Ohio State’s tinkering of the offensive line spilled over into its season-opening win over Ball State.
It was late in the first quarter when the Buckeyes pulled starting right tackle Phillip Daniels and bumped Austin Siereveld from right guard to replace him. Gabe VanSickle, a backup interior lineman, then filled in at right guard.
The personnel changes leave the line in a bit of flux this week as the Buckeyes prepare for their highly anticipated top-five matchup at Texas. While Daniels eventually returned against the Cardinals, with Siereveld going back to right guard, coach Ryan Day did not commit to a starting configuration on Sept. 8.
“We'll continue to evaluate throughout the week and figure out if we have the right mix out there,” Day said.
“The good news is we do have flexibility.”
The Buckeyes’ offensive line was unexpectedly shaky at times against Ball State, allowing two sacks and offering limited support for the running game during the first and second quarters when they combined for just 35 yards on 17 carries, an average of 2.1 yards per attempt.
Against Ball State, Day said he saw “some good” from the line, as well as “other things we have to work on,” stressing the run game’s early struggles.
“We didn’t run the ball the way we wanted to,” Day said, “but it opened up better in the second half.”
The Buckeyes finished with 237 rushing yards, which included Bo Jackson’s 65-yard touchdown run and Ja’Kobi Jackson’s 49-yard touchdown run.
While there is experience on the offensive line, which returned four of their five starters from last season, the Buckeyes have not kept them all at fixed spots, reworking the configuration throughout the offseason.
The most significant change during preseason training camp involved having Siereveld, who was the starting left tackle last season, move to right guard, which was vacated by Tegra Tshabola, who transferred to Kentucky. The switch allowed Ian Moore to step in at left tackle.
Joey Kaufman covers Ohio State football for The Columbus Dispatch. Email him at jkaufman@dispatch.com and follow him on @joeyrkaufman on X.
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Ohio State football evaluating offensive line mix ahead of trip to Texas
