Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1503568
9 0 A U G U S T 2 0 2 3 W W W . B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . C O M Ohio State doesn't have a quarterback yet. There's no need for panic; some- thing tells us the Buckeyes are gonna be OK. But they do need to make a decision, and with the Big Ten season set to begin on Sept. 2 and a visit to Notre Dame coming up in Week 4, there's some urgency to the matter. Ohio State will go into preseason camp with two inexperienced contenders vying for the job — junior Kyle McCord and redshirt freshman Devin Brown. Be- tween them, they've seen action in 14 games and at- tempted 58 passes. In a lot of programs, a dearth of experience at the game's most conse- quential position would be reason to question its le- gitimacy as a College Football Playoff contender. But not Ohio State. Brax- ton Miller (2012), J.T. Barrett (2014), Dwayne Haskins (2018), Justin Fields (2019) and C.J. Stroud (2021) all were named Big Ten Quarterback of the Year in their first starting seasons, and there is reason to believe this year's choice will thrive, too. Both McCord and Brown earned five- star grades from On3 coming out of high school, so there's plenty of potential for quarterbacks coach Corey Dennis and new offensive coordinator Brian Hart- line to work with. The other reason for optimism is that Ohio State's receiving corps could make any quarterback look good. Marvin Harrison Jr., Emeka Egbuka and Julian Fleming combined to finish with 185 catches for 2,947 yards and 30 touch- downs last season. The backfield is also solid, with Tre- Veyon Henderson returning after an injury-marred sophomore year. He was held out of spring practice while recov- ering from surgery on his left foot but is expected to be ready to go this fall. Miyan Williams filled in when Hen- derson got hurt and ended up rushing for a team-high 825 yards. Williams battled injuries, too, but now that they've had a chance to get healthy, the two runners should give the Buckeyes a formidable ground attack. Defensively, Ohio State is looking for improvement after giving up 30 or more points in four of its last six games a year ago. The Buckeyes have an emerging star in defensive end JT Tuimoloau, who took over the Penn State game last sea- son, totaling 2 sacks and 2 interceptions, one of which he returned for a touch- down. Jack Sawyer is back at the op- posite defensive end spot, while leading tackler Tommy Eichenberg returns at middle linebacker. — Matt Herb O C T . 2 1 | T I M E T B A | T V T B A | O H I O S T A D I U M | C O L U M B U S , O H I O Junior wide receiver Emeka Egbuka was named second-team All-Big Ten a year ago. PHOTO BY CHAD WEAVER GAME 7 OHIO STATE WHAT COULD GO RIGHT The new quarterbacks could excel, the run- ning backs could stay healthy, the offense could average 40 to 45 points per game, and the defense could be just good enough to lift Ohio State to the College Football Playoff. You know, the usual. WHAT COULD GO WRONG The Buckeyes could lose to Michigan for the third year in a row. That hasn't happened since 1995-97, but the Wolverines have rushed for 297 and 252 yards in the past two meetings and could be set for a big day in Ann Arbor in November. Even if the Buckeyes were to win all their other games, one can only imagine the storm clouds of existential dread that would gather over Columbus with another loss to their archrival. QUICK FACTS All-Time Series: Ohio State leads 23-14 Last Meeting: Ohio State scored 4 touch- downs in the last nine minutes for a 44-31 victory over the host Nittany Lions on Oct. 29, 2022 Head Coach: Ryan Day (45-6 in four full seasons and one partial campaign at Ohio State; career coaching record: same) 2022 Record: 11-2, 8-1 Big Ten Returning Starters: 13 (7 offense, 5 de- fense, 1 specialist) RETURNING LEADERS Rushing: RB Miyan Williams (825 yards, 14 TD) Passing: QB Kyle McCord (190 yards, 1 TD) Receiving: WR Marvin Harrison Jr. (1,263 yards, 14 TD) Tackles: MLB Tommy Eichenberg (120) Sacks: DT Michael Hall Jr., DE Jack Sawyer (4.5) Interceptions: OLB Steele Chambers (2) 2023 SCHEDULE Date Opponent 2022 Result Sept. 2 at Indiana W, 56-14 Sept. 9 Youngstown State — Sept. 16 Western Kentucky — Sept. 23 at Notre Dame W, 21-10 Oct. 7 Maryland W, 43-30 Oct. 14 at Purdue — Oct. 21 Penn State W, 44-31 Oct. 28 at Wisconsin W, 52-21 Nov. 4 at Rutgers W, 49-10 Nov. 11 Michigan State W, 49-20 Nov. 18 Minnesota — Nov. 25 at Michigan L, 45-23