Snap Counts: 59 Buckeyes See Playing Time As Offense Plays 102 Snaps in Ohio State's 52-51 Overtime Win at Maryland

Offensive linemen Malcolm Pridgeon, Michael Jordan, Demetrius Knox and Isaiah Prince played 102 snaps in Saturday’s game against the Terrapins, while Haskins played 101 snaps. All five of those players previously played 100 snaps in the Buckeyes’ eighth game of the season at Purdue.

Even though the Buckeyes played their longest game of the season on Saturday, ultimately escaping College Park with a 52-51 win, they didn’t actually use more players than they had in previous games. In total, 59 Ohio State players saw the field at Maryland, the same number that did one week earlier at Michigan State. Only two Buckeyes played snaps against the Terrapins that didn’t play against the Spartans: wide receiver C.J. Saunders and safety Isaiah Pryor, both on special teams only.

Running back Mike Weber did not play against Maryland due to a quadriceps muscle bruise, while defensive end Tyler Friday also did not play.

For the seventh game in a row, Ohio State never pulled away enough to take its starters out of the game, and with the amount of snaps the Buckeyes played on offense, several other players also saw season-high snap counts, including running back J.K. Dobbins, wide receivers Johnnie Dixon, Parris Campbell and K.J. Hill and tight end Luke Farrell.

We now take a look at all 59 Buckeyes who played and how much in this week’s edition of Snap Counts.

All snap counts listed were compiled by Eleven Warriors data analyst Matt Gutridge and should be considered unofficial, as Ohio State does not make its official snap counts public. It is not always possible to see all 11 players on the field from TV broadcast angles, particularly on special teams plays, so exact special teams snap counts are not included and offensive and defensive snap counts could potentially differ from those tracked by Ohio State’s coaches.

Quarterbacks

Dwayne Haskins: 101
Tate Martell: 1

Martell saw playing time for the second week in a row as a package player, but only checked into the game twice against Maryland. Due to a false start on his second time into the game, Martell only ended up taking one actual snap. As a result, Haskins ended up playing a career-high 101 snaps.

Running Backs

J.K. Dobbins: 89
Demario McCall: 13

With Mike Weber sidelined by a quad bruise, Dobbins played a career-high 89 snaps and ran the ball 37 times for 203 yards, both also career-highs. McCall saw playing time in the running back rotation as a result of Weber’s injury, but unlike the usual series-by-series rotation that Dobbins and Weber play, McCall only checked in occasionally – when Dobbins needed a breather – while Dobbins played the motherlode of snaps.

J.K. Dobbins was a workhorse for Ohio State on Saturday, carrying the ball more times and playing more snaps than he ever had before.

Wide Receivers

Johnnie Dixon: 66
Parris Campbell: 62
K.J. Hill: 60
Binjimen Victor: 49
Terry McLaurin: 47
Chris Olave: 23
Ellijah Gardiner: Special teams only
C.J. Saunders: Special teams only

Dixon led Ohio State in wide receiver snaps for the second week in a row – and played a career-high number of snaps for the second week in a row – as the starting Z receiver, while McLaurin started at the X position and Campbell started at H-back.

The Buckeyes used four-receiver sets that put Campbell and Hill on the field simultaneously as slot receivers on 20 plays on Sunday, leading to increased playing time and season-high snap counts for both receivers.

McLaurin was knocked out of the game after taking a hard hit on a catch just before the goal line in the fourth quarter, which opened up increased playing time for him at X receiver. Olave remained in the rotation at Z receiver for a third consecutive week.

Tight Ends

Luke Farrell: 75
Rashod Berry: 19
Jeremy Ruckert: 5
Jake Hausmann: Special teams only

Farrell continued to be the Buckeyes’ clear-cut No. 1 tight end at Maryland, playing nearly four time as many snaps as Berry and a career-high number of snaps for the second week in a row, and in the process, he caught four passes for a career-high 44 yards.

Berry and Ruckert played mostly in multiple tight end formations – Berry played only eight snaps as a solo tight end, while Ruckert played none – but all three were on the field together for three plays, including a pair of back-to-back plays in overtime on which Berry caught passes, including a crucial 4th-and-1 conversion that led to Haskins’ game-winning touchdown run.

Offensive Linemen

Malcolm Pridgeon: 102
Michael Jordan: 102
Demetrius Knox: 102
Isaiah Prince: 102
Joshua Alabi: 85
Thayer Munford: 17
Wyatt Davis: 2
Gavin Cupp: Special teams only
Josh Myers: Special teams only
Kevin Woidke: Special teams only

Munford suffered a lower right leg injury in the first quarter of Saturday’s game and was replaced at left tackle for the rest of the game by Alabi, marking the second time this year that Alabi has checked in with the first-team offense to play in place of an injured Munford.

The rest of Ohio State’s starting offensive line – Pridgeon at left guard, Jordan at center, Knox at right guard and Prince at right tackle – played every snap with the first-team offense as they have in all 11 of the Buckeyes’ games this season.

Davis checked in as a sixth offensive lineman for a pair of goal-line plays, both of which resulted in 1-yard touchdown runs (one by Dobbins, one by Haskins).

Defensive Ends

Chase Young: 58
Jonathon Cooper: 53
Jashon Cornell: 14

Ohio State didn’t rotate its defensive ends much in Saturday’s game, keeping Young on the field for all but five defensive plays and Cooper on the field for all but 10. Cornell was the only other Buckeye to see playing time at the defensive end position at Maryland, and even he played his least amount of snaps in any of Ohio State’s eight games since Nick Bosa’s career-ending injury.

Defensive Tackles

Dre’Mont Jones: 49
Robert Landers: 37
Davon Hamilton: 24
Haskell Garrett: 15
Tommy Togiai: 3
Taron Vincent: 3
Tyreke Smith: 2

Ohio State kept with its usual rotations at defensive tackle at Maryland, with Jones playing most of the snaps at 3-technique tackle but being spelled occasionally by Garrett, while Hamilton rotated in a little more extensively with Landers at nose tackle. The Buckeyes also put all four of those defensive tackles on the field together for four goal-line plays in the fourth quarter and overtime.

Togiai checked in for an early trio of plays at nose tackle, while Vincent played two snaps at nose tackle in the 3-3-5 defense as well as one additional snap at 3-tech. Smith, who typically also sees some playing time at defensive end, entered the game for just two snaps at defensive tackle in the “Rushmen” package at Maryland.

Linebackers

Malik Harrison: 63
Pete Werner: 63
Tuf Borland: 50
Keandre Jones: 2
Dante Booker: Special teams only
Justin Hilliard: Special teams only
Dallas Gant: Special teams only
Teradja Mitchell: Special teams only
K’Vaughan Pope: Special teams only

Harrison and Werner played every of Ohio State’s defensive snaps in Saturday’s game, marking the second time this season (Penn State) that they have both done that.

With Baron Browning sidelined by an undisclosed injury for a second consecutive game, Borland played every snap at middle linebacker in the Buckeyes’ 4-3 base defense, while Jones saw the field for two plays – his first time seeing multiple defensive snaps since the fourth game of the season against Tulane – in the Buckeyes’ 3-3-5 formation.

Pete Werner (20), Malik Harrison (39) and Chase Young (2) were among the mainstays on Ohio State's defense at Maryland.

Cornerbacks

Kendall Sheffield: 46
Damon Arnette: 41
Jeffrey Okudah: 31
Shaun Wade: 23
Sevyn Banks: Special teams only

The Buckeyes used their standard cornerback rotation against Maryland, with Sheffield and Arnette starting the game but Okudah also substituting in for each of them to see regular playing time. Wade played all 13 snaps at slot cornerback in the Buckeyes’ nickel packages, while he also substituted for 10 snaps in the base defense at safety.

Safeties

Jordan Fuller: 63
Brendon White: 53
Josh Proctor: Special teams only
Isaiah Pryor: Special teams only
Amir Riep: Special teams only
Jahsen Wint: Special teams only

Fuller played every one of Ohio State’s defensive snaps for the seventh time in 11 games this season. White started alongside Fuller for the second straight game and played all but 10 snaps, with Wade rotating in for those snaps.

Pryor, who started at safety for seven of the Buckeyes’ first eight games, returned to action on special teams after missing the previous two games with a shoulder injury.

Field Goals/Extra Points

Blake Haubeil (kicker)
Drue Chrisman (holder)
Liam McCullough (long snapper)
Luke Farrell (blocker)
Joshua Alabi (blocker)
Wyatt Davis (blocker)
Josh Myers (blocker)
Davon Hamilton (blocker)
Gavin Cupp (blocker)
Kevin Woidke (blocker)
Rashod Berry (blocker)

The Buckeyes made no changes to their usual place kicking unit, with Haubeil handling field goal and extra point duties for a fifth straight game in place of Sean Nuernberger.

Kickoffs

Blake Haubeil (kicker)
Teradja Mitchell (gunner)
Amir Riep (gunner)
Isaiah Pryor (gunner)
K.J. Hill or Chris Olave (gunner)
Keandre Jones or Brendon White (gunner)
Jahsen Wint (gunner)
Josh Proctor (gunner)
K'Vaughan Pope or Dante Booker (gunner)
Justin Hilliard (gunner)
Ellijah Gardner (gunner)

Pryor returned to the kickoff coverage unit against Maryland, replacing Sevyn Banks, after missing the last two games with a shoulder injury. The Buckeyes otherwise used the same lineup on kickoffs that they did against Michigan State, with the exception of their final kickoff – a short kick with less than a minute to play in regulation – when White and Booker lined up with the unit.

Kickoff Returns

Johnnie Dixon or Demario McCall (returner)
Demario McCall or C.J. Saunders (returner/blocker)
Teradja Mitchell (blocker)
Justin Hilliard (blocker)
Jake Hausmann (blocker)
Ellijah Gardner (blocker)
Brendon White or Sevyn Banks or Isaiah Pryor (blocker)
Keandre Jones (blocker)
Dallas Gant (blocker)
Jahsen Wint (blocker)
Josh Proctor (blocker)

After failing to field Maryland’s first kickoff of the game and taking a knee at the 12-yard line on another short kick by the Terrapins two kickoffs later, Dixon was replaced as the Buckeyes’ primary kickoff returner by McCall, who Urban Meyer said after the game had earned the right to continue in that role going forward. Saunders replaced McCall as the Buckeyes’ secondary returner for the Terrapins’ final five kickoffs.

Gardiner replaced Binjimen Victor as a blocker on the kickoff return unit, while Banks and Pryor played some snaps in White’s usual role. Otherwise, the Buckeyes used the same blockers on the unit that they used at Michigan State.

Punts

Drue Chrisman (punter)
Liam McCullough (long snapper)
Teradja Mitchell (upback)
Tuf Borland (upback)
Pete Werner (upback)
Malik Harrison (guard)
Justin Hilliard (guard)
Dante Booker (tackle)
Parris Campbell (tackle)
Terry McLaurin (gunner)
Jeffrey Okudah or Chris Olave (gunner)

Coming off an exceptional performance by the punt team against Michigan State, Ohio State made no changes to its lineup for its two puns against Maryland. Okudah and Olave each took the field for one punt as the second gunner opposite McLaurin, but both had also rotated in and out at that spot against the Spartans.

Punt Blocks/Returners

K.J. Hill (returner)
Damon Arnette (rusher/blocker)
Teradja Mitchell (rusher/blocker)
Amir Riep (rusher/blocker)
Sevyn Banks (rusher/blocker)
Keandre Jones (rusher/blocker)
Chris Olave (rusher/blocker)
Jahsen Wint (rusher/blocker)
Shaun Wade (rusher/blocker)
Justin Hilliard (rusher/blocker)
Dante Booker (rusher/blocker)

With the exception of Banks and Olave both playing full-time roles on the punt block/return unit instead of rotating with each other, and Josh Proctor not playing on the punt return unit this week, Ohio State made no other changes to this lineup against Maryland.