With three of the top six teams in the nation suffering losses in Week 1, Buckeye fans can breathe a sigh of relief after No. 3 Ohio State defeated No. 1 Texas, 14-7. There was much to be celebrated in the victory, most notably a stellar performance from the defense.
Still, adjustments are to be expected from any team after the first few games, especially against a powerful opponent with the ability to expose some of your team’s areas for improvement.
The Buckeyes showed a lot of promise for it being
so early in the season, but it became obvious against Texas that the defensive line still needs some time to develop. Perhaps because Matt Patricia’s defense looked so strong on all other fronts—and because they have so much promise this year—I’ve spent the past 72 hours ruminating on the fact that leveling up the D-Line could be the difference between a great defense and one that takes this team all the way.
To be clear, all of these concerns are minor: The defense did its job and did it well against Texas. But we’d be remiss if we rested on our laurels this early in the season.
This year’s defensive line has its work cut out for it as it works to replace all four starters up front from the 2024 National Championship team.
On the whole, the defense kept Texas’ much-hyped quarterback Arch Manning contained, preventing him from establishing any kind of rhythm until well into the second half. But Manning has only started two games prior to Saturday’s game in Columbus, both against lesser teams when he stepped in for an injured Quinn Ewers last season, so this was his first real run in a marquee matchup.
Given the fact that OSU won by just one touchdown, it might be a lucky thing that Manning doesn’t have more experience, because in too many instances Saturday, he seemingly had all day to throw. While the secondary provided excellent coverage, moving forward, the Buckeyes need more pressure up front from the defensive line, especially with some more experienced quarterbacks still to come on their schedule.
What happens when Drew Allar and Penn State come to town, for example? While Manning looked flustered at times, Allar could do some damage with that much time in the pocket, and the Buckeyes will need to get to Allar faster in hopes of forcing some mistakes. Even without a strong rhythm, Manning was only sacked once, taken down by linebacker Arvell Reese.
C.J. Hicks, the former linebacker who moved to defensive end this season, made a great play on 4th and 5 in the fourth quarter, setting up Caleb Downs to make a big stop on what was ultimately Texas’ last snap of the game. We’ll need to see more of that aggression earlier in games as the season progresses, in addition to more pressure off the edge from Caden Curry and Kenyatta Jackson, Jr.
Additionally, despite Arch Manning’s struggles, Texas did manage to establish a decent run game, logging 166 total yards on the ground—more than double the rushing yards of the Buckeyes. Ohio State will need to shut down some of these rushing lanes in future games if it wants to continue its defensive dominance.
Ultimately, with a few cupcake games coming up, the Buckeyes should have no trouble working through these growing pains ahead of their October 11 game at Illinois. If they manage to do so, their remaining opponents should be prepared for an uphill battle against a defense that has otherwise established itself as dominant. Still, it’s on my mind three days later because this defense proved it can continue to be elite.
