In the world of social media outrage and clickbait articles, a routine four-touchdown win seems like the end of the world in Columbus, Ohio. At no point on Saturday was this contest in doubt. Even then, the Ohio State Buckeyes performance against the Youngstown State Penguins felt lackluster to many.
The Buckeyes wasted no time on their first drive as they scored on a massive 71-yard catch-and-run by Marvin Harrison, Jr. on the third play from scrimmage. Youngstown State answered with a touchdown drive of its own and that was it for the Penguins. After a three-and-out, Ohio State scored on their next three drives to close out the half leading 28-7.
The second half was a picture-perfect explanation for those who do not like the new clock rules. The Penguins’ time of possession was 19:07 whereas the Buckeyes had the ball for 10:53. Ohio State only had three drives in the entire second half. Given, that would have been fixed had the defense forced more than one three-and-out.
All in all, Ohio State dominated Youngstown State to move to 2-0. On the surface, the story is how Ohio State couldn’t beat Youngstown State by a margin acceptable to viewers. A four-score win is still as much of a win as a one-point win.
Offensive Playmakers Highlight Buckeyes Win Over Penguins
The Quarterback Battle is Over
Heading into this matchup, there was a lingering feeling that Kyle McCord had not solidified himself ahead of Devin Brown. Considering how inept the offense looked last week, paired with the lack of meaningful snaps for Brown, it made sense. After this win over Youngstown State, it’s McCord’s team.
At the end of the day, McCord finished 14/20 passing for 258 yards and three scores. Most importantly, he did not turn the ball over. The offense looked significantly better this week than it did last week. McCord had control of the offense and once he got going, he was cooking. His pocket presence took a step forward and made all of the right reads.
Most of his incompletions were due to being a tad late with his pass and throwing it behind his receivers. This will rectify itself in time as he continues to get accustomed to the timing.
Brown actually earned meaningful snaps this week and they were more than just handoffs or designed quarterback runs. He led the offense on a total of three drives, two of which were in the second half. The Buckeyes found the end zone on each of his first two drives. All in all, Brown ended up with 101 yards through the air while completing seven of 13 attempts. On the ground, which is where he is stronger than McCord, Brown added nine yards off of six attempts.
While the offense scored on 66.6% of his drives, the Buckeyes stalled on the Penguins’ five-yard line in the drive that didn’t score. The offense, as a whole, did not look nearly as good as it did with McCord. Brown also threw behind his receivers and underthrew a number of deep balls. Whether it was him underestimating the depth or just not having the arm strength, Brown’s deep ball is a far cry from the zip the Buckeyes have grown accustomed to over the last five years.
Welcome to 2023, Ohio State Weapons
After a lackluster Week 1 performance, Harrison, Emeka Egbuka, and TreVeyon Henderson made their marks. Last week, Cade Stover was the star of the show. This week, it was Harrison. Harrison started off on fire in this game, scoring each of the Buckeyes’ first two touchdowns. He was a matchup nightmare all game long, as expected. The future top-five pick finished with 160 yards and two touchdowns off of just seven receptions.
Each of his touchdowns was exactly why NFL scouts are so high on him. He has a knack for getting open and finding green grass despite all of the focus being on him. He continues to be incredibly fluid in his route-running and is a constant home-run threat no matter the depth of the target.
Not to be forgotten, Egbuka made a spectacular play on fourth down to score his touchdown. The Buckeyes needed just two yards and ended up getting the whole thing. It was a basic, quick wide receiver bubble screen concept where he caught the ball behind the line of scrimmage and followed his block. The Youngstown State safety came over to make the play and Egbuka stopped on a dime, sent him flying, and jaunted into the endzone without breaking a sweat.
On the day, Egbuka finished with five catches for 94 yards and a score.
In the backfield, RB1 needed to be sorted. Against Indiana, Chip Trayanum looked the best. This week, it was Henderson. He ran the ball just five times but he gashed the defense for 56 yards and two scores. He even added 18 yards off of a pair of receptions. The offense kept trying to get Henderson going with stretch runs. His first touchdown was straight up downhill where the offensive line moved the entire defense to the right and he pummeled his way into the end zone for a 13-yard score. Then, the last score of the day was a 30-yard wide zone concept where he broke contain, cut upfield, and turned on the jets to score untouched.
When healthy, Henderson is among the best in the Big Ten.
Defense Untested but Solid
When the Ohio State defense needed to step up, they did. Last week, the Buckeyes held Indiana to three points and a grand total of 153 yards. This week, Youngstown State amassed 234 yards and seven points. The Buckeyes allowed 12 first downs this week as compared to eight last week. It should be noted, however, that that touchdown along with 75 yards and three first downs was on that first drive.
The interior defensive line looked solid led by Mike Hall, Jr., Tyleik Williams, and Ty Hamilton. The trio combined for 11 tackles, two for loss, and a sack. They were winning their reps left and right and would have ended up with more of a statistical impact for the Buckeyes if the Penguins were not getting the ball out quickly.
There is concern with the edge rushers, however. Neither J.T. Tuimoloau nor Jack Sawyer have been able to generate much by way of pressure thus far. The pair of five-star edge rushers combined for just five tackles.
Ohio State’s secondary looked a bit better after the first drive. Davison Igbinosun continued his physical, sticky play. He finished with five tackles and a pass break-up from his corner position. Opposite him, Denzel Burke had himself a game. On the first drive of the second half, Burke came crashing downhill to make a play and lost his helmet. After sitting out a play, Burke showed off his athleticism by sticking with his man and making a massive interception in the end zone. He’s stepping up in 2023, that’s for sure.
The Best Thing About Being 2-0…
Pretty win or an ugly win, a win is a win. Ohio State ended up with significantly more points than its opposition.
There are things to nit-pick and things to celebrate all over the field. McCord looks the part of QB1, even if his ceiling is not quite as high as the other Ryan Day quarterbacks. His receivers are still elite. The defense epitomizes “bend don’t break.” Ohio State will be fine.
After two weeks, the Buckeyes sit as a top-five team and atop the Big Ten. Next up, Western Kentucky.
Photo courtesy: Barbara J. Perenic/The Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK
