Tennessee football opens postseason play on Saturday, Dec. 21 when the Vols travel to Ohio State to face the eight-seed Buckeyes in the first round of the College Football Playoffs. The winner heads to Pasadena to face Oregon in the Rose Bowl while the loser’s season comes to a close.
Here’s a look at the Ohio State Buckeyes ahead of the matchup.
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How The Buckeyes Got Here
Ohio State entered the season with sky high expectations. They were the No. 2 team in the country behind Georgia in the preseason AP Poll. Ryan Day and his staff went all out in the transfer portal over the offseason and added a loaded transfer class to an already strong roster.
The season hasn’t gone exactly as planned. Ohio State fell at Oregon in a tight game back in early October but rebounded the right way with quality wins over Penn State in Happy Valley and Indiana in Columbus.
Those victories had the Buckeyes in line to face Oregon in the Big 10 Championship before Michigan shocked Ohio State in Columbus to close the regular season. It was Ohio State’s fourth straight loss against Michigan but by far the worst given the quality of this year’s Wolverines.
Ryan Day’s seat has gotten very hot since the loss and he desperately needs to make a run in the playoffs to ease the heat and potentially even save his job.
Ohio State’s Strengths
This section is going to be a lot longer than the weakness section which isn’t all that surprising when you’re talking about a College Football Playoff team. But let’s start with the fact that this is an incredibly talented Ohio State team. Perhaps the most talented in the entire country.
That talent is readily evident when you look at Ohio State’s defense. The Buckeyes have the best defense in the Big 10 by both points per game and yards per game allowed. Ohio State has the best pass defense in the conference due to a loaded secondary and a loaded defensive line. The Buckeyes 35 sacks this season ranks 16th nationally.
The Buckeyes have been good situationally on defense too. Their red zone defense is the best in the entire country, allowing just 10 touchdowns and 16 total scores in opponent’s 29 trips to the red zone. Ohio State’s third down defense is also stout with opponents converting just 23% of its attempts.
Offensively, Ohio State boasts the best receiver corp that Tennessee’s faced all season with Jeremiah Smith, Emeka Egbuka and Carnell Tate. The Buckeyes red zone offense has also been really good, scoring touchdowns on 38 of 49 trips to the red zone.
Lastly, Ohio State has been good at not committing penalties. The Buckeyes are giving opponents just 40 penalty yards per game, a mark that ranks 15th nationally and is 28 yards fewer than Tennessee averages.
Ohio State Weaknesses
The thing here is that Ohio State really doesn’t have any true weaknesses. Just areas where they’re not elite. And despite an abundance of talent, that has mostly been the case for Ohio State’s offense.
Ohio State ranks third in the Big 10 in points allowed per game, fifth in passing yards per game and sixth in rushing yards per game. They’re also sixth in the Big 10, converting 43% of third down attempts.
A big reason for that is an offensive line that’s very banged up. The Buckeyes starting left tackle and center are out for the year and that’s had an affect, especially on the running game.
Turnovers have been a bit of an issue for Ohio State as they’ve turned it over 13 total times this season including eight interceptions from Will Howard.
I wouldn’t call it a weakness, but Ohio State’s run defense hasn’t been quite as stout as the rest of its defense. That was the common issue in both of its losses as both Michigan and Oregon rushed for over 150 yards.
What Josh Heupel Said About The Buckeyes
Opening Statement
“Good afternoon, everybody. Certainly excited about being in the playoff and, obviously, playing a great program that has had a ton of success in recent history, but throughout their their program history. And certainly what they’ve done on the field this year. And we’re excited that we get an opportunity to play an elite program like that. And as we get ready here, understand and know what it’s going to take to go on the road and play really good football against a great football team.”
On playing in cold weather in Columbus in the third week of December
“Yeah, not sure what the temperature will be up there at night. Know it won’t be sunny and 85. We played in 30 degree weather a week ago. For us, a lot of our practices are in the morning. We’re outside. It’ll be similar temperatures to what you’re going to get up there. Our guys got to be able to handle anything that comes at them. That’s weather, it’s outside distractions. It’s us getting ready to go be our best 11 on 11 between the white lines. And we’ll be ready to handle that and and operate at a high level.”
On what stands out about Ohio State QB Will Howard, the Buckeyes’ offense
“We’ll get into the tape today, but you look at them offensively. They got explosive playmakers out on the perimeter. Big, strong, thick, physical offensive linemen. Great skill at the running back position. Again, I think in a game like this, the line of scrimmage matters. You got to do a great job against the run. We’re going to have to defend their explosive playmakers out on the perimeter. And we gotta do a great job of bottling the quarterback up.”
On how often he has crossed paths with Ryan Day
“I have not had an opportunity to cross paths with him very much. Great respect, for what he’s done in his coaching career, what he’s done there at Ohio State, the success that they’ve had year in and year out. Great appreciation for how he’s done it and what he’s been able to accomplish there.”
Buckeyes To Know
QB Will Howard
The Kansas State transfer replaced Kyle McCord as Ohio State’s quarterback after McCord transferred to Syracuse following last season. The results have been very similar.
Howard has completed 72% of his passes for 2,860 yards, 27 touchdowns and eight interceptions this season. He’s also a threat on the ground where he’s rushed for 131 yards and seven touchdowns.
Howard has been more shaky in big games, failing to throw for more than 205 yards in three of those four games. The exception was a stellar performance against Oregon where he threw for 326 yards and two touchdowns.
WR Jeremiah Smith
Tennessee has already faced Ryan Williams. Now they’ll face the other phenom freshman receiver in Ohio State’s Jeremiah Smith.
Smith has caught 57 passes for 934 yards and 10 touchdowns this season including a number of jaw dropping players. The Florida native’s production has been balanced but he’s totaled just 69 yards and one touchdown over the last two weeks.
S Caleb Downs
The former SEC Freshman of the Year was the top player in the transfer portal last offseason when he left Alabama for Ohio State.
The sophomore safety has been great this season, totaling 61 tackles, three pass deflections and an interception. Downs has also played a team-high 651 defensive snaps over the course of the season.
DE JT Tuimoloau
Tuimoloau leads Ohio State with six sacks to go along with 38 tackles, one pass deflection and one forced fumble. The senior has also been elite against the run this season.
