Championships are won and lost in the trenches.
The battle between the offensive line and the defensive line is the most important one in football. Whoever controls the line of scrimmage controls the game.
An unstoppable defensive line can ruin even the best offenses, full of playmakers at the skill position, and a strong offensive line sets the tone for an offense, allowing it time and space to operate at its peak. Thankfully for Ohio State, it should have both for the foreseeable future.
With the current current starters, the promising young players and even the recruits not yet on the roster, the Buckeyes have set themselves up to dominate the line of scrimmage on both sides of the ball for years to come.
Ohio State's offensive line recruiting has never been better under Urban Meyer than it is right now. The Buckeyes didn't sign a single five-star offensive line recruit in Meyer's first five years at Ohio State, but they've now signed two in as many years and have a third committed in the 2020 class. In the past two classes alone, the Buckeyes have signed five linemen ranked in the top-10 at their position, with three more committed in the next two classes.
Thanks to Greg Studrawa's development, Ohio State's offensive line is already a strength of the team with guys like Demetrius Knox, Michael Jordan and Isaiah Prince developing into dominant blockers, but the talent behind them makes the future at the position perhaps even brighter than the present, especially if that development continues. The Buckeyes have probably their deepest offensive line under Meyer this season, and it seems it's just going to get deeper and more talented from here.
It's a similar story on the defensive side of the ball.
Since Larry Johnson's arrival in Columbus, the defensive line has consistently been Ohio State's strength. Johnson has coached and developed defensive ends like Jalyn Holmes, Sam Hubbard and Tyquan Lewis into NFL draftees while filling the roster with talented recruits like Nick Bosa, Chase Young and Jonathon Cooper.
Ohio State has done so well at recruiting the defensive end position that even after sending three to the NFL, the Buckeyes might be even more talented at the top of the roster this season with three former five-star recruits now splitting the reps Holmes, Hubbard and Lewis split last season.
But it's not just the outside of the defensive line, but the interior as well. After years of recruiting misses and concern at the defensive tackle position, Ohio State finally has plenty of talent and depth on the interior.
The defensive tackle position is led by future NFL player Dre'Mont Jones and the quick-twitch Robert Landers, with a group of talented young players behind them including Taron Vincent, the No. 1 defensive tackle in the 2018 class, as well as three more top-10 defensive tackles coming out of high school.
Ohio State's defensive line is loaded, inside and out, and it will be for the foreseeable future. There's even a chance the Buckeyes could have an even higher-rated defensive end combination than Bosa and Young if Ohio State lands the nation's No. 4 overall prospect Zach Harrison in the 2019 class as well as the No. 1 overall prospect in the 2020 class Bryan Bresee. Both players are uncommitted, but Ohio State is the favorite in both cases.
With the way the Buckeyes have recruited the past few classes, this team is set up with a defensive line that looks unstoppable as well as an offensive line that can dominate and wear down opposing defenses.
Ohio State will own the point of attack on both sides of the ball for years to come, and that's the most important battle in football.
