We are at halftime of arguably the most important game of the early season and the Ohio State Buckeyes are struggling mightily with the Notre Dame Fighting Irish, at least on offense.
Notre Dame is a great team and has a ton of talent and has a good chance to be in the College Football Playoff conversation at the end of the season, but that is only a small portion of why Ohio State hasn’t been able to take control of the game.
Buy Buckeyes TicketsNotre Dame gets the ball first after halftime, but the Buckeye defense has played impressively and should continue that trend. Let’s dive into the five most noticeable subjects to discuss in regard to the first half.
Play calling has not been great
Ryan Day offense with short-yardage + redzone problems? Crazy. Never seen that before.
— Colton Denning (@Dubsco) September 24, 2023
What we observed
I’m not really sure where to begin, but the tweet above summarizes the situation pretty well. Ryan Day talked about letting it rip, but perhaps I misunderstood what rip meant.
Kyle McCord needs to step up
Bad read by McCord on third down on 4 verts after some nice plays that drive. OSU put Harrison in slot, and ND bracketed. But he had Egbuka with outside leverage
— Ross Fulton (@RossRFulton) September 24, 2023
What we observed
Kyle McCord is not the issue with this game and he has played solidly despite the many … many texts that I have received, but it is clear that if McCord could reach his five-star ceiling tonight the game would be over sooner than later.
Marvin Harrison Jr. needs more targets
I know I aint trippin.. pic.twitter.com/bpPR1OrfqT
— Mohamed Sanu Sr. (@Mo_12_Sanu) September 24, 2023
What we observed
I understand that Marvin Harrison Jr. has been doubled and bracketed all game, but he has proven time and time again that despite the defense gearing towards him the Buckeyes need to throw it up at least once a drive to the star.
Ohio State D needs pressure
At some point this d line has to make a QB feel uncomfortable
— Colton Denning (@Dubsco) September 24, 2023
What we observed
One of my biggest fears going into this game was whether or not the Ohio State defensive line was overrated and they have not been putting enough pressure on Sam Hartman. That needs to be a different story in the second half.
The offensive line playing well
McCord's got allllllll day to throw the ball
— Andrew Gillis (@Andrew_Gillis70) September 24, 2023
What we observed
To end this list on a high note, the offensive line has played way better than I expected. Buckeye Nation has expressed concerns about the Ohio State offensive line, but they have handled Notre Dame well.
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