Ohio State Buckeyes Preview 2022: Offense
The offense was unstoppable. It finished No. 1 in the nation in total offense, No. 1 in scoring, No. 2 in third down conversions, No. 3 in passing, and on and on and on.
It might have been slowed down just enough for Michigan to pull off the win, and even then it threw for close to 400 yards. Even in the loss to Oregon the attack rolled for over 600.
A few of the stars are done from the receiving corps, and there are a few new guys on the line, but nothing stops thanks to …
CJ Stroud. Oh sure, he might not have run like Justin Fields did, and there were a few times when it took a while to get going, and that’s totally nitpicking.
Beyond brilliant, one of the Heisman front-runners and the possible No. 1 overall pick in the 2023 NFL Draft threw for 4,435 yards and 44 touchdowns with six interceptions, completing 72% of his throws. Kyle McCord isn’t Stroud, but he’s a talented backup who can step in and produce for stretches if needed.
Garrett Wilson and Chris Olave are about to tear up the NFL, but 95-catch leading receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba is back. If he’s not the best receiver in college football, he’s right there, but 25 touchdown catches are gone with Wilson and Olave.
Marvin Harrison Jr. is a rising star, and Emeka Egbuka and Julian Fleming are talented young options who’ll get their shot at more work. The tight end position will be a battle between Cade Stover and Joe Royer to replace strong pass catcher Jeremy Ruckert.
TreyVeon Henderson would be a Heisman front-runner and leading star of the offense for just about anyone else. If it’s possible to hit as many home runs as he did, run for 1,255 yards and 15 scores – along with 312 receiving yards and four touchdowns – and fly under the radar, he did it.
Even more dead silent nationally were Miyan Williams’ 504 yards and three scores, averaging over seven yards per pop. The backs will rock again behind another great line.
The offensive line was fantastic in pass protection and great for the ground game, and now it gets back enough talent to be fantastic again.
Luke Wypler is growing into a star at center, Paris Johnson and Dawand Jones are NFL-caliber tackles, and the guards are rocks. This will be a fantastic starting five, but the depth has to develop a wee bit.
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Ohio State Buckeyes Preview 2022: Defense
The defense wasn’t that bad. It wasn’t great considering all the talent Ohio State amassed, but it improved as the schedule got easier and it went through the middle of the year allowing 20 points or fewer in seven of nine games.
However, the run defense under new coordinator Jim Knowles – coming in from Oklahoma State – has to be stronger, and the secondary has to come up with more plays to get off the field.
Overall, the defense that allowed over 1,900 yards in the first three games of the season and closed by giving up close to 1,000 over the last two has to at least hold on against the good offenses.
With the move to more of a 4-2-5 alignment, there’s a good glut of talent at linebacker. Tommy Eichenberg was second on the team 64 tackles from his spot in the middle, and a slew of last year’s top tacklers will find their way into the mix.
Steele Chambers will likely stick at a weakside position after coming up with a 47-tackle season, but again, there are a whole lot of options.
Leading sacker and top tackle Haskell Garrett is done, but as long as the line can hold up better against the run, it’ll be doing its job.
Taron Vincent is a big body on the nose, and Jerron Cage knows what he’s doing, and OSU is deep at tackle – there’s no excuse not to keep everyone fresh and find the right combination.
There will be a steady rotation on the end, too. JT Tuimolau and Zach Harrison are regulars, and Jack Sawyer and Javontae Jean-Baptiste have been through the battles. Again, like tackle, there’s no reason the D can’t get more with all the options.
Now the secondary has to be more disruptive. There’s talent and experience to do a lot more. Tanner McCalister followed Knowles over from Oklahoma State and should play a big role right away at Nickel.
Free safety Ronnie Hickman led the team in tackles by a mile with 98, and Josh Proctor leads a promising group of strong safeties.
The interceptions were spread out, but the corners have to be bigger factors. Denzel Burke is a future NFL talent and a keeper coming off a 12-broken-up-pass season, and Cameron Brown is back on the other side after busting up seven passes.
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