Indiana football gets its biggest home-stage test in years Saturday at Memorial Stadium, and the game with Ohio State figures to be decided in the places where big games usually are: up front, on the outside, and on the headset.
The Hoosiers already showed last season that they can stand in the middle of this kind of fight with the Buckeyes. They’ll need that same edge again, because Ohio State arrives with enough talent to punish even small mistakes. Three matchups stand out as the ones most likely to swing the afternoon.
The first battle is the obvious one: Indiana’s defensive line against Ohio State’s offensive line. It’s the kind of matchup that can tell the whole story before the second half even starts.
Indiana won the trench fight in last season’s Big Ten Championship Game by getting constant heat on Ohio State quarterback Julian Sayin, and that pressure mattered from the opening snaps to the finish. The Hoosiers brought Sayin down five times in that game, and every sack came from returners who will be back on the field Saturday.
That kind of disruption helped Indiana stay in control long enough for Fernando Mendoza and company to build the lead and keep it. Ohio State’s line has mostly held together through six games, but Sayin has already taken 11 sacks, with Iowa doing the most damage by getting him down four times.
The vulnerability is there, and Indiana’s front has to find it early if the Buckeyes are going to be kept out of rhythm.
On the back end, Indiana’s defensive secondary has one giant problem to solve in Jeremiah Smith. This is not a matchup any one defender can truly handle alone.
Smith has already established himself as one of the very best wide receivers in college football, and he gave Indiana plenty to deal with in last season’s Big Ten Championship Game even with D’Angelo Ponds on him, a defender who knew Smith well from their days as high school teammates. This time, Jamari Sharpe is the likeliest corner to draw the assignment, with safety help expected over the top to try to cut down Smith’s big-play chances.
The Buckeye star can beat coverage in a lot of different ways - with finesse, with strength, and with his control at the catch point. He is going to make plays.
Indiana’s job is to make sure those plays do not take over the game, and that means the entire secondary has to stay sharp and disciplined snap after snap.
Then there’s the sideline battle: Mike Shanahan against Matt Patricia. Bryant Haines’ work as a defensive coordinator has already spoken for itself, from the way he prepares to the way he calls a game.
Shanahan, meanwhile, keeps proving himself in a demanding double role as both wide receivers coach and offensive coordinator while also handling play-calling duties. This Saturday gives him another big stage, and it comes against Patricia, who guided one of the sport’s best defensive units last year and is working with another strong group in his second season at Ohio State.
Patricia has to account for Shanahan’s balanced use of Charlie Becker and Nick Marsh, along with the more explosive rushing attack led by Turbo Richard. Shanahan will have to be ready from the very first snap.
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