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There was no shortage of issues Ohio State needed to work on this week during its off week.
With no game Saturday, Ohio State had a full week to address the shortcomings exposed in the 29-point loss to Purdue last week.
Unfortunately for the Buckeyes, their problems will likely need longer than a week to get fixed.
As the Purdue loss showed, Ohio State has some serious concerns that go beyond a tweak or two. Even aside from the debacle last Saturday, Ohio State’s defense struggled to stop mediocre offenses. No team in the country has given up more big plays than the Buckeyes. That is a statistical fact.
What is most concerning about the defense is that there are problems at every level. Without Nick Bosa, the defensive line has not been able to create much pressure on the quarterback.
The linebackers continue to have trouble getting off blocks and making plays and there is not enough talent in the secondary to play the aggressive scheme that is being employed by Greg Schiano.
At this point, it looks like it may take a complete rebuild to fix the defense. Linebackers coach Bill Davis, in his second year, has to be feeling a lot of heat as his unit continues to regress.
There also has to be a serious look at how coaching roles are assigned. Urban Meyer is big on having co-coordinators. Alex Grinch was brought in during the off-season to help Schiano coordinate the defense. However, maybe it’s time to allow one coach to coordinate the defense to provide some cohesion and avoid a clash of philosophies.
Offensively, the Buckeyes are a much better passing team this year with Dwayne Haskins.
However, their running game has disappeared.
They have been held under 100 rushing yards two weeks in a row. That is also the big reason the offense is struggling in the red zone. It’s hard to be good in the red zone if you can’t run the ball.
While Davis is the target of a lot of vitriol from fans on the defensive side, offensive line coach Greg Studrawa has become the whipping boy for what is ailing the offense. Simply put, the offensive line can’t get a push despite being one of the most physically imposing units in the country. If it can’t show some progress in the next few weeks, Studrawa’s future in Columbus may be in jeopardy as well.
As if there weren’t enough headaches to overcome, there is more and more smoke developing around Meyer’s status as head coach.
There was a media report this week that revealed a growing tension between Meyer and his superiors. That, and Meyer’s ongoing health concerns, lead some to believe this might be his last season coaching the Buckeyes.
Ohio State still has a lot it can accomplish if it can win out over the next four weeks, but as problems continue to mount, the likelihood of that happening looks pretty grim at this point.
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