Ohio State Football opens it’s season on the road with a conference matchup against Indiana.
The Hoosiers are most likely going to go through a transitional season. They lost a majority of their top performers either to graduation, (quarterback Connor Bazelak and running back Shaun Shivers), or transfer, (linebacker Dasan McCullough).
Buy Buckeyes TicketsIndiana doesn’t reload like the Buckeyes, but that doesn’t mean head coach Tom Allen’s crew will completely roll over on Saturday afternoon. There will be more than a few players in the Hoosiers’ home opener that will want to establish themselves this year. Find out five Hoosiers that could potentially give Ohio State some problems this weekend.
Wide receiver Cam Camper
Cam Camper [6-2 WR, Indiana]
His 11-catch, 156-yard performance led the Hoosiers to a 23-20 win over Illinois on Friday night in Bloomington. pic.twitter.com/Fv5GemxBa8— All 22 Films (@All_22_NFL_Cuts) September 4, 2022
Why
The senior will be a solid test for the Buckeye secondary because he’s got good size at 6-foot, 2-inches and 195-pounds. Camper led the team last year in receiving yards with 569 and scored twice. Unfortunately for him, he’s still recovering from an injury suffered last season. He was second in yards per reception as well, so we will know how much progression the Ohio State corners have made in the offseason.
Defensive lineman Andre Carter
DL lost a lot from last season. This is another area where it looks like the portal will really help them. Tom Allen saying today how much he likes the body types of the new guys up front, including WMU transfer Andre Carter (#1) pic.twitter.com/vqiiqgcYCk
— Dave Revsine (@BTNDaveRevsine) August 12, 2023
Why
The transfer from Western Michigan was a second-team All-MAC performer last year. He put up good numbers with seven sacks and 13.5 tackles-for-loss. Against Michigan State, Carter had seven tackles and a sack, while his performance against Pitt was impressive also. In that contest he tallied 11 tackles with one being behind the line of scrimmage. He’s not the best edge the Buckeyes will face, but Carter will put some pressure on the new tackles.
Running back Josh Henderson
OH MY JOSH HENDERSON 🤯@Hendy23 | @IndianaFootball pic.twitter.com/5DzuSgEVfC
— FOX College Football (@CFBONFOX) September 17, 2022
Why
The Hoosiers leading rusher and receiver, Henderson had a solid season in a backup role last year, gaining almost 600 yards from scrimmage and scoring eight touchdowns. He is expected to be the starter this fall, and since they’re breaking in a new quarterback, he should get plenty of run. Henderson won’t be asked to carry the whole load, but he’s going to get a good portion of the opportunities.
Linebacker Aaron Casey
Somehow the Hoosiers pulled out the W on Saturday… And Aaron Casey was flying around making plays, as usual. I love the energy and disruption the redshirt senior from Douglasville, GA brings on defense. Here's 8 plays.#iufb pic.twitter.com/KS7DFYAfgR
— Saint Tom Allen (@SaintTomAllen) September 20, 2022
Why
Last years leading tackler, Casey racked up 85 tackles with 1.5 sacks. He did a great job of getting his hands on the ball as well, forcing two fumbles while batting away two passes. Casey is the Hoosiers biggest playmaker on that side of the ball and you know he’ll be flying around the field on Saturday.
Quarterback Tayven Jackson
Quarterbacks Brendan Sorsby and Tayven Jackson have been alternating who leads off each drill during practice with the decision of starter likely coming soon.@Indiana_FRN #iufb pic.twitter.com/y5qOIqnrIJ
— Drew Rosenberg (@drew_rosenberg2) August 18, 2023
Why
Indiana didn’t release a depth chart, so this is just a guess, but Tayven Jackson is the most talented player at the position on its roster. He was ranked as the No. 13 quarterback in the 2022 class according to the 247Sports Composite Rankings, and originally signed with Tennessee. His return home to Indiana give the Hoosiers some hope, but he’s raw. The skill set is there, but he is a bit of an unknown due to lack of playing time. Jackson is talented enough to give the Buckeyes a few issues on Saturday.
On the other hand, it could be Brendan Sorsby taking snaps, but I doubt that will be the case.
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