All eyes were on Columbus in Week 1 for the Ohio State Buckeyes and the Texas Longhorns. There, the Preseason AP No. 1 team took on the defending national champions in what turned into a defensive battle. In the end, the Buckeyes won in what could go down as one of the best wins any […]
All eyes were on Columbus in Week 1 for the Ohio State Buckeyes and the Texas Longhorns. There, the Preseason AP No. 1 team took on the defending national champions in what turned into a defensive battle. In the end, the Buckeyes won in what could go down as one of the best wins any team earns all season long.
It was certainly a great way to open the season for Ohio State and head coach Ryan Day. Despite that, the Buckeyes aren’t close to what Day hopes to see them become over the course of the season.
“There’s a lot we can build on here,” Ryan Day said. “A lot we have to improve on. The team you see right now will not even be close to the team you see halfway through the season or at the end of the year. But it certainly makes the corrections a lot easier to make after a win against a top-five opponent like this.”
The focus going into the game on Saturday was the quarterbacks. There was a ton of hype surrounding Texas’ Arch Manning going into the game, and that’s where much of the national focus ended up landing. The Buckeyes also had their own young and highly-touted player starting at quarterback, though. Julian Sayin, a former five-star recruit, got his first start in the game and, against an excellent defense, did have the chance to go through some growing pains. As the season goes on, he’s likely one of the players Ryan Day expects to improve.
In the end, the Ohio State offense did struggle. The Buckeyes finished with just 14 points and 203 yards. That includes 126 passing yards and 77 rushing yards. Texas was able to outgain the Buckeyes with 336 total yards, 170 passing yards, and 166 rushing yards. However, they failed to score on multiple redzone possessions as the Buckeyes’ defense stood tall.
One positive for the Buckeyes was that they played a clean game. Ohio State would only be called for two penalties, totaling 15 yards. They also didn’t turn the ball over at all.
Ryan Day and Ohio State will have another opportunity to work out those issues next week at home. There, the Buckeyes are set to host Grambling State from the FCS ranks.
Ryan Day hints at expectation to face Texas again in College Football Playoff
The Ohio State Buckeyes and Texas Longhorns are getting very familiar with one another now. After playing in the College Football Playoff last season and in Week 1 this season, they might even be sick of playing one another. However, Ryan Day does think there’s a chance they meet in the CFP again.
“You know, we’ll have to look at the film and see. I mean, that’s a stout front, there’s a lot of guys in there. And, yeah, when we play them again, I don’t think it’ll look the same way, but you know, leaning on some of our tight ends in there, there were some good runs in there. I gotta really look hard now at the film and see, you know, where things didn’t go perfect,” Day said.
“We were pretty tied in on both edges there. And so, you know, those are downhill runs we’re looking to really get physical and push guys around. But I do think that we were getting movement out there. It was not a high scoring game. I think we had four possessions in the first half. When it’s time to spread everybody out and air it out, we’ll do that and create more space. But this is a team that has great team speed, great team speed, and so we took that into consideration, putting the game plan together. It certainly wasn’t perfect, but it’s a start.”
Both Ohio State and Texas want to compete for a national championship this season. There’s a lot of time to go before that, though, and they both certainly have plenty of room to grow.
Category: General Sports
