Snap Counts: 58 Buckeyes See Action in Ohio State’s Season-Opening Win over Indiana

We now have the answers to all of those questions and more.

A total of 58 players – 24 on offense, 23 on defense and 11 on special teams only – saw action in Ohio State’s season-opening 23-3 win over Indiana. Because the Buckeyes never quite got going offensively and therefore kept the game within reach, they never were able to take their starters out of the game completely, though they still ended up playing at least one backup at every position on offense and defense.

McCord ended up playing nearly the entire game at quarterback, with Brown entering the game for only two series – one in the first half and one in the second half, with both resulting in three-and-outs. The running backs’ playing time was more divided, with TreVeyon Henderson starting the game but still playing less than 50 percent of the snaps as Chip Trayanum and Miyan Williams also saw work with the first-team offense.

Larry Johnson maintained a deep rotation as 11 different defensive linemen saw playing time over the course of the game. Davison Igbinosun started opposite Denzel Burke at cornerback and ended up playing the most snaps at the position, though Jordan Hancock also saw significant playing time. Josh Proctor started the game at free safety, but Malik Hartford finished it while Syracuse transfer Ja’Had Carter, who had been the projected starter at the position, did not play at all.

While there are still plenty of questions to be answered at all of those positions, the snap counts from the season opener certainly give us an idea of which Buckeyes are in line to play the biggest roles this year.

You can find all of those snap counts below with additional details on how specifically Ohio State rotated at each position. Offensive and defensive snap counts are courtesy of Pro Football Focus’ premium statistics while special teams snap counts were charted by Eleven Warriors’ Matt Gutridge. All snap counts are unofficial as they were not provided by Ohio State.

Quarterbacks

Kyle McCord: 64
Devin Brown: 6

While Ryan Day said last Tuesday that he intended for Brown to play “meaningful” reps in the season opener, he ended up sticking with McCord for nearly the entire game. Brown entered the game for one drive on Ohio State’s fourth possession but did not return to the game until the Buckeyes’ final possession of the day.

Though that made it clear the Buckeyes were more comfortable with McCord in a season-opening game that remained closer than expected, Day said the plan had been for Brown to play more and that he wants to get Brown more playing time in upcoming games, as Ohio State has not yet committed to McCord as its long-term starting quarterback.

“I would have liked to have seen Devin play a little bit more,” Day said. “I didn't want to run the risk of putting ourselves in a bad spot by continually moving those guys in and out. But going in, really wanted to play Devin some more, would like to do that moving forward.”

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Running Backs

TreVeyon Henderson: 34
Chip Trayanum: 24
Miyan Williams: 15
Dallan Hayden: 3

Henderson started against Indiana and played just under half of Ohio State’s offensive snaps as the Buckeyes’ top running back, carrying the ball on 12 of those 34 snaps for 47 yards.

In a more surprising development, Trayanum was the second running back to see the field ahead of Williams and ended up playing nine more snaps than Williams in the contest. Trayanum showed he deserved those snaps, as he gained 69 yards on just nine touches – though Williams also took advantage of his lighter workload, running for 25 yards and two touchdowns on just seven carries.

In a new look for the Ohio State offense, the Buckeyes also had Trayanum on the field with either Williams or Henderson for six plays, occasionally moving Trayanum to fullback. He was the lead blocker for Williams on both of his touchdown runs as a fullback in the I-formation.

Hayden played his only three snaps of the game on Ohio State’s final possession.

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Wide Receivers

Marvin Harrison Jr.: 58
Emeka Egbuka: 53
Julian Fleming: 36
Carnell Tate: 14
David Adolph: 3
Xavier Johnson: 3
Noah Rogers: 3
Brandon Inniss: 2
Jayden Ballard: Special teams only

Harrison, Egbuka and Fleming were Ohio State’s starting receivers as expected with Harrison playing all but 12 snaps and Egbuka playing all but 17 snaps against the Hoosiers. Fleming was the first receiver to leave the field in two-tight end packages but still ended up playing more than half of the offensive snaps and was Ohio State’s leading wide receiver against Indiana, catching six passes for 58 yards.

Tate was Ohio State’s first receiver off the bench in his collegiate debut, rotating in at the outside receiver spots for 14 snaps with the first-team offense. The only other receiver to see time with the first-team offense was Johnson, who played only three snaps in the season opener, one of which came on Ohio State’s final offensive play of the first half with Harrison, Egbuka, Fleming, Tate and Johnson all on the field in a five-receiver set.

Adolph, Inniss and Rogers all saw their first playing time as Buckeyes on the final drive of the game with Adolph and Rogers lining up outside and Inniss in the slot.

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Tight Ends

Cade Stover: 56
Gee Scott Jr.: 25
Joe Royer: 16
Patrick Gurd: 1

Although Ohio State tight ends coach Keenan Bailey indicated in August that he wanted to reduce Stover’s total snaps after he averaged more than 54 snaps per game last year, Stover ended up playing more than that against Indiana, leading the Buckeyes in receiving with 98 yards on five catches.

Scott played a career-high 25 snaps as he regularly joined either Stover or Royer on the field in two-tight end packages throughout the game. Royer also mixed in for playing time with the first-team offense, both as a single tight end and in two-tight end sets with either Scott or Stover, before finishing out the game with the second-team offense on Ohio State’s final drive, in which Gurd also played one snap in a two-tight end formation.

Offensive Linemen

Josh Simmons: 70
Donovan Jackson: 70
Carson Hinzman: 70
Matt Jones: 70
Josh Fryar: 70
Luke Montgomery: 4
Jakob James: Special teams only
Zen Michalski: Special teams only
Tegra Tshabola: Special teams only

In their first game together as Ohio State’s new starting offensive line, the quintet of Simmons, Jackson, Hinzman, Jones and Fryar played all 70 of Ohio State’s offensive snaps to lead the Buckeyes in playing time against Indiana. Montgomery, in his collegiate debut, joined them on the field for four plays in the first half as a sixth offensive lineman in short-yardage situations.

Defensive Ends

JT Tuimoloau: 40
Jack Sawyer: 34
Caden Curry: 17
Kenyatta Jackson Jr.: 17
Mitchell Melton: 6

Tuimoloau and Sawyer’s standing as Ohio State’s top two defensive ends was evident against Indiana as they played the most snaps among all Buckeye defensive linemen. Tuimoloau was on the field for every play of the first quarter and all but 15 of Ohio State’s defensive plays for the remainder of the game, while Sawyer was on the field for just under two-thirds of the Buckeyes’ 55 defensive snaps.

Curry was the first defensive end off the bench while he also kicked inside to play defensive tackle for four third-down plays as a part of the Buckeyes’ new-look Rushmen package. Jackson was the fourth defensive end into the game, playing primarily on the plays when Tuimoloau wasn’t in the game. Melton also mixed in for six plays, with all of his snaps coming as a traditional defensive end as Jim Knowles did not utilize the Jack position in the season opener.

Caden Curry saw playing time at both defensive end and defensive tackle against Indiana.

Defensive Tackles

Tyleik Williams: 30
Mike Hall: 26
Ty Hamilton: 25
Jaden McKenzie: 13
Hero Kanu: 7
Tywone Malone: 5

Williams, Hall and Hamilton all rotated frequently with each other throughout the game with each of them ultimately playing between 25-30 snaps. Hamilton started the game at 1-technique and Williams was the starter at 3-technique, with Hall playing 1-tech when he was on the field with either Williams or McKenzie and 3-tech when he was paired with Hamilton.

McKenzie played all of his snaps on Ohio State’s second and third defensive series of the second half, recording two tackles with a tackle for loss. Kanu and Malone played all of their snaps on Ohio State’s final two defensive series of the game, with Kanu recording the Buckeyes’ only sack of the day.

Linebackers

Steele Chambers: 54
Tommy Eichenberg: 48
Cody Simon: 7
C.J. Hicks: 1
Reid Carrico: Special teams only
Arvell Reese: Special teams only

Despite Knowles’ insistence on multiple occasions this offseason that Simon and Hicks would see more playing time this year, he continued to lean almost exclusively on his starting linebackers against Indiana. Eichenberg played every defensive snap until Indiana’s final two possessions, on which Simon replaced him at Mike linebacker, while Chambers played every snap at Will linebacker until Indiana’s one-play final possession, when Hicks played the first defensive snap of his Ohio State career.

Cornerbacks

Davison Igbinosun: 45
Denzel Burke: 38
Jordan Hancock: 27
Jermaine Mathews Jr.: Special teams only
Lorenzo Styles Jr.: Special teams only

Although Hancock spent much of the offseason repping as a starting cornerback, Igbinosun got the nod to start the season opener opposite Burke and ended up playing the most snaps of any cornerback against Indiana. That said, Hancock also saw regular playing time and ended up on the field for just under half of Ohio State’s defensive snaps in Bloomington as he rotated in with both Burke and Igbinosun over the course of the game. Collectively, those three were the only cornerbacks to see defensive playing time against Indiana.

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Safeties

Lathan Ransom: 55
Sonny Styles: 49
Josh Proctor: 30
Malik Hartford: 25
Cameron Martinez: 6

Ransom was the only Ohio State defender to play every snap against the Hoosiers as he manned the bandit position for all 55 of the Buckeyes’ defensive plays.

Styles was also a mainstay on defense in his first game as an Ohio State starter, manning the nickel safety position for every play until Martinez replaced him on Indiana’s second-to-last possession. Styles’ versatility was on display in his first game as a starter as he lined up around the box as a Sam linebacker when Indiana had multiple tight ends or running backs in the game, but covered the slot when Indiana had three receivers on the field.

Proctor started the game at free safety and played every snap at that position through Ohio State’s first defensive series of the second half, recording four tackles with a tackle for loss and a pass breakup in his 30 defensive plays. Hartford replaced Proctor on Ohio State’s second defensive series of the third quarter and continued to man the adjuster position for the remainder of the game, recording two third-down stops in the form of a tackle and a pass breakup.

Field Goals/Extra Points

Jayden Fielding (kicker): 5
Jesse Mirco (holder): 5
John Ferlmann (long snapper): 5
Joe Royer (wing): 5
Jakob James (end): 5
Josh Simmons (tackle): 5
Donovan Jackson (guard): 5
Tegra Tshabola (guard): 5
Josh Fryar (tackle): 5
Zen Michalski (end): 5
Cade Stover (wing): 5

Fielding made all three of his field goal attempts – one from 40 yards and two from 22 yards – and both of his extra point attempts in his first game as Ohio State’s top placekicker. James, Michalski and Tshabola each played their only snaps of the season opener on the field goal team.

Kickoffs

Jayden Fielding (kicker): 6
Denzel Burke: 6
Reid Carrico: 6
Caden Curry: 6
Xavier Johnson: 6
Arvell Reese: 6
Cody Simon: 6
Lorenzo Styles Jr.: 6
Josh Proctor: 5
C.J. Hicks: 4
Jermaine Mathews Jr.: 3
Chip Trayanum: 3
Sonny Styles: 2
Davison Igbinosun: 1

Burke, Carrico, Curry, Johnson, Reese, Simon and Styles Jr. were each on the field for all six of Fielding’s kickoffs in Bloomington, with Proctor, Trayanum and Styles joining them on the starting kickoff coverage unit. Mathews took Trayanum’s place on the unit for three kickoffs while Hicks replaced Styles on the kickoff team for four kickoffs. Igbinosun took Proctor’s place on the field for Ohio State’s last kickoff of the day.

Kickoff Returns

Xavier Johnson (returner): 2
Caden Curry: 2
Julian Fleming: 2
C.J. Hicks: 2
Joe Royer: 2
Gee Scott Jr.: 2
Cody Simon: 2
Lorenzo Styles Jr.: 2
Carnell Tate: 2
Chip Trayanum: 2
Jayden Ballard: 1
Jordan Hancock: 1

The only change to the kickoff return unit between Indiana’s two kickoffs came with Ballard replacing Hancock on the front line of blockers for the second kickoff. Johnson gained 23 yards on his only kickoff return against the Hoosiers.

Punts

Jesse Mirco (punter): 4
John Ferlmann (long snapper): 4
Cody Simon (upback): 4
Sonny Styles (guard): 4
Xavier Johnson (tackle): 4
Cade Stover (wing): 4
Tommy Eichenberg (upback): 3
Julian Fleming (gunner): 3
Gee Scott Jr. (guard): 3
Chip Trayanum (tackle): 3
Josh Proctor (gunner): 3
Caden Curry (upback): 1
Reid Carrico (guard): 1
Carnell Tate (tackle): 1
Jayden Ballard (gunner): 1
Lorenzo Styles Jr. (gunner): 1

Mirco, Eichenberg, Simon, Stover, Johnson, Fleming and Proctor all returned to Ohio State’s starting punt team from last season with Ferlmann, Styles, Scott and Trayanum joining them. All of them were on the field for Ohio State’s first three punts with Curry, Carrico, Tate, Ballard and Styles Jr. replacing Eichenberg, Scott, Trayanum, Fleming and Proctor for Mirco’s last punt, which came in the game’s final minute.

Punt Blocks/Returns

Emeka Egbuka (returner): 6
Davison Igbinosun: 6
Lathan Ransom: 6
Malik Hartford: 5
C.J. Hicks: 5
Jordan Hancock: 4
Julian Fleming: 3
Patrick Gurd: 3
Xavier Johnson: 3
Gee Scott Jr.: 3
Carnell Tate: 3
Chip Trayanum: 3
Caden Curry: 2
Cody Simon: 2
Lorenzo Styles Jr.: 2
Denzel Burke: 1
Reid Carrico: 1
Steele Chambers: 1
Tommy Eichenberg: 1
Mike Hall: 1
Jermaine Mathews Jr.: 1
Josh Proctor: 1
Jack Sawyer: 1
JT Tuimoloau: 1

Ohio State had a different 11 players on the field for each of Indiana’s six punts with Egbuka, Igbinosun and Ransom being the only three Buckeyes in the game for all six of them. Hartford and Hicks were also both on the field for every Indiana punt except for the one on which the Buckeyes kept their defense on the field to play punt safe.

Field Goal Block

Denzel Burke: 1
Steele Chambers: 1
Tommy Eichenberg: 1
Mike Hall: 1
Davison Igbinosun: 1
Josh Proctor: 1
Lathan Ransom: 1
Jack Sawyer: 1
Sonny Styles: 1
JT Tuimoloau: 1
Tyleik Williams: 1

The field goal block unit for Indiana’s only field goal attempt of the day, a 42-yarder which Chris Freeman made by knocking it in off of the right upright, consisted of the 11 defensive players who were on the field for the prior defensive play.