The Cotton Bowl could hardly have failed to meet Ohio State fans’ expectations by any greater degree. The Buckeyes looked every bit the part of the team that had stagnated without a game in nearly a month,
while every weakness shown against Indiana failed to improve in any way whatsoever, leading to a dismal 24-14 loss to the Miami Hurricanes.
It’s time for the autopsy, so here’s what made me feel like they forgot the extra sauce when Ohio State played the Canes (the real ones know what I mean).
Early Three-and-Out Sets Tone
Defensively, Ohio State did its job on the opening series. But the offense looked out of sync from the jump. Julian Sayin misfired to an open Carnell Tate on second down, and Gabe VanSickle, subbing for the injured Tegra Tshabola, couldn’t handle Akheem Mesidor, allowing a sack on third down.
Phillip Daniels passed Mesidor off to take the outside rusher, and the guard did not handle it well. That set an unfortunate tone in the first half for an offense that looked like it was fighting itself on just about every snap in the opening 30 minutes.
Defensive Inconsistency
The Buckeye defense played mostly well on the night, but there were times that things went wrong in ways Miami’s average offense shouldn’t have caused. Ohio State allowed a third-and-long conversion on a play when Arvell Reese was less than half a step from a sack.
The pass rush wasn’t good for the most part, and credit Miami’s offensive line for some of that, but it was Kenyatta Jackson’s worst performance of the season, and Caden Curry seemed to come close a few times but could not make the kinds of plays we saw all season from him.
One of those areas of inconsistency showed up in the form of tackling issues. While Mark Fletcher is a running back who can cause that, you don’t usually see Sonny Styles miss a guy he’s faced up against. He wasn’t the only one with that issue, as the defensive backs not named Caleb Downs typically struggled to make stops.
Sayin Stressed
Ohio State’s offensive line was horribly bad throughout the game in pass protection, while being OK in the run game. Both tackles and guards struggled almost the entire game, and Austin Siereveld left the game with a knock. Josh Padilla replaced an ineffective VanSickle. Sayin ate the ball more often than he should have, and the clock in his head sped up as a result of the constant pressure.
There was also the matter of the pick-six he threw, which was more on uninventive playcalling, a good read by the defensive back, and the resulting missed block by Jeremiah Smith that added to the young quarterback’s struggles on the night. Sayin was able to settle into a rhythm in the third quarter when Ohio State leaned on the run, but whenever Ryan Day’s playcalling reverted to consecutive passes, things broke down again.
You Know It’s Not Your Night, When…
Of all the fortuitous bounces in the history of college football, Miami enjoyed one of the all-timers late in the first quarter, when Downs forced Malichi Toney to fumble. However, the ball bounced off the turf straight back up into his left hand, allowing Miami to retain possession at Miami’s 49-yard line.
An Ohio State recovery in that part of the field might have changed the entire complexion of the game. Instead, Miami kept the drive alive and scored the first touchdown of the game. It’s rare that a fumble in the heart of an opponent’s secondary doesn’t result in a turnover, so that was an aggravating turn of events to watch.
Killing Hope
The Buckeyes put their best drive of the first half together on their final possession, taking over with little time and getting into scoring position, looking to cut into a 14-0 deficit heading into halftime, knowing they’d get the ball first to start the second half. The scenario was perfect for some momentum building. However, Sayin threw the ball away to save clock when instead he could have scrambled forward to pick up a first down. Ohio State could have then spiked the ball and had a shorter field goal. Instead, he threw an incomplete pass on third down, and Jayden Fielding attempted a 49-yard field goal.
Fielding, who has a decent overall percentage, continued his trend of missing kicks in big games, leaving the ball left the entire way. Instead of driving down and cutting the lead to 14-7 early in the third quarter, the game could have been 14-10 at that point and given the team some much-needed momentum and created doubt for Miami with lots of time left. Special teams continue to let Ohio State down year after year, and it’s a maddening part of watching an otherwise elite program.
“Holding”
The referees seemed content to swallow their whistles all night and allow the teams to duke it out on the field. They picked an unfortunate time to enter the chat. Ohio State was down just 17-14 and took over the ball at its own 25-yard line early in the fourth quarter. The Buckeyes drove out to their 48 when the officials got involved.
On second-and-10, Daniels was called for a phantom hold on a night when holding didn’t even seem to be in the rulebook. He was beaten cleanly and tried to push his man from behind, but did not hold him. Sayin dumped the ball off to Bo Jackson for six yards into plus territory, but the faux flag made it second-and-20 instead of third-and-4. It was a critical call because the drive stalled, and Miami drove down the field and iced the game on the ensuing possession.
Where’s the D?
Matt Patricia’s defense excelled all season and most of the game Wednesday night, but when that unit needed a stop late, it could not get one. The defense allowed two huge third-down conversions, couldn’t tackle, and allowed Miami to run the clock down and add a late touchdown. It was a disappointing capitulation from the one part of the team that could always be counted on in 2025.
Those are the things that I thought blew when the Buckeyes fell to the Hurricanes. What stood out to you? There were a lot of other nits I could have picked and a few bright spots. Smith had another terrific game, and Downs, Styles, and Kaden McDonald played well, with additional flashes from Jackson and C.J. Donaldson, but mostly it was a night to forget if you’re a Buckeye fan.
That’s a wrap on the season for the Grumpy Old Buckeye. I hope you enjoyed my belly aching throughout the year. Hopefully, 2026 will bring more Ohio State wins and a playoff game that isn’t on New Year’s Eve.
