Five things Ohio State football must do in order to contend for a national championship in 2021

Aside from talent, what are some things that must go right for Ohio State to contend for a national title this fall? We’ve got five things for you.

Defensive backs have to bounce back

By far the weak spot of the entire team last season was the defensive backfield. Ohio State gave up 304 yards passing per game in 2021. Only five teams were worse, and it’s quite remarkable that the team made it as far as it did with such a glaring weakness. But don’t worry, Alabama took advantage of that mercifully.

Put aside the fact that the Buckeye defense was pretty good against the run, because to be an effective defense, you have to be balanced and able to take away different types of attacks. For a program that has historically been a killer on the back-end of the defense, it has to get back to that next season or face the possibility of getting shredded against good passing attacks.

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