The things that did (and didn’t) matter in Ohio State’s win over Ball State

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Nobody expected the Ball State Cardinals to give the No. 1 Ohio State Buckeyes a true test in their season opener on Saturday in the Horseshoe, and, in fairness, they didn’t. However, en route to a 56-3 victory for the home team, the squad from Muncie did provide the Buckeyes with more of a challenge than many previous MAC opponents have.

However, it’s important to remember that it was just Week 1 against an overmatched opponent with a top-five matchup looming next week. So, it probably isn’t beneficial or healthy to overreact too much to anything that happened on the field today… But I’m going to do it anyway.

There were a few things — both good and bad — that I think deserve extra attention, as they could be emblematic of things to come as the season progresses. There are also a few things that we saw at Ohio Stadium today that I am not as worried about as some far less level-headed fans than myself might be.

Things that matter from the Ball State game

The Sayin and Smith connection:

I know I am not breaking any news here, but the connection of the quarterback and wide receiver who respectively finished fourth and sixth in last year’s Heisman Trophy balloting is special. Now in the third year of Julian Sayin and Jeremiah Smith working together, it is clear that the pair feels preternaturally comfortable together.

Sayin finished the day 21-of-25 for 320 yards and three passing touchdowns — not to mention his impressive touchdown scramble. Eight of those completions, 151 yards, and two scores went to J.J., and perhaps the most impressive of them all was the second score, when there appeared to be a bit of improvisation, and Smith settled in the back of the end zone, and Sayin threaded the needle leading to a toe-tapping touchdown.

We knew that they were among the best QB-WR combos in the country, but I think they very well might be even better than we anticipated. Yes, their physical gifts are elite, but their connection is next level and could be the difference in tough games throughout the season.

The offensive line and running game:

This offseason, Iconvinced myself that because of the experience across the offensive line and the introduction of noted run-game lover Arthur Smith as offensive coordinator, we would see a dramatic step forward in terms of the offensive line’s dominance, especially in regard to the running game.

Unfortunately, that is not what we saw on Saturday. In the first half of the game, Ohio State averaged 3.1 yards per rush attempt (adjusted to remove the two sacks suffered by Sayin). Part of the run game woes appeared to be the fault of the offensive line routinely missing assignments, and part was on the running backs not being able to break runs on their own. Fortunately, at least the latter of those issues improved after halftime, but the offensive line will need to show more if the Buckeyes are going to have the balanced offense that they are aiming for.

Bo Jackson — who was sturdy as a true freshman, but never seemed able to kick it into a higher gear — had 19 yards on seven carries (2.7 ypc) in the first half. Obviously, when he busted the 65-yard touchdown early in the third quarter, that makes the stats look a little better, but I’m not sure it fixes the line’s inherent problems.

The setup for Bo’s long touchdown run looked different than many of the other rushing attempts, which often came out of more neutral sets. This call saw the Buckeyes put seven men on the line, with an extra tight end inside, allowing them to finally get some movement up front. It clearly worked, and if that’s the kind of result we can expect from going heavy, then do it!

However, I think Smith would prefer to maintain some flexibility in sets, so that opposing defenses — starting with Texas next weekend — can’t key in on the run or the pass.

I think that was really my biggest disappointment of the game. The offensive line — especially in the first half — didn’t seem capable of getting any push off the ball without additional help. Arthur Smith has a reputation for emphasizing tough, aggressive offensive lines, but we really didn’t see much of that against Ball State.

Interestingly, despite all of the training camp hype for Isiah West, it was seventh-year senior and Florida transfer Ja’Kobi Jackson who took the RB2 snaps, but he only picked up 21 yards on five carries before halftime. On the series after Bo Jackson’s 65-yard scamper, Ja’Kobi Jackson had a 49-yarder of his own that saw him get into the end zone for the first time as a Buckeye.

As I said in the intro, of course this is only a Week 1 matchup against a MAC opponent, and Matt Patricia clearly didn’t throw a whole lot at the Cardinals in terms of creativity, so hopefully we see stronger offensive line play in Austin next Saturday.

Devin McQuin is legit:

The praise coming out of preseason camp for the UTSA transfer felt a bit out of hand, as Ryan Day said that he was “as good as we’ve had here.” That was clearly going to draw a ton of eyeballs considering that over just the last five years, OSU has had guys like Emeka Egbuka, Marvin Harrison Jr., Chris Olave, Jaxon Smith-Njigba, Carnell Tate, and Garrett Wilson, not to mention Jeremiah Smith, who is currently in the building as well.

However, McQuin more than lived up to the hype. Thanks in part to J.J. being on the opposite side of the field, the senior transfer took advantage of single coverage to rack up 97 yards on six receptions and a score before exiting early in the third quarter. Coupled with Brandon Inniss — who had a solid day — and Jeremiah Smith, Devin McQuin is gonna be a legitimate weapon that opponents are going to have to account for all season.

Special teams still not that special:

You have to understand, I was a student at Ohio State when Mike Nugent was the team’s field goal kicker. I was indoctrinated into the importance of special teams by nearly two decades of Jim Tressel and Urban Meyer preaching the importance of the third phase of the game. However, despite the lip service that Ryan Day had paid to it during his tenure, it hasn’t been a priority.

Obviously, the way football is played has changed during that time, and Day has opted to minimize risk on special teams in order to get the ball to the offense as quickly and seamlessly as possible. But at some point, there has to be a change. On kickoffs, Legend Bey (who I will talk about more momentarily) got way ahead of himself by bringing the ball out twice despite Brandon Inniss’ protestations.

The punt return team was flagged for a pair of holding penalties, negating a massive Phillip Bell return to start the first drive of the second half, moving the Buckeyes all the way back to their own 6. They were even called for an offside on a kickoff… let me repeat, they were offside on a KICKOFF!

Buckeye punter Joe McGuire averaged 41 yards on his three punts, while Ball State’s Cole Stumbaugh crushed a 64-yarder. It was also a bit jolting to see Ball State kicker Brody Boehm hit a 54-yard field goal in his first collegiate attempt, which is easily better than anything we’ve seen from the Scarlet and Gray in years.

When you are playing as many talent-equated games as the Buckeyes will this season, special teams are going to be a factor at some point; we just have to hope that new coordinator Robby Discher can turn it into something special for the Buckeyes and not what we’ve seen far too much of recently.

Now I get why Ryan Day wanted Legend Bey on the field:

Clearly Legend Bey’s first two kick returns left a lot to be desired, but in the second half, he showed why the coaching staff was so keen to find ways to get him on the field, thanks to a slippery 25-yard catch-and-run that got him into the end zone.

Bey finished the day with 37 yards rushing on six carries and 37 yards receiving on two catches, including that score. I don’t know how much he will see the field against Texas, but I would not be surprised if he ends up being RB1 by the time the season hits mid-October. If the Jacksons (Bo and Ja’Kobi) aren’t able to consistently make game-breaking plays, I think that Bey’s unique skill set and ability to make something out of nothing could be what catapults him to the top of the depth chart.

He still has some maturing to do, and he won’t be able to juke and jive around better defenses like he did today, but even after one game — hell, one half — it seemed pretty clear that Legend Bey’s ceiling is higher than anyone else in the Buckeyes’ backfield, and I am a big believer in getting the best players on the field as soon as possible and let them figure out how to do their jobs in real time.

What doesn’t matter from the Ball State game

Tackling, especially on sacks:

Not being able to sack Keldric Luster is not ideal, but it doesn’t worry me… yet. Ball State’s quarterback is listed at 5-foot-10, which means he’s probably 5-8. He’s listed at 250 pounds, which probably means closer to 260. Dude is a compact load with a low center of gravity, which means he is going to be tough to bring down, whether he plays for SMU, Texas State, or Ball State, or is on a wrestling mat.

Matt Patricia was clearly not throwing everything at the Cardinals, and he was rotating through so many guys that I just think that, given the top-shelf scheme and A+ personnel, hopefully those hurries turn into sacks.

Now, in fairness, getting home in the backfield and open-field tackling have been issues, but I’m not super worried about that aspect of a game in which OSU won 56-3.

Chris Henry Jr.’s drops:

Yes, Chris Henry Jr. had three drops, including two that would have been touchdowns (the second actually would have been called back due to a penalty, but still). But who amongst us hasn’t been nervous and a little jittery in big moments? I am not worried about him having butter fingers. Chris Henry Jr. is going to be a major factor this season and for years for the Buckeyes, and this doesn’t change that at all.

Obviously, as literally everybody on Twitter noted, Jeremiah Smith had a handful of drops in his first game, and things worked out pretty well for him. So, if there is anyone selling Chris Henry Jr. stock, I would highly recommend buying as much as you can now.

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