It was a rough week for the Ohio State football team. Maybe it was a case of sleepwalking against a really bad team. Maybe the weather took the Buckeyes away from their game plan. Probably a combination of both. Either way, it wasn’t a good look for a team that has national championship aspirations.
The good news? Ohio State got out of Evanston with a win and remain unscathed. The bad news? There are clearly some problems that need to be addressed with the running game and time is running out to get them fixed.
The Buckeyes get another subpar team in which they should be able to work on a few things when Indiana comes to town this week. Ohio State needs to come out and look sharp after several weeks of looking below average by Buckeye standards.
Let’s preview the Hoosiers as Ohio State looks to improve to 10-0.
Records and Broadcast Information
Records
Ohio State (9-0), Indiana (3-6)
Broadcast, TV, Game Time
Date: Saturday, Nov. 12
Game Time: Noon EST
Network: Fox
Venue: Ohio Stadium (Columbus, Ohio) Capacity: 104,944
All-Time Series: Ohio State leads 77-12-5
Last Meeting: Ohio State defeated Indiana 54-7 in 2021
Ohio State Potential Game Plan for Victory
Let’s keep this really simple and if you’re a regular reader, you might feel like you’re reading the same thing once again. Ohio State has to figure out a way to run the ball consistently.
We know the Ohio State passing game is elite and arguably the best in the country. However, when it came down to it this past week Ohio State couldn’t move the ball effectively and several times stopped on short-yardage runs. A team that has championship-caliber players should be able to get a yard against a far inferior opponent.
Indiana is giving up 158 yards per game on the ground, so there should be ample opportunity for Ryan Day to work on getting the run game fixed. C.J. Stroud should be able to pick apart an average Hoosier secondary, however, the Buckeyes cannot abandon the run just because they can. They have to start developing a rhythm that includes running the ball.
Defensively, the Ohio State front has to be licking its chops. Indiana has given up an astounding 29 sacks on the season. For comparison’s sake, the Buckeyes have only given up seven sacks for the campaign.
The Hoosiers like to throw the ball too, they just aren’t very good at it. Quarterback Connor Bazelak has thrown 12 touchdown passes and has been picked off nine times. The running game isn’t particularly strong either. Indiana averages less than three yards per carry and has only 10 total scores on the ground.
Assuming there aren’t hurricane-force winds in Columbus, this one is shaping up to be a one-sided affair.
Two Key Players for Ohio State
C.J. Stroud – Quarterback
C.J. Stroud faced some serious adversity last week in circumstances that were completely out of his control. The Ohio State QB was clearly frustrated in what were miserable playing conditions. It was nice to see Stroud be an option in the run attack late in the game. That may be the missing piece in opening up the OSU running game.
This is nuts 😂🙌 okay CJ Stroud pic.twitter.com/6NDkOJJNBk
— Menace 2 Sports (@Menace2Sports) November 5, 2022
Steele Chambers – Linebacker
Steele Chambers is the second leading tackler on the Ohio State defense behind Tommy Eichenberg. Chambers is playing fast and getting to the ball quickly. He was used effectively in the run blitz packages and will be used again this week to keep the Hoosiers in check.
Nobody accounted for Steele Chambers. 😤@steeleC22 x @OhioStateFB pic.twitter.com/xgRPmHge6l
— Big Ten Network (@BigTenNetwork) November 5, 2022
The Prediction
The Buckeyes have not played their best football in recent weeks and yet with the exception of famous Chicago wind gusts, Ohio State has still been rattling off 40-plus point games.
OSU shouldn’t be dealing with catastrophic conditions this week with temperatures expected to be in the 40s and the wind not exceeding 15 mph. That most likely spells trouble for Indiana.
The Buckeyes know how miserable the game conditions were in Evanston and they’ve no doubt heard about the national pundits questioning their toughness. Ohio State comes out angry and gets things back in sync.
Final Score
Ohio State 54, Indiana 10
TIPICO Line
Ohio State -40
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