Just a little over an hour remains until the Sugar Bowl gets underway, and it’s now clear which Buckeyes will be on the field.
Ohio State dropped its status report, revealing that the team will be without Master Teague, Zach Harrison, Tyler Friday and Harry Miller, among nine other scholarship players when it takes on Clemson at the Superdome in New Orleans on Friday.
So, how do they affect the Buckeyes’ outlook for this College Football Playoff matchup? How does the return of several others impact Ohio State? We’re trying to answer that as kickoff nears.
- It’ll be the Trey Sermon Show once again. It might’ve been that way anyway after his 331-yard outburst, and Teague’s absence only ensures that as the case. He’ll get the brunt of touches out of the backfield. Yes, you shouldn’t expect a repeat of what he did in the Big Ten championship. That type of performance has literally happened once in Ohio State history. But for the Buckeyes to maximize their offensive production, they need him to make guys miss at the second level again. He rarely ran through would-be tacklers’ arms or made guys juke in the first four and a half games, but that changed two weeks ago. Tony Alford needs to ensure Sermon keeps it rolling against Clemson.
- Will Ohio State need a backup running back? Maybe. It’s fair to assume Sermon will take the vast majority of saps at tailback, but there might be an opening for somebody else to get a touch or two out of the backfield. Miyan Williams and Steele Chambers are the odds-on favorites.
- Chris Olave is officially back. Because he sat out the Big Ten championship game, it was initially unclear whether or not he’d actually get to take the field to avenge the late-game error made against Clemson a year ago. The hype-video narrator is, in fact, available.
- Remember Garrett Wilson’s sideline catch a year ago in the Fiesta Bowl? Maybe Jaxon Smith-Njigba doesn’t sky like his fellow Texas did, but he could make an impactful catch or two in his first-ever bowl game. The talent’s there. In his return to the field after missing the conference title game, Justin Fields might look his way for a couple of targets.
- No Miller likely puts Matthew Jones between left tackle Thayer Munford and center Josh Myers as the starting left guard. Interestingly, both Munford and Myers were unavailable against Michigan State when he made his only start as a Buckeye, meaning he’s never played a full game with them. As a third-year college lineman and former top-100 recruit, he has plenty of talent and has been around long enough that he should give Ohio State some confidence. But there’s an undeniable feeling of uncomfortability when an offensive line has to rely on somebody who hasn’t spent the entire season building chemistry with his fellow linemen. Brent Venables might test him early with blitzes, so pay attention to how he responds.
- Because both Miller and Enokk Vimahi are out, Dawand Jones might be the first guy off the bench at both offensive tackle and offensive guard. Freshman offensive tackle Paris Johnson, redshirt freshman Ryan Jacoby and freshman center Luke Wypler are other guys to keep in mind if the Buckeyes need some depth up front.
- We’ll likely see a short rotation at defensive end from Larry Johnson once more. Jonathon Cooper and Tyreke Smith will take the lead, and a returning Javontae Jean-Baptiste will supplement them. A week ago, Johnson rode a Cooper-Smith-Harrison trio for all but four defensive end snaps, and we’ll likely see the same thing but with Jean-Baptiste in there instead of Harrison. Without any exaggeration, this will be the biggest game of those three edge rushers’ careers so far. They need to find a way to make Trevor Lawrence uncomfortable.
- Al Washington has his complete starting linebacker corps for the first time since the Indiana game. With Justin Hilliard, Baron Browning, Pete Werner and Tuf Borland all available, he has no lack of options. It’s just a matter of how he wants to unleash them. Ohio State needs a huge game from this group.
- The last time the Buckeyes weren’t missing a starter in the defensive backfield, Michael Penix diced them up for nearly 500 passing yards. So, it’s not as if that’s the antidote to some of their struggles. But having all cornerbacks and safeties – save for Ronnie Hickman, who’s a game-time decision – should allow Kerry Coombs and Matt Barnes to defend Clemson in the way they want.
- Say hello again to Drue Chrisman, Ohio State’s punter extraordinaire. Zach Hoover held it down last week, but Chrisman will resume his duties.
