I expected that to be the case but still needed to see it.
Ohio State signed 17 players listed as DBs from 2018-21 & 10 have transferred out. 5 have became starters (so far), though 2 members of that group are also among the transfers (Does not include Cam Brown, who signed as WR) https://t.co/QUnanqateq
— Marcus Hartman (@marcushartman) January 5, 2023
2. The second-biggest positive long-term takeaway from the Peach Bowl for Ohio State was that Ryan Day and staff still know how to come up with a great offensive game plan.
That was a major question following the complete flop against Michigan, maybe the worst-coached game I have ever seen.
In today’s game, even great defenses are sometimes helpless against a team with a good quarterback and receivers as long as an offensive line is even solid, and that was the case in Atlanta. It wasn’t a surprise Ohio State could get after the Bulldogs’ defense but rather if the Buckeyes would, and they did.
3. C.J. Stroud made it go in a game that had to be a big boost to his NFL Draft prospects.
Many of the questions about Stroud entering the game were valid, but the quarterback pretty much answered them all.
He couldn’t have played much better even before you take into account all the personnel losses Ohio State endured up to and during the game. We knew he can read defenses at an elite level and has an outstanding arm, but he was shaky against pressure (many QBs are) and his refusal to run was strange more than anything else. He answered the bell in every way.
Credit: DaytonDailyNews
4. What can you say about the defense at this point?
I think the biggest problem is personnel. That’s been the constant the last three years.
The Buckeyes need better players on Saturdays. Whether that is because of misses on the recruiting trail or a breakdown in development on and/or off the field I don’t know, but something needs to change there.
5. Michigan lost despite TCU’s quarterback playing just OK.
That might be the most surprising aspect of the Fiesta Bowl.
Max Duggan entered the game with better numbers, but J.J. McCarthy had a bigger upside. Or so that was the idea. We’ll have to wait another year to find out if the latter is true. McCarthy, who is great at giving soudbites when his team wins but blew off the media after his first loss as a starter, was pedestrian most of the year, took advantage of a terrible Ohio State game plan after struggling badly in a near-loss to Illinois then crippled his team with mistakes in the CFP.
6. One aspect of the Fiesta Bowl being far overshadowed by the Peach Bowl in the month leading up to the games was how little attention seemed to be paid to the fact Blake Corum couldn’t play for Michigan.
Corum was by far the Wolverines’ most important player, the fulcrum of the offense because he could give you a big play but more importantly got all the yards that were there to get on the other plays. That’s huge for the offense’s efficiency, more so when the quarterback is not efficient. Donovan Edwards is a big play back, but so far he is just that with another player who of course could develop into much more with another year under his belt.
7. Michigan’s defense getting gutted wasn’t a big surprise.
They faced virtually no challenges all year except Penn State and Ohio State, both of whom picked that day to play their worst game of the season in ways that were not entirely dictated by the Wolverines. Michigan still deserved to win those games, but it was an open question all year how good a defense that suffered major losses from a great 2021 unit really was.
Ohio State also faked it fairly well on defense most of the year, also with the help of the near total absence of good offenses in the Big Ten this year (like most years). We just knew before the CFP that was the case so it wasn’t a surprise to see the Buckeyes struggle again.
8. I suspect the best way forward for Ohio State is to have some continuity on the staff.
The secondary has endured change in coaches three times in the last four years, and that is typically bad both for recruiting and development.
The defensive line also has failed to meet (its very high) expectations three years in a row, though it was better this year than the last two. They at least kept the linebackers cleaner and had some flashes of brilliance against more than just the bottom teams on the schedule.
9. What can you say about Jim Knowles?
I’m sure some want to cut bait now rather than risk another big game meltdown, but I would still advise giving Ohio State’s defensive coordinator the benefit of the doubt, at least for another year.
Getting his whole system installed was always supposed to take time… but he sure seemed to press the wrong buttons in the three biggest games of the year. He said prior to the Peach Bowl he realized he might not need to try so hard to win every play schematically when he has better players (The defensive roster might be down by Ohio State standards, but It’s probably still better than Oklahoma State or Duke), but that is a lesson that might take time to sink in. He is going to have to do a better job knowing what he has, too, but that is also a somewhat understandable Year 1 problem.
10. Day and Knowles both know how to be underdogs (coming from New Hampshire and Cornell, respectively), and that can be valuable when it comes to learning to be resourceful.
The key for both might be learning and remembering how to mix their early lessons in football with the strengths presented by a place like Ohio State. Sometimes when you have the big stick, you just have to use it. Against Michigan, I felt Ohio State’s players were ready to go. The coaching staff let them down with awful game plans on both sides that prevented them from maximizing what looked like a talent advantage in the first half. That kept the game close, and credit goes to Michigan for continuing to come at Ohio State until breaking through in the second half.
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