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Dan Hope and Andy Anders of Eleven Warriors bring you inside the Ohio State beat every Wednesday with a podcast covering everything you need to know about the Buckeyes.
Note: This transcript was AI-generated and has not been edited for errors.
[Dan Hope]
Welcome into Real Pod Wednesdays. Dan Hope joined by Andy Anders as Ohio State football is back in action this week, Buckeyes preparing to take on Marshall at Ohio stadium at noon with Fox televising the game. Not sure we have a whole lot to talk about with Ohio State versus Marshall much like the first two games of the season.
We're expecting a pretty lopsided game in the Buckeyes favor as the Buckeyes finish up their non-conference slate with another tune-up game against a group of five team that's likely to be overmatched a little bit better than Akron and Western Michigan, but not so much to the point that they should pose a real threat to the Buckeyes.
[Andy Anders]
Last year anyway, Marshall was the best of these three non-conference cupcakes for Ohio State, but only six and seven. And we've said it before, you know, these are three group of five opponents that weren't exactly cream of the crop group of five teams entering this year and Marshall, you know, they've got some respectable things. They stayed in the game a little bit with Virginia Tech a couple weeks ago, but this isn't a team that should provide a threat to Ohio State.
That's kind of been the theme of these of this first month of the season is just ramping up to the games that matter, ironing out some of those fine wrinkles and hopefully staying healthy. And I think the Buckeyes have in large part accomplished those things.
[Dan Hope]
Yeah, I think frankly, we're both looking forward to next week getting here and the Big Ten season starting because and I'm sure most of you are too because it's going to be more interesting to talk about Ohio State playing conference games against higher caliber opponents, you know, certainly still, you know, plenty to accomplish for the Buckeyes this week, you know, I think they'd love to, you know, much like the last game against Western Michigan, start out hot, take care of business early, get those backups in there in the second half, play those guys as much as possible because this might be the last real opportunity for the Buckeyes to play deep into their depth chart or at least one that you know, you can feel good about anticipating. I mean, there's certainly some opponents I think later in the season like Purdue, Northwestern, where you would hope that you can take care of business early, you know, build a big lead and play more of those backups.
But this is really the last kind of opportunity where you go into it thinking, okay, you know, if we do what we're supposed to do, we should be able to get our starters out of the game early. We should be able to get some of those backups in the game. So I think that's certainly going to be a goal for the Buckeyes this weekend against the Thundering Herd.
We'll get into our predictions for that game later. But as we talk about the possibility of a Buckeyes playing deep into their depth chart again, you know, this week will give us another opportunity to kind of see some of those backups in action. But I think off of those first two games, we've kind of gotten an idea now of how the Buckeyes depth chart stacks up, you know, as you mentioned, you know, knock on wood here on my wooden desk here, Ohio State has largely avoided the injury bug so far.
They're expected to be back at full strength on Saturday, as Ryan Day said Tuesday, that Donovan Jackson is ready to roll. And so the Buckeyes should have their full starting contingent in place for Saturday's game against Marshall. But certainly a long way to go in this season, a lot of things that can still happen.
And so depth is going to be very important for this Ohio State team. So we thought it would be kind of fun today to take another look at the depth chart. We usually do our depth chart projections before the season.
But now that we're two weeks into the season and we've gotten a chance to see at least for two deep at most positions, three deep, four deep at this point in the season. I think it gives us a better feel of what Ohio State's depth chart truly is and how Ohio State's depth stacks up at every position.
[Andy Anders]
Yeah, we've got a pretty good picture and we had good ideas at most positions entering the season. I mean, we talked about how well-established a lot of the defense was, some pieces on offense, right? There were some questions to sort out and there have been a rise.
There's been a riser or two, right? A guy that maybe we weren't looking at climbing the depth chart and being among that mix of maybe the next wave of players. Some guys like that that have kind of made some statements in the first few weeks.
I think two in particular come to mind. One on offense, one on defense. We can get into that a bit later.
But as we start to run through the positions, I mean quarterback, Will Howard's been the starter for this team really for over a month now since he was named the starter midway through camp and he's done nothing but solidify that mark as the best quarterback on this roster, the best quarterback to lead this team forward. You look at the stats, you know, it's 544 total yards when you add rushing and passing and five touchdowns with no turnovers, which was a huge point of emphasis for him entering this season. Reiterated that when we spoke to him on Tuesday, just talking about how, again, all these weapons around him, all they have at running back, at receiver, all that's there for him on the table.
He really just needs to be that decision maker, that experienced guiding hand to get the ball where it needs to go and not to turn it over and he's done that through two weeks.
[Dan Hope]
Yeah, you think about where Ohio State was at this point a year ago, at this point a year ago, it was just going into this third game that Ryan Day firmly named Kyle McCord as the starting quarterback. This year, we've already seen Will Howard as that starting quarterback for two full games and he's played very well and he's done nothing but solidify his place atop a depth chart. And so we came out of the spring feeling like there were some questions here.
I mean, I think, you know, even early in preseason camp, we maybe kind of felt like, oh, there's a chance this goes into the season or even after Will Howard was named the starter, there's still that chance of, if he goes in those first couple games and doesn't play great, then, you know, can Devin Brown make a push for that job? Can Julian San make a push for that job? But, you know, right now, it's very, very clearly Will Howard's team, Will Howard's offense.
There's going to be tougher competition to come for sure. But so far, all signs are looking good for Will Howard to be the quarterback of this Ohio State offense. You know, he's, you know, he hasn't been perfect as a deep passer, but he's been better, I think, than we saw at points in the offseason.
He's done a good job of making smart decisions. You know, we've seen him do a really good job of handling that pressure in my pocket, showing composure, showing leadership, being a running threat. And so I think, you know, it's very firmly his offense now at quarterback and that's a good thing.
That's a good place to be in, especially as you start looking ahead to next week and getting into conference play. I think the one question that I still have at quarterback is, is Devin Brown for sure the number two quarterback of this offense all season? Or could Julian Sands, you know, if we get into that situation where something happens to Will Howard and he can't go one week, is Devin Brown for sure the guy who steps in as the starter or could it be Julian Sands?
That's a question. I don't know the answer to completely. I mean, certainly indications based on what we've seen so far is that Devin Brown would be the next guy up based on the fact that Julian Sands has only played one drive.
But hey, that one Julian Sands drive ended with a 55-yard touchdown. And so you think about the future long-term trajectory of this room. We've said it before.
I think my opinion has only become strengthened that when I look ahead to next year, I think Julian Sands is the favorite to be the starting quarterback for Ohio State next season. I think for right now, Devin Brown is still that number two guy, but I don't think it's necessarily set in stone that, you know, especially as the year progresses. I don't think it's necessarily set in stone that he would for sure be the next guy up if something happened to Will Howard.
The good thing is I think you have two guys there in Devin Brown and Julian Sands that they feel pretty good about like, you know, they're right now. There is a drop-off from Will Howard to the next guy, but I think there's two guys there that they feel good enough about to where if something was to happen to Will Howard, it wouldn't feel like blow everything up, season's over. I think there's reason for optimism that they have what they need at quarterback, but certainly now we can sit here and say, yeah, Will Howard's the guy for this year and it's important to keep him healthy, but I also I think you look at that quarterback depth chart and I think you feel better than you probably have the last few years about where you're at if you put find yourself in a situation where you need a backup quarterback to come in and play meaningful snaps.
[Andy Anders]
I'd agree with that assessment and Devin to me showed a lot of good things in week two. I thought when you look at what he did coming in against Western Michigan, a couple of series he played and completing some really nice throws on the run, making some accurate passes, making some good reads. I mean he needed that on the field.
I think at least for his own confidence and the question of whether he's Ohio State's number two quarterback truly or if it's if Will Howard something were to happen to Will Howard in that hypothetical scenario. Would it be Julian say and I think you know, I've said it all off season. I think a lot of it depends on timing or I say all off and we're obviously in the season now, but I said it during the offseason.
I've said it since I think it's a lot about the timing of it and is Julian saying ready in that moment is how long was the injury to Will and is this a situation where Julian's gonna have to play the rest of the year and you can trust that upside or is Devin maybe more the guy that's ready right now because there's a lot that goes into running this offense a lot that goes into playing quarterback at this level and Julian would have to get there in year one to surpass Devin who's been in the program a few years. So to me, I think it's going to be all about timing, but I would say there's certainly a non-zero chance that Julian saying would be that guy if Will Howard had some sort of long-term injury and you needed that replacement.
I think you could buy into his upside and ability to get there as a freshman moving on down the depth chart. I think running back the top Travion Henderson and Quenshawn Judkins. I've got little else to say about these guys other than both are showing why they are superstars.
Quenshawn, you know had some hiccups in that first week some inefficiencies that were I think mostly blocking related a lot of you know, he didn't get a lot of space to run in that Akron game when he carried the ball, but man, what a show he put on against Western Michigan and just a handful of carries really and and gouging that defense for big runs the biggest of which was called back for a holding call, but Quenshawn has shown why he was such a valuable transfer portal acquisition for this team.
Those two are the top two not much. It's 1A. It's truly a 1A, 1B situation.
I don't see a ton of separation. I love the way Travion has finished runs this year. I think his visions improved and it's clear his path blockings improved.
I mean we all saw that giant hit he had earlier against Akron where he you know, just just floored the blitzer but that was those things that Travion is doing and his leadership off the field are his biggest areas of growth and now Quenshawn has been a huge compliment really the biggest I guess revelation you could say at running back is James Peoples and just how fast he's become someone you look at and say, okay. Yeah, he could be the guy real soon if needed. Obviously if one of Travion or Quenshawn goes down his role is going to increase quite a bit and I just think he's ready for that moment.
He looks he's looked so good when he's got in these first couple of games moves really well great burst. I think really solid vision kind of maybe more of that one cut style, but he's a great runner and runs hard man runs with good pad level turns the legs kind of like Quenshawn does makes a big habit out of I think that Ohio State can really feel confident about who is third running back is maybe a larger sample size. You want to see if ball security issues if pass protection if those things are good, but running the football Jake, there's a lot to love about James Peoples even as a freshman and if he gets called upon I think they can feel good about that.
[Dan Hope]
Yeah, I think you feel really good about the free deep there at running back. I think James Peoples looks like a guy who could be playing a bigger role right now. You hope that you don't need him to because you have Travion Henderson, Quenshawn Judkins.
I mean those those guys, you know, you can't get a better one two punch from that really but I think you feel good right now about where you are on that pretty because of what we've seen for James Peoples for two weeks, you know, you'd still love to have a little more depth there. I mean, I think probably nothing speaks to the limited numbers at running backs right now, but we actually saw Mason Mags take a snap at running back somebody who's listed on the roster as a walk-on quarterback take a snap at running back late in that Western Michigan game. And so you would like to see the the overall numbers there at running back be a little bit higher but in terms of that 3-D, I think you're in great shape with Travion Henderson, Quenshawn Judkins and James Peoples.
Moving on to wide receiver, certainly the top of a depth chart, you feel like you're in great shape there too because we talked about it all offseason, you know, Jeremiah Smith has to be a starter, right? Well, he is a starter and that ain't changing. I mean, not only is he a starter, you could make a strong case that he's already Ohio State's number one wide receiver and that's no knock on Emeka Abuka.
That's just how good Jeremiah Smith has been in his first two games as a Buckeye. Regardless of all that, you got Jeremiah Smith and Emeka Abuka, that's I would say two best receivers in the country. I do not think it's even a bridge too far to already say that about Jeremiah Smith based on what we've seen so far.
So you've got those two and then oh yeah, you got Carnell Tate in there too. I mean, I think this Ohio State receiving core is once again the best in college football based on what we've seen in these first two weeks and we've seen a lot of good things from Brandon Ennis too, whether it be in the punt return game in week one or more in the offensive side of a game in week two. I think, you know, Brandon Ennis is one of those guys we're going to save us about several guys over the course of a show.
He's one of those guys where he'd be starting for just about any other team in college football. Having him as that fourth receiver is a great luxury. And so I think you feel really good about where you're at with the top four.
The rest of the guys still a little bit more unproven, but we've seen Bryson Rodgers get in there a decent amount, get some first-team reps, Jaden Bowerd, Kojo Antwi have gotten in there a little bit as well. You know, Mylon Graham's a guy who, you know, Ryan Day has kind of repeatedly said it, you know, he came in in the summer. So he's a little bit behind.
He's got to catch up, but we like what we're seeing the potentials there for his role to grow as the season progresses. And so I think right now Mylon Graham is probably the eighth guy in that wide receiver picking order, but it wouldn't shock me if he was the sixth guy in that receiver picking order at some point this year because I think, you know, he's got that talent where sooner than later. He's a guy who's going to be ready to be an impact player at Ohio State.
It's probably more likely to be next year than this year, but you know to have him as your number eight receiver means you're in a pretty good spot there. And so, you know, I think there's certainly a gap between those top four receivers and everybody else right now, But those top four, you feel really, really good about what you have there.
[Andy Anders]
Yeah, I've raved about Emeka Ibuka and obviously Jeremiah Smith plenty on this podcast and other places. But can I just point out how ridiculous it is that Carnell Tate's the number three receiver on this team? I don't know if fans have been watching these last two games watching him.
He's really good, like the route running, the hands, the just the athleticism. He's really, he's really good in the open field and after the catch and we've seen that play out in the first couple weeks too with him. But he's number three on this team, clearly behind Jeremiah Smith and Emeka because of just how ridiculously talented those two are.
Like you said, two of the best in the country. And I think the only thing that's really surprised me, you know, we said coming into this year, we expected this receivers room to still be among the best in the country and even maybe take a step forward, even without Marvin Harrison, even after you lost possibly.
[Dan Hope]
I'll say it. I'll double down on it. I think this receiving core is better than last year.
And yeah, Marv is great. When we just saw what he did on Sunday in the NFL having 130 yards of two touchdowns in the first quarter. Marv is phenomenal, but I don't think the drop-off from Marv to Jeremiah is all that big.
And I think Carnell Tate and Brandon Ennis are a step above what you were getting out of your third and fourth receivers last year from Julian Fleming and Xavier Johnson. And so I do think that overall, this quartet leading that receiver room is better than last year, even without Marvin Harrison Jr. I totally agree with you for two games on that statement, especially when you consider, you know, Emeka was in and out of the lineup last year with some injuries, limited after he came back kind of thing.
[Andy Anders]
And it just, the depth is more noticeable. The only thing that's really surprised me so far is I don't think we've seen Brandon Ennis working with the Ones as much as I expected. I think it's really just been those top three in the first half of these games.
And then Brandon got a lot of good receiving production in second half of the Western Michigan game, more so with Devin Brown in the twos than he did with Will Howard in the ones. And so, just the versatility of those top three as well. I think all three can play the slot.
Maybe Carnell and Emeka a little more so than Jeremiah, but Jeremiah still has the tools and weaponry to be pretty much whatever you ask him to do. Yeah, he'll make a big play. He has been in for a couple plays.
He actually has been lined up there. It's crazy. No.
So the versatility of those three, I thought it was just going to make them easy to do a top four rotation and just you plug in Brandon at the slot and move whoever was at the slot outside. It's fine because all three of them can play both. So that has surprised me a little bit.
I kind of expected Brandon to get a little more work with the ones and keep the rotation fresh and then four bodies is just a nice clean row lineup, but no complaints really so far. And obviously Brian Hartline knows a lot better how to manage it and exactly where Brandon is at receiving wise in relation to the other three. He's made a big impact on punt return, at least did against Akron to the point where Western Michigan didn't give him a chance to have a big impact on punt return.
Really emphasizing hang time on those balls so he couldn't have his space. But those top four obviously you love at receiver. You'd like to see a little more out of Jaden Ballard still at near four, but we've been saying about that for him about him for a while and unless two guys go down, I don't think it's going to be that important, but you still just like to have the depth there.
I think the position on offense that has been the deepest to me that I didn't expect to be as deep was tight end and we talked about those three guys a lot. I think it's Bennett Christian getting involved really. We're mainly focusing on the three deep here, but Bennett Christian as that fourth guy at tight end, I think has started to step up a little bit and they mixed in the 14 personnel right with Bennett all four of those top four on the field.
Patrick Gerd doing some things down the stretch of games and we saw him play some last year, but really the tight end blocking I think has taken a step forward these first two weeks and it's allowed you to get more of these guys more reps and run more 12th personnel and those sorts of formations with Will Kaczmarek. I think G. Scott has shown some steps, although he's looked confused on a couple plays when he's got his assignment down.
I think he's blocked very well. Jelani Thurman has taken steps in that area still want to see a little more consistency out of him and you'd like to see him get involved in the passing game because he can be such a weapon there in the future, but I like where Ohio State's at at tight end right now, and I think I'm feeling better than I expected to into this by week because I kind of just expected this be an okay unit, you know, Will Kaczmarek is a nice boost to the blocking side, but they still have questions with the other people in that area. But I don't know. I frankly like what I've seen out of the tight ends these first two weeks.
[Dan Hope]
I think I'm still a little bit more of a wait-and-see approach at tight end. I do think the depth is a very promising thing right now. The fact that they have gotten four guys in there with the first-team offense fairly regularly, but the question is okay when you're playing Oregon, Penn State, Michigan, who's that one guy or two guys you can really count on?
I think that's the question right now because they have mixed in match so much at tight end. I would consider G Scott to be the starter right now because he has started both the first two games and I would say Will Kaczmarek is the number two because he's been the second guy on the field. Jelani Thurman's actually played the most snaps of a position.
So I don't think there's really a clear pecking order there yet and that's not necessarily a bad thing because it does speak to the fact that I do think they're deeper at that position than they've been the last couple years. I'm just not sure yet, do they have that one guy they fully trust to make the plays they need to make with the game on the line? That's a part I just don't know yet and we may not really know until they get into that situation because they haven't been in that situation.
So I think that would be my one hang up with the tight ends is I just don't know like who's the go-to guy in that room because that just hasn't emerged yet. I do think that Will Kaczmarek has done a lot of good things. I think it's an encouraging thing, kind of the inverse of what you talked about, Brian Innes.
It's an encouraging thing that we have seen Jelani Thurman play as much as he has because I was kind of getting the vibe going into the season when Ryan Day was really kind of publicly challenging Jelani Thurman that maybe we're just going to see mostly G and Will and Jelani's going to get in the fourth quarter and all of our readers are going to be asking us, why isn't Jelani Thurman playing? So we're seeing Jelani Thurman play. I mean, he really he should have had a touchdown against Western Michigan.
Will Howard under-threw the ball. He was in position to score a touchdown in that game. And so I'll be interested to see, you know, does that continue like when we get into the bigger games?
Does Jelani Thurman continue to get a significant chunk of those reps? Because I think he still has the highest upside of that group to be a game-changer at that position. I think Will Kasmaric has shown he can be a really solid player, particularly in the blocking game.
But I think Jelani Thurman is still kind of that guy that you look at and go, if anybody's really going to break out and become a star of his group, it could be that guy. So the fact that he's played as much as he has so far is definitely an encouraging sign.
[Andy Anders]
They don't need a tight end to break out and be a big weapon in the pass game either. I think that dependability be an option there, but I think a lot, so much of it is about the blocking when you have these receivers, these running backs. I'll be interested to see if, to your point, someone emerges as that go-to guy.
If it's not, hey, we need somebody to run a curl and pick us up a first down here or a corner and go for a big play, that guy you can just depend on to secure his assignment on a third and three and you run for a first down, you know, maybe that number one guy emerges as more of a blocker than a receiver. Now time for some offensive line talk here because that's an exposition on the depth chart breakdown. I think the place I want to start is Austin Sarabelle.
When I rewatched the Western Michigan game, I don't think there was any one player on offense that stood out as much as him to me in the sense that I didn't recognize how good he's been playing. I think, especially in the run game, that guy is moving bodies consistently and something to prove it feels like it left guard, something to prove like a little bit less heralded of a recruit from his class maybe than a Luke Montgomery but he has made the most of his opportunity and Ryan Day actually even looped him in with some of that discussion and said that he's still going to play when Donovan Jackson returns this week.
They're still going to try and work a minute right guard. Now. I always have my doubts if offensive line rotation is ever actually going to happen because I think it's more important than any position to keep the chemistry on the field.
But you know, the bison package is also still a thing that exists in the offense that could be an option to get him on the field. I just think Sarabelle has shown that he is ready to play can play and that's a huge boost to the two deep of this group even as he drops back to a starter as far as the starters go that that top line still the same we expected after, you know, you felt confident about Tegra Shibulla winning the right guard job and ultimately has to this point left tackle Josh Simmons left guard Donovan Jackson center Seth McLaughlin right guard Tegra Shibulla right tackle Josh Fryer and through these first two weeks, they had their issues against Akron. There were some inconsistencies.
I think more of it was on perimeter blocking than I originally gave credit for before I went back and kind of watch that game again, but the offensive line took a massive step in the run blocking department against Western Michigan. There was movement there was better scheme knowledge. I'll say better blocking assignment knowledge.
Seth has been a massive help to this team at center. I think that's become clear just his experience and having a guy at that position. You had a redshirt freshman last year and people I once had a coach tell me a good Center is worth his weight in gold because people don't realize I don't think how much of that position is about getting the entire offensive line to work when you have a redshirt freshman there as you did last year.
I think there were a lot of elements of that that were missing and maybe why the offensive line struggled at times. Seth knows how to set protections. Seth knows how to get the bodies moving on the ground.
Will Howard said today he makes calls at the line of scrimmage before even he does. Sometimes Seth's experience and his knowledge and even just his leadership on the offensive line has been a huge boost and I loved how he's blocked. He picked up two guys at once during one of quench on touchdown runs.
He sealed off the defensive tackle and then caught a backside linebacker that was trying to flow. He's I've been really impressed with Seth and block on these first few weeks. And I think overall the strides of the offensive line took from week one to week two particularly in the ground game are really encouraging.
[Dan Hope]
Yeah, I think I feel better about the offensive line than I did going into the season. Now again, we like much of us we have to qualify it with it's Akron and Western Michigan. The offensive line is supposed to dominate against these teams.
We have to see how they play against Iowa and Oregon and Nebraska, Penn State, Michigan, whoever. We have to see how they play in those kind of games before we can say, oh, offensive line is fixed. But like I said, we saw clear strides from week one to week two.
So that was a good thing. And I do think, you know, I think Seth McLaughlin to your point, I think has made a big difference there is that better in presence at center. We talk about the offensive line improvement.
We haven't even seen them play with their best offensive lineman yet, who is Donovan Jackson. And so I think that is an encouraging thing to go. Okay, we saw this offensive line take a big stride without Donovan Jackson.
Now they're getting Donovan Jackson back. So I think particularly interior offensive line like from a depth perspective. I think you feel really good about that too deep right now.
At least I do because I think with Donovan Jackson coming in now, you've seen Austin Searvelt play two games, get significantly better from one game to the next. I think he's a guy you feel good about if you need him to play. You know, Carson Hinsman is a guy who was very much in the thick of competing for a starting job.
And now he kind of feels like the forgotten guy because of Austin Searvelt going in and having a big game. But he's a guy who can step in at any of those free interior offensive line spots as well as Luke Montgomery, a guy who, you know, I think early in the offseason we thought was going to be the starting right guard for this offense. And so I think that interior offensive line, I thought Tegra Shibola did a lot of good things in that Western Michigan game as well.
And so I feel good about the starting trio right now, you know, Tegra still have a question mark just because he's the least experienced guy, but I feel good about what we've seen from that interior group. And I think now you have, you know, Austin getting that experience the last two weeks. You have Carson, a guy who started all last year, you know, Luke's a guy with a lot of potential.
I think that interior offensive line too deep's in a pretty good spot. I think the big question I still have with this offensive line, we talk about depth. My number one question on the entire depth chart is offensive tackle depth.
That is still the big question. I think Josh Simmons has played well so far this year. I think Josh Fryer is still kind of had his ups and downs.
I mean, he had one great run block and one of Quinton Judkins is touchdowns runs where he drove a guy way down the field led Judkins to a 23-yard touchdown. So we've still seen him have a few lapses at times. So I still think that he's still a guy that you want to see a little bit more from, but he's been solid.
I think the big question I still have is if one of those guys goes down, who's my next man up? I don't know. I think Zen Mahalsky and George Fitzpatrick have played decently when they've been in there, but we haven't seen enough of them to really be able to evaluate them yet.
So that remains my number one question mark red flag when I look at this whole depth chart is if something happens to one of the starting offensive tackles, who will the next man up be and will that guy be capable of giving them a kind of blocking particularly in pass protection that they need from that position?
[Andy Anders]
Yeah, whether it's George Fitzpatrick, Zen Mahalsky or someone else. I don't think I've seen anyone that's really caught my eye from that next wave and been like, okay, that's a guy I could see filling in and doing okay. The second unit didn't perform well when they got into these first two games.
I don't feel like offensive tackle wise and I think they had their ups and downs.
[Dan Hope]
I don't think they were terrible.
[Andy Anders]
There were moments certainly Sam Williams Dixon's final running as Western Michigan comes to mind the 30 yarder, but there were moments. I think that it's a lot of unproven and you're just uncertain about it given especially to just how recruiting has gone of tackles over the years here. And yeah, it's I just share your concern.
It's my number one thing with this team of like, where's it at? Who's going to step up and play if either Simmons or Friar goes down and maybe Sarah Bell is now an option there because he practiced to tackle some in preseason camp. Maybe, you know, Donovan Jackson's been talked about there before.
I doubt we see him slide out in any of these scenarios. It doesn't really seem like an option that's been on the table, but keeping it moving. If you said to me, what position on this team, if you look at the third row of the depth chart, the third row, not the first, not the second, the third, what position do you feel best about?
I'd say it's defensive end. Mitchell Melton is a third string defensive end and Mitchell Melton is really good. I think he's shown that when he's gotten his opportunities, not that they've been very frequent, but JT Tuimola and Jack Sawyer are clearly two of the best in the country.
Kenyatta Jackson Jr. and Caden Curry have looked awesome, showed really good flashes the last two years. Then you have Mr. Fifth-Year Senior brings a completely different skill set, I think, because he's the most linebacker-like of the defensive ends. I've said that before.
That's who starts your third string. So in terms of pure depth, I'm not sure there's a better position on this roster than defensive end. Oh, and that other third stringer, it's a five-star freshman.
It's Edric Houston.
[Dan Hope]
And Edric Houston's look really good when he's got in there. Again, whenever one of those guys you look at, just about any other team in the country, he is not a third stringer right now. He's a guy that I think if they needed him to play more this year, he absolutely could.
They probably don't need him to because, as you said, they have five guys. Again, Mitchell Melton, not a third stringer for maybe any other team in college football. Kenyatta Jackson, Caden Curry, a year ago, we all thought they were going to be the starters this year because we fought Jack Sawyer and JT Tuamolo out would already be in the NFL.
Massive luxury for this Ohio State team to have Jack and JT back and still have Kenyatta Jackson and Caden Curry and Mitchell Melton. So yeah, I think wholeheartedly, without a doubt, defensive end is the deepest position group on this team. It's a loaded depth chart.
Both Jack and JT are playing the way we've expected them to play so far this year. I mean, Jack in particular. Jack has been dominant for two games.
We saw JT, particularly in the first game, was excellent. And so I think defensive end, you feel fantastic about where Ohio State is right now. Defensive tackle, I think depth is still a little bit more of a question mark there.
I think you feel really good about the start of the front line. I think Ty Leak-Williams has continued to be highly disruptive for two games. Ty Hamilton, we heard Ryan Day and Jim Knowles give him a ton of love last week.
I think he's playing at a really high level. And so, you know, that starting defensive line, again, I think it's the best in the country. It's played like it for two games so far.
Again, not going up against great offensive line, but so far, so good for the top of that defensive line depth chart. I think the one backup you feel really good about right now is Caden McDonald. He is the only defensive tackle, backup defensive tackle, that's played double-digit snaps in either of the first two games.
And I think he's looked good. We've seen him be disruptive, particularly in that Western Michigan game. And so I think he's the guy, you know, especially at that nose tackle position, I think they feel good about him coming in and giving them quality snaps there.
It does seem like they're not quite as sure about everybody else at that position. And Ryan Day acknowledged as much when you asked him about that on Tuesday and said, you know, I think Larry Johnson would agree that, you know, we want to see a little bit more. We're looking for that next group of guys to step up.
Hiro Kanu is that second string free technique right now. And I think Hiro's played solidly when he's been in there. But, you know, you talk about, you know, you look at that three deep, you feel really good about it at defensive end.
I don't think Ohio State feels quite the same way at defensive tackle. I mean, we heard a lot of good things about Jason Moore of his offseason, but he barely played at all in the first two games. You know, Tywon Malone's a guy we saw some good things from during the preseason, but he still seemingly hasn't gotten to a point where he's getting many snaps in there.
And so, again, I think you feel really good about the top of that depth chart at defensive tackle, but knowing that's a position where Larry Johnson wants to rotate a good amount. I don't think the depth is quite there where they want it to be yet.
[Andy Anders]
Yeah, it's been an interesting first two weeks from that perspective. Cain McDonald to me has really emerged as the number three guy, like you mentioned, in that rotation, mostly at nose guard, of course. And he's the biggest in terms of weight of all of Ohio State's defensive linemen, but he's quick.
And I think both he and Ty have done an awesome job of resetting the line of scrimmage, of knocking offensive linemen back to make other guys make tackles, or getting tackles themselves, which is just gravy when you're a DT and bring so much weaponry to a defense when you have defensive tackles. Jim Knowles said it when we last talked to him. Defensive tackles that can make tackles are a huge luxury for a defense.
And both those guys have shown that ability at the one tack. I think nose guard, we kind of had questions last year, throughout the year, about maybe one of the weaknesses with Ohio State's defense was they didn't have that true run plug at nose guard. The guy who could just eat two blocks, Mike Hall, Ty Hamilton, were a little bit undersized for that position.
I think they got better as the year went on, and those two both ultimately had good seasons. But I think that Ty has gotten stronger, gotten a little more burst, I think, off the line. I've just noticed him a lot more early in this season.
And even dating back to that Missouri game, he had a pretty good cotton ball. I've noticed him more and more recently, just doing what a nose guard do. I had a coach once, I played nose guard in high school, and I had a coach once tell, he would ask me when I was a freshman, Anders, what's your job?
And I would say to blow shit up. That's what a nose guard is for. That's what a nose guard is for.
And that's what they're both doing, man. Caden McDonald, I don't think there's been hardly any drop off when he's come in the game from Ty Hamilton. This kid's a talent and freakish to have the athleticism.
He has his size. I think it's a weapon that Jim Knowles has deployed well. But like you said, it's the three-tech that's the bigger question.
Yes, Hero has kind of established himself as that number two three-tech, but to me, he really hasn't worked in nearly as much as Caden has. There doesn't seem to be the same level of confidence in what Hero is providing right now. Really only a few plays with the first-team defense, and that's kind of it as far as three-techs go with that first unit out there.
I was kind of surprised to see Will Smith be that next guy after Hero, before Jason Moore, to your point, and before even Ty Juan Malone. So it is that next wave of de-tackles that you really need to step up and see something more from, and I think particularly at three-tech. Because if Hero can at least establish himself to that same level as Caden, I think you feel a little better, but you certainly, going three deep, have a lot of questions there.
Linebacker, I mean, it's the biggest revelation at linebacker throughout this season has been Arbel Reese. He's pretty much overtaken CJ Hicks and established himself as the next guy in after Cody and Sonny there, doing a lot of things all over the field, the athleticism, the motor, and we've seen CJ still struggle with some of those non-blitzing linebacker things that have been an issue in the past for him. Looks a little lost on some plays when he's not given, like, hey, go attack the quarterback kind of a role.
So I think you feel better about the overall depth of the linebacker unit because they've shown a lot of good things, but maybe a change in, I think, the pecking order that we expected entering this year.
[Dan Hope]
Yeah, I'd go a little further and not just say that Arbel Reese has been the biggest revelation at linebacker. I'd say he's been the biggest revelation on the entire team because I think, you know, he's a guy that, you know, going into the season, we weren't certain, you know, would he or Gabe Powers be that number two Mike linebacker, and now he's already, you know, the number three linebacker, period. I mean, I think he is the next guy up at both Mike and Will right now.
Not to say that CJ Hicks isn't going to continue to see some kind of playing time, but I think the way Arbel Reese has performed these first two weeks has given the coaches a ton of confidence in him as a guy who can step in there and spell both Cody Simon at that Mike linebacker spot and Sonny Stiles at Will linebacker, and they could do those three linebacker packages, which we saw a good amount of against Western Michigan with, you know, I think the thing that they like to is Sonny is now he's played all three spots. So he's got that versatility, you know, he played Mike in that first game when Cody Simon was out.
So that's another thing you feel good about is like, okay, now, you know, like he can slide over to Mike as needed and play there. We know Arvel can play both spots. And so I think they feel like with those top three guys, they have a lot of versatility and then to have CJ Hicks.
I mean, a five-star junior is your fourth guy at linebacker. Gabe Powers, I think has not got a lot of playing time, but when he's gotten him there, he's made things happen. Of course, had that interception return touchdown in week one.
And so I think this is the deepest linebacker group. We've seen certainly in Jim Knowles, his tenure at Ohio State. And because of that, we've seen them rotate more and that's one of the things I'm going to be fascinated to watch as we get into Big Ten play is will that rotation continue?
Because the past couple years they tended to lean very heavily on the two starters or at most a trio of guys with having a little bit more depth. Even if CJ Hicks is a fourth guy, could we see him rotate in there more than we've seen the number four linebacker rotate in over the past couple years? Could we even see Gabe Powers get in there and earn some snaps with the first-team defense based on the way he's played?
I don't know the answer to that. I don't know that we're going to know the answer to that until the bigger games actually happen, but I do think they have the pieces in place to be able to do that if they want to.
[Andy Anders]
Outside of defensive end, corner might be the next position you feel best about the depth, even going three rows down on the depth chart here. Everyone knows the superstar corner, starting corner trio at this point. You got Denzel Burke.
You've got Davison Igbenos and you've got Jordan Hancock, number one pass defense in the country last year, right? Those were the three starters last year. There are three returners this year, just superstars, all of them, especially Denzel Burke.
Even after his ejection, I think he'll bounce back well this week. And you got to see Jermaine Matthews work in there, who we've said would start maybe for all but one team in the country this year. Jermaine Matthews Jr., what a luxury off the bench. But Aaron Scott Jr. and Lorenzo Stiles Jr., I think you have a pretty complete set of a second team there that you actually are starting to feel pretty good about mixing in with, obviously, Jermaine, who is pretty well known at this point and has shown a lot of what he can do, at least well-known if you're an Ohio State fan, right? Like what he did against Penn State last year, how he played, even filling in for Denzel Burke against Western Michigan. Not that Western Michigan had much of a chance to test corners because the front seven was just so dominant in that game for Ohio State, but Jermaine was locked down in coverage.
There was no real drop-off between him and Denzel. And Lorenzo Stiles, man, I've been really impressed with him through two weeks. Special teams, obviously, was special teams player of the game last week and had a couple of really just fly-down-the-field, hair-on-fire tackles in both kick and punt coverage, but he also had a pass breakup.
He's looked pretty comfortable in that nickel spot. I think he's really starting to take hold of it and his athleticism is starting to show why Ohio State wanted him out of the portal. If nothing else, it's a great sign for next year, but nickel depth was kind of a question entering this season, too.
And where was Lorenzo exactly? The way he's played these first couple weeks gives you a little more confidence. Obviously, again, weak opponents, small sample size, but I think there's a little more confidence in that second spot at nickel.
But then you've got Aaron Scott Jr. and Calvin Simpson Hunt mixing in behind that second wave. I think that's a great third unit to have even with those two leading it. When you talk about the next guys up at corner, I just think this room is in a pretty good spot with the youth and the experience that's on it.
And if one or two guys go down, you can still feel pretty confident about what the secondary is going to get done.
[Dan Hope]
Yeah, I mean, certainly if Jermaine, I mean, we saw it against Western Michigan, you know, for him to step in for Denzel Burke, a guy who's one of the best cornerbacks in the country, and the secondary really not miss a beat. Now, again, Western Michigan, not that high power of a passing offense. If you have Denzel Burke go down against Oregon, maybe you're a little bit more concerned.
But I do think Jermaine's a guy that you feel really good about, like he's a fourth starting caliber corner there. I don't know if you can quite go there if Lorenzo yet, but you know, Ryan Day did say last week that he's earned the right to play more on defense based on how he's played on special teams. When I asked him about it Tuesday, he was kind of noncommittal about whether that would, you know, really lead to like more snaps on a regular basis for Lorenzo and understandably so because Jordan Hancock's a really, really good nickel.
And so, you know, Lorenzo has to be able to play at that same level if they're going to regularly rotate him in in place of Jordan Hancock, and that's a high bar to reach. But I do think based on what we've seen from in the first couple weeks, you feel a lot better about where you're at in terms of that nickel depth. I think most likely, you know, if something was to happen to Jordan, I think Lorenzo is the next guy up and then it's probably Jermaine moving inside and playing nickel.
I think he can play all three spots. And so I think, you know, having those two guys, you know, those are kind of your top two backups. And I think you feel good about what they give you behind that elite trio of starters.
And then, you know, Aaron Scott said, I think I don't think Aaron Scott's a guy who, if things go according to plan, is going to play a lot of first-team snaps this year. But I think based on what we've seen him do with the second unit, you feel good about him as that sixth guy at corner and you see a guy that, you know, if Davison Iguinosa chooses to go to the NFL next year, you know, he's a guy who's going to be right there ready to compete for a starting job. And so I think, you know, Aaron Scott's a guy who probably could play more if they needed him to.
I don't think they're going to need him to play a lot this year, unless they have multiple injuries, but I think based on what we've seen from him so far, you feel really good about his future along with, you know, Jermaine Matthews Jr. You know, Calvin Simpson Hunt, I think he kind of has gotten jumps now on the depth chart by Aaron Scott, whereas, you know, I think before of a year, I might have thought that Calvin would be that sixth man at corner over Aaron, but I think that probably has more to do with Aaron than it does Calvin, because I think we've seen a lot of really good things from Aaron when he's had the chance to get out there into games.
We talked about it going into the season, but you know, the biggest depth question for the defense was going to be at safety. It's probably still accurate to say that, at least in terms of the third row of the depth chart, because we have not seen Ohio State play beyond its top four safeties yet this year. And so when I was, you know, setting up a three deep depth chart projection, I put Keenan Nelson Jr. And Jaden Bonsu as those third team safeties, which they probably are, but that's still just kind of guessing because neither of them has actually played a defensive snap yet this year. Jaden Bonsu has been unavailable for those first two games with an injury. So that might be part of that, but you've got an elite starting tandem and Caleb Downs and Leif and Ransom, who have both played at a very high level so far this year. And then Malik Hartford and Jalen McLean, I think, have really kind of entrenched themselves as those second team guys.
And I think that's a pretty good second unit there. I think we saw some good things out of Malik Hartford last year as a freshman. Jalen McLean's a guy who got tons of buzz this offseason and we've seen him flash a couple times here, I think, in these first couple of games.
And so I feel good about the two deep at safety. I think, you know, beyond that two deep, you have a little bit more concern, but I feel good about the two deep because I think Malik Hartford and Jalen McLean are a very good pair of backups.
[Andy Anders]
I don't think I would have been as secure before Jalen McLean took his steps this offseason and did what he did, you know, losing his black stripe fairly quickly, doing a lot of things in practice to stand out, doing a lot of things to stand out to the coaches where, you know, you talk about him in press conferences, whether it's with Matt Guerrero, the safeties coach, or Jim Knowles or whoever, you can tell they're pretty high on where Jalen McLean is as a freshman and maybe was sort of, and we've talked about him before, as sort of an unheralded recruit in that 2024 class, not as highly ranked as some other guys who aren't making this big of a jump early, but Jalen's getting in that mix and I thought he played pretty well when he got in against Western Michigan, had a really nice tackle in the backfield where he came down, but he and Malik are still young and unproven and Malik got some chances last year as a freshman, obviously, but I'd like to see it against some bigger opponents, just how it looks with them.
I don't expect Ohio State to really roll safeties that much. I don't think you're in a place where, maybe with Malik, you're in a place where you could get him on the field for more meaningful reps a time or two, but those two, it's just, there's still an unprovenness about that second unit at safety that scares you a little, scares me maybe a little bit. One of them's a freshman and Malik's a little bit more of a free safety than a strong, so what happens if Latham goes down, you know, are you a little more scared about that proposition?
So some concerns still, but I'm definitely more assured than I was before just because of Jalen McLean's emergence. Still, as long as Caleb and Latham stay healthy, Ohio State might have the best pair of safeties in the country, probably does.
[Dan Hope]
Special teams, we've seen really kind of the surprise on special teams that we didn't anticipate going into the season was Joe McGuire emerging as the starting punter because Ryan Day had said nine days before the season opener that Nick McLarty was going to be the starting punter, but Joe McGuire ended up being the starter for that first game, and I think he's done really well in these first two games. We saw Nick McLarty get in for one punt against Western Michigan, and it wasn't great, only went 35 yards, and it wasn't a, you know, pooch punt situation, and so I think Joe McGuire has a pretty solid hold on that punting job right now. I think Nick McLarty's a guy they still, you know, really want to see take off because I think he, you know, has such a big leg and his potential is very high, but I don't think he's there yet for what they need in a, you know, just consistently reliable punter, which is really the most important thing at that spot, and I think so far, early indications have been that Joe McGuire can be that guy, so I think as long as that continues to be the case, you know, he'll continue to be that starting punter. They'll feel pretty good about what they have there.
You know, Jaden Fielding hasn't had a ton of opportunities yet, but he hasn't missed a kick yet, so, you know, he's certainly that starting kicker. John Furlman's been solid at long snapper, so I think they feel pretty good about what they have in terms of specialists. I think they certainly feel really good about what they have at punt returner based on what we saw from Brandon Innis in that first game against Akron, but one question mark on special teams is kick returner because, again, there haven't been a ton of kick return opportunities because Ohio State hasn't allowed many points on defense, but the one kickoff that Western Michigan had, Jaden Bowerd made a mistake calling for a fair catch, then allowing the ball to bounce and fair catching it at the six-yard line, which meant Ohio State had to start at the six-yard line. And so Ryan Day did say last week that Ohio State would evaluate its options at kick returner. No clarity yet on whether Ohio State will stick with Jaden Bowerd or make a change there, but you mentioned Jaden Bowerd earlier.
It's kind of been the same narrative with him for a few years now. It's like, when's he going to take that next step? And we saw it last year.
He was the starting punt returner for half the season and he had some issues fielding punts cleanly. Now you see this on a kickoff. It leaves questions about whether he's a guy they can truly trust in that role.
And so that's going to be the one thing to monitor in terms of a special teams depth chart is, do they continue to stick with Jaden Bowerd? If they do, will that prove to be a one-off mistake and will he be reliable going forward? Or at some point, could we see Ohio State make a change in terms of kick return?
[Andy Anders]
Yeah, I almost expect a change at this point. Jaden does have a lot of speed, a lot of athletic traits that make for a good kick returner. But fact of the matter is, it's not worth it if you're going to cost your team 19 yards in field position by fair catching the ball off a bounce.
And if it were a first-time thing, if he hadn't had the struggles he had fielding punts last year, I could write it off a little better, I think, and say, you know, it is early in the season. It's one slip up. But I think for if you're truly trying to weaponize the return game, you can't have a guy that's going to make those kinds of mistakes.
And even in the Cotton Bowl, down the stretch of last season, there was a punt that Jaden let bounce that he absolutely should have fair caught. And there was a punt that he absolutely should have fair caught that he let bounce. So I just think that there's a better way to weaponize, even if it's Brandon Innes also returning kicks.
I get not wanting to risk one of your top offensive weapons there, having, say, Jeremiah Smith or Emeka Ibuka run those back. But Mylon Graham would be a great option, too. I think when you talk about top-end speed, he was prolific kick returner in high school.
That could be another option to look at, you know. And I think it's clear that Ryan Day isn't committed to Jaden Ballard moving forward. He might end up winning the job.
He might end up doing well. But for me, I don't see it as much. He has the athletic traits you want, but if you're not going to field the ball cleanly in the easier setting to do it, kick versus punt, then I think it's more important to get out someone out there who will.
[Dan Hope]
All right, Andy, we talked about it at the top of a show. Marshall is a little bit better than Western Michigan and Akron, but not substantially better. I was looking at the athletic.
They do a piece every week ranking every FBS team and they have Marshall 99th, Western Michigan 114th and Akron 129th. So, you know, Western Michigan was a slight step up in competition over Akron. Marshall's a slight step up in competition over Western Michigan, but we saw that didn't really matter from week one to week two as Ohio State was more dominant against Western Michigan than it was against Akron, beating Western Michigan 56 to nothing.
Ohio State going into this game, they're a 39 and a half to 40 and a half point favorite depending on where you look. Andy, what do you expect in terms of a score for this game? Do you expect another dominant performance by the Buckeyes?
[Andy Anders]
I certainly do. And this defense has shown that it's capable of shutouts in these games. It came close, somewhat close in week one.
It obviously got the shutout in week two. I have them splitting the difference, giving up three points, which I've actually had three points as my opponent's score for each of these first three Ohio State games, funny as that may be. And then I have 52 for Ohio State on offense.
There's a couple things that Marshall can do running the ball. They might try to shorten the game a little bit. There's a couple things that Marshall's defense does up front that might slow the Buckeyes down just a touch.
But really, I just see complete dominance again and a 52-3 victory that maybe doesn't start quite as fast as Western Michigan's did, but not much slower. And they just continue to pick up speed throughout the game and really just obliterate their final cupcake here before the real show begins.
[Dan Hope]
Yeah, I mean, there's kind of two ways this could go, right? I mean, on one hand, maybe Ohio State comes back down to earth a little bit. I mean, we've seen it in plenty of other games around the country where, you know, sometimes that top-ranked team, sometimes they just look like a freight train roll through their opponents and sometimes maybe play a fair food a little bit and kind of, you know, sleepwalk through the game.
I think either is possible, but just based on what we've seen from this Ohio State team so far based on the resolve and determination this team seems to have to want to make a statement every week. I think we're going to see a lot of what we've already seen. I think Ohio State is going to score in the 50s for a third straight week, and I think they're going to keep their opponent out of the end zone for a third straight week.
I'm going just slightly more in Ohio State's favor than you. I'm going 55-3 for the Buckeyes.
[Andy Anders]
55-3. Field goal more, field goal more. Two field goals and seven touchdowns for you, those of you mathing at home.
This is a game that obviously won't tell us a whole lot more that we don't already know probably, but it's still one I'm excited to watch after a break. It was just such an oddly timed bye week, but you know, you look back and early season buys have benefited Ohio State in the past, 2014 being a prime example where, you know, you came out of, you had a bye week in week four after Virginia Tech obviously lost that game, come back, beat Kent State, get a week to reassess and reevaluate everything. A much different scenario here, but an early season buy isn't necessarily a bad thing.
It's just, I'm curious to see how Ohio State does come out of it. Does it slow their momentum at all? Do they start fast again?
And again, it's just really preparing for the real meat of the season.
[Dan Hope]
Several other notable matchups around college football this weekend. You got Tennessee going to Oklahoma. Tennessee's looking really good so far this year, especially on the offensive side of a ball of Nico Iemalewa.
You've got Utah at Oklahoma State. That's a game that's going to have major Big 12 ramifications. Michigan State, they go to Boston College of a chance to be 4-0 before they play Ohio State next week on Peacock, which I know all of our listeners are thrilled about out there.
You've got Illinois at Nebraska. Both of those teams are ranked and they're going to be playing on Friday night. So that'll be a good one to watch on Friday night.
If you're not at a high school football game on Friday night before the Buckeyes play at noon on Saturday. But I think certainly the other game that I think Ohio State fans are going to have their eye on this weekend after the Buckeyes play Marshall is going to be the game up in Ann Arbor where Michigan hosts USC. USC's looked really good so far this year.
Michigan has not looked very good on the offensive side of a ball. Davis Warren's struggles continued this past weekend against Arkansas State to the point that he has now been benched for Alex Orji, who has not shown a whole lot as a passer for the Michigan Wolverines. So Andy, what do you think?
Is Michigan going to bounce back against USC or are they headed for their second loss of the season?
[Andy Anders]
I think it is loss number two incoming. I think USC by multiple scores. Michigan's on the verge of unraveling here with all the issues they've had on offense.
I think now it's early. It's early. So a lot can happen in a football season, but it's just it's been a lot of really bad signs from this Michigan offense.
And now that they're playing a team with a more prolific offense on the other end, you lose two home games early when you talk about Texas USC. That can just be so deflating for a team's confidence. You benched your quarterback last week after he threw three picks and Orji is now your starter.
Orji, everything you hear coming out of that Michigan camp from the preseason was just all the questions about if he's a capable thrower of the football. And they just haven't been able to solve it at quarterback. The offensive line after losing its top six players from last year, having a whole new starting lineup, has struggled mightily.
The defense is keeping them in games, but man, if they got to figure out something in a hurry on that offensive side of the football, I don't think they have the answers this week to stay in this game with USC, who like you said, has looked really good to open this year. And honestly, outside of Ohio State, I think they've looked second best in the Big 10. Just not saying they are the second best team, but that they've looked the best through these first few weeks of the season.
They've looked better than Oregon, who struggled in a few games, looked better than Penn State, who struggled in a few games. I think USC might be surprising some people this year, myself included, and I have them winning this one in somewhat convincing fashion.
[Dan Hope]
I was looking at USC's schedule last night, and if USC wins this game, you know, they become a team you really need to watch out for in that Big 10 championship race, because they do not play Ohio State during the regular season. They don't play Oregon during the regular season either. And so, you know, if I was before the season, I would not have picked USC to beat Penn State.
Now, I probably would, and you look at the rest of their schedule in terms of Big 10 opponents, the only other ranked opponent they would face right now would be Nebraska. They play Notre Dame at the end of the year, but that won't impact the conference standings, win or lose. And so USC's a team, if they win this week, you got to start taking them seriously in that Big 10 championship race.
And you think about the ramifications that could have, you know, in that Ohio State-Oregon game. Well, if you lose that game, and if USC goes, you know, 8-1 in conference play, well, then now, you know, whoever loses that Ohio State-Oregon game could end up in some kind of tiebreaker situation there. And so I think USC really becomes a team to watch in the Big 10 if USC wins this game this weekend.
But even if that being said, I think Ohio State fans are certainly going to be rooting for the Trojans this weekend as they want to see hellfire rain down upon their rivals. And I'm with you. I think a double-digit win by USC is likely this weekend.
I mean, I just don't think that Michigan is where it needs to be offensively. And USC's defense has actually played well so far this year. And so, you know, Michigan's defense, while not bad, is not the same dominant unit it was last year.
And I think it's going to have to be a dominant unit against a good USC offense for Michigan to have a chance to win this game. And so I do think that USC is going to win this game. And if so, you know, Michigan is going to be off to a 2-2 start this season and is going to be, you know, you know, potentially, you know, again, Michigan, they still got to play Oregon.
They still got to play Ohio State. And so a second loss for Michigan in September would certainly be a very tough thing for the Wolverines to bounce back from in terms of their playoff aspirations. But a big opportunity here for USC, after already beating LSU, to kind of plant a flag here and say, you know, we're a team to watch in the Big Ten this year.
[Andy Anders]
Yeah, and you mentioned there's other good games across the country to really tune into. You know, I think for me, the most interesting one outside that USC-Michigan game is probably going to be Illinois-Nebraska. That's now a ranked matchup in the Big Ten.
And kind of seeing where that next tier of teams is, I think, is going to be really telling for both programs exactly how real the strides are. These are two teams that have taken a big jump from last year early in the season. Them and Indiana is also in that grouping, I feel, of teams that are starting to emerge as maybe the next tier of teams to really keep your eyes on in the conference.
And whoever comes out of this game, I think, is going to come out of it with a ton of momentum. So Nebraska plays Ohio State later in the season. That's probably the one I'm most interested to see outside of USC-Michigan, even more so than some of the other great games that are on the slate with Utah, at Oklahoma State, with Tennessee at Oklahoma, with Michigan State at Boston College, as you referenced.
I think that's the next most interesting game for me.
[Dan Hope]
You have a nice thing about a noon game at home is we get to watch some more of the other games. So, you know, I don't know how much we'll see of USC-Michigan because we'll be at postgame interviews and all that after the Ohio State Marshall game. But, you know, getting to watch that Illinois-Nebraska game on Friday night, that's certainly one I'm looking forward to watching.
And then, you know, I think a couple interesting Saturday night games in the Big Ten, too. I think Iowa-Minnesota, that's an interesting game. Like, that's a game I could really see going either way.
There were people talking about Iowa as a college football playoff contender going into the year. But, you know, with that loss already to Iowa State, this is now a game Iowa really needs to win if it's going to keep itself in that conversation. And I don't know if that will be an easy win for Iowa going on the road to play the Gophers.
And then, you know, that Michigan State-Boston College game, I'm going to be interested in that too because, you know, Boston College has looked pretty good this year. I mean, they got that win over Florida State. They had an early lead against Mizzou, were ultimately unable to close the deal in that one.
But if Michigan State can go into Chestnut Hill and win that game, suddenly that game next week becomes more interesting for Ohio State as Michigan State would be taking a 4-0 record into that game. Ohio State's going to be favored in that game either way, I would think. But if you think about the game we're going to be talking about a week from now of Ohio State having to go on the road for the first time this year to play its first Big Ten game against East Lansing.
So far, Michigan State is off to a pretty good start this year. But I think this week is going to be the first real litmus test for Michigan State to see, okay, you know, are they a team that can make some noise in the Big Ten or, you know, are they maybe just kind of taking advantage of a favorable schedule so far this year? And so, that's a game I'll be interested to watch too, just to kind of get our minds into next week when we'll have a little bit more to talk about regarding the actual opponent, the actual game as Ohio State will begin Big Ten play.
And so we hope you will join us again next week on Real Pod Wednesdays. Enjoy the rest of your week as Ohio State hosts Marshall at Ohio Stadium on Saturday. We will be there as always and stay tuned with 11warriors.com and 11Warriors YouTube channel for lots more coverage of the Buckeyes.