Ohio State’s trip to Texas on Saturday brings an early-season heavyweight feel, and the Buckeyes are walking into a matchup that will ask a lot from the groups still trying to define themselves.
Both teams opened with blowout wins - Ohio State beat Ball State 56-3, while Texas rolled past Texas State 59-7 - but this one is a different animal. The stakes inside the game are simple enough: if Ohio State wants to leave with a win, its best position groups have to look the part against what could be the most talented opponent it sees all year.
The secondary may be the biggest key. Devin Sanchez and Jermaine Mathews entered the season with plenty of buzz about their offseason growth, and they backed it up right away. Along with freshman nickel Jay Timmons, they combined for five pass breakups and helped hold Ball State to just 120 passing yards.
Texas is a far sterner test. Arch Manning came out firing in the opener, throwing for 360 yards and four touchdowns, and Cam Coleman and Ryan Wingo did most of the damage, combining for 191 yards and three scores. Sanchez and Mathews will see plenty of both on Saturday, and Ohio State is leaning on that trio to be its most dependable defensive group again.
There’s also the challenge on the other side of the ball. Ohio State’s passing game was limited in last year’s 14-7 win over Texas, even with Julian Sayin’s 40-yard touchdown strike to Carnell Tate serving as the game’s biggest highlight. Outside of that play, Sayin finished 12-for-19 for 86 yards in his first collegiate start.
Now he gets another crack at the Longhorns, and Texas showed last week it can make life miserable through the air, allowing only 188 passing yards while adding an interception. A major piece of Ohio State’s plan will be getting Jeremiah Smith going; in the two games he has faced Texas in his career at Ohio State, Smith has totaled 46 yards.
Up front, the Buckeyes’ defensive line has already shown it can set the tone. With three new starters, that group helped hold Ball State to 45 rushing yards and gave Matt Patricia his 10th game in 15 as defensive coordinator with an opponent finishing under 100 yards on the ground.
The pass rush still has room to grow, though. Ohio State produced only one sack last week, and it didn’t come until the fourth quarter from backup end Epi Sitanilei. That has to change against Manning, because the Buckeyes only got to him once last season and cannot afford to let him sit comfortably while looking for his playmakers downfield.
If Ohio State wants to win this one, the formula is clear: the secondary has to hold up, the offense has to find more answers through the air, and the defensive front has to keep Manning under constant heat.
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