. And that little something will matter against Michigan, Penn State and Notre Dame.
Some numbers to consider: Over the past decade, the Buckeyes’ final sack numbers have never averaged below 2.15 per game. It’s still early, but Ohio State heads to ND Saturday averaging 1.67 sacks, which ties them for 86th nationally. The OSU defense has never ranked lower than 58th nationally since 2013, and four times (2013, 2015, 2017, 2019) ranked in the top 10.
What does Ohio State coach Ryan Day think of the current anti-sack attack?
“You watch the film and try to find out what is real and what isn’t,” Day said, explaining that Reed’s ability to get the ball out fast likely contributed to the lack of sacks by OSU defensive ends. “They’re anxious. They want to get it more than anybody. What you can’t do is abort your technique … because it will happen. There will be plenty of opportunities for that.”
The biggest opportunity so far arrives this week under the gaze of Touchdown Jesus. Things almost went perfectly against Western Kentucky. Only a party pooper would focus on the “almost.” Then again, this is a dialed-in but still too often Negative Nellie Nation we’re talking about.
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This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Ohio State whipped Western Kentucky, but where is the pass rush?
