Isn’t it great to be looking forward to Ohio State football each weekend again? The Buckeyes kicked the season off last Saturday against conference foe Indiana, and all of Buckeye Nation seems to be wringing their hands over the subpar performance of the offense.
Quarterback Kyle McCord showed a live arm but didn’t exactly light things up to make everyone feel like the offense is the juggernaut through the air we’ve seen over the last few years. The offensive line was fine in pass protection, but seemed to lack a push to get the ground game going.
Buy Buckeyes TicketsSo, here’s the question this week our writers will banter based on what we saw last weekend: Are you concerned about the performance against Indiana? Is all the consternation an overreaction of just one game, or should we be hitting the panic button on this team?
We’ll throw it out to Josh Keatley first and let the rest of our staff weigh in.
Josh Keatley, Featured Writer
I am here to run cover for Ohio State’s offense until Day & Co get it figured out pic.twitter.com/8cSkAIBe6y
— Josh Pate (@LateKickJosh) September 4, 2023
Follow: @JoshKeatley16
The underwhelming performance by Ohio State is definitely a concern, but there is no need to panic. Kyle McCord failed to live up to his 5-star hype (for now), but it was his first road start against a Big Ten opponent. The offensive line also looked rough, but there are a lot of new faces on this unit that need to gel and Indiana isn’t going to be a bad defensive team. The sample size is small, which should keep any drastic changes from occurring, but these are things to monitor moving forward.
Michael Chen, Featured Writer
Coach Ryan Day talks about his takeaways from the Offense of Ohio State.
"We expect to convert on 3rd and 3, 3rd and 2, 3rd and 1 to convert about 80% of the time." pic.twitter.com/hpJTSsOtUH
— Lantern Sports (@LanternSports) September 3, 2023
Follow: @MikeFChen
Honestly, I don’t think there is much concern for overreaction to just one game. This has happened in the past, the Buckeye looks sluggish out of the game, only to end up being one of the best teams in the country. I was more concerned about the defense than the offense, and that unit showed up against the Hoosiers. The lack of scoring, at least to me, wasn’t too concerning. Breaking in a new quarterback along with three starters on the line will take time. Don’t forget about having Day giving up some of the play calling to Brian Hartline. I have preached patience and will continue to do that with the offense.
Evan Bachman, Featured Writer
Ohio State Defeats Indiana 23-3
Ohio State only gave up 153 Yards Against Indiana which is a positive but the Offense Looked Sloppy pic.twitter.com/7ovpWC6GHT
— Recruiting Edits (@614EditzDSGN) September 2, 2023
While the Buckeyes’ 23-point performance from the offense was uninspiring, it is way too early to hit the panic button or overreact. This is a unit that is replacing multiple star players at key positions from last year’s team, so there’s no reason to overreact to an iffy performance in Week 1.
One issue for this offense on Saturday was McCord struggling to connect on passes downfield. However, I don’t see that being an issue long-term in this offense. Considering that McCord is a talented quarterback who may just need some time before settling in and the fact that the Buckeyes are loaded with pass catching talent at the skill positions, they should have no problem airing the ball out downfield moving forward this season.
Mark Russell, Featured Writer
'Be patient, this team can be scary': Cardale Jones reflects on Kyle McCord, Ohio State offense vs. Indiana https://t.co/F4cLTRfkPm
— Columbus Dispatch (@DispatchAlerts) September 3, 2023
Follow: @MarkRussell1975
Well… I’m not going to overreact, but I do feel like there is a little cause for concern. If you’ve played or coached football, you know that games are won and lost in the trenches. The offensive line seemed totally out of sync on Saturday. With that said, I fully believe that like any unit, it needs some time to gel and learn how to work together as one. Fortunately, facing Youngstown State and Western Kentucky at home before heading to South Bend will allow for some much needed game experience. But absolutely no reason to overreact after one game, especially when that game was a 20-point victory on the road.
Phil Harrison, Publisher/Editor and Featured Writer
When asked how prepared Ohio State's defense was to face Indiana's triple-option offense, Jim Knowles said:
"I think we practiced it…"
*long pause*
"…five plays."
"And that's a stretch."
Knowing as much, Knowles said he was happy with how Ohio State defended it.
— Chase Brown (@chaseabrown__) September 5, 2023
Follow: @PhilHarrisonBW
We haven’t learned have we? Ohio State looked sluggish on offense against Minnesota two years ago during C.J. Stroud’s first start, and also last season against Notre Dame in the first game of the year. And yeah, the media and Buckeye Nation were again wringing their hands and questioning what was wrong. The offense was just fine then, and I have a feeling it will be just fine again.
We have to remember, there is no substitute for real game experience, Indiana had an assistant on staff that knew the intriquite details of the Ohio State offense, and there are almost always some growing pains in Game 1.
If anything, I know it’s not exactly sexy if you will, but we should be encouraged by the defensive performance and ability to adjust on the fly with a triple option attack that nobody expected. To me, that’s the bigger story here that nobody is talking about.
Step away from the stove Ohio State fans, everything will be just fine.
