Snap Counts: Will Kacmarek, Cody Simon, Jordan Hancock and Lathan Ransom Play Season-High Snap Counts in Ohio State’s Rose Bowl Rout of Oregon

Ohio State used 13 fewer players against Oregon than it did against Tennessee, but achieved a similar result in its second College Football Playoff game as the Buckeyes rolled to a 41-21 win over the Ducks, knocking the No. 1 seed out of the CFP while advancing to the semifinals, where Ohio State will face Texas in the Cotton Bowl next Friday, Jan. 10 (7:30 p.m., ESPN).

As Ohio State’s defense was on the field for 15 more plays than its offense, three Ohio State starters played their highest snap counts of the season: middle linebacker Cody Simon, cornerback Jordan Hancock and safety Lathan Ransom. Safety Caleb Downs and cornerback Jermaine Mathews Jr. also tied their season-highs in playing time.

On the offensive side of the ball, Will Kacmarek played a season-high 37 snaps as the Buckeyes used a heavy dose of two-tight end packages for a second game in a row to start the CFP.

In total, 54 Ohio State players saw action in Ohio State’s rematch with the Ducks – the same number that played in Ohio State’s regular-season loss to Oregon – with 19 Buckeyes appearing on offense, 22 appearing on defense and 13 playing on special teams only.

Our full report on how many snaps each Buckeye played in the Rose Bowl, using data from Pro Football Focus’ premium statistics, can be found below.

Quarterbacks

Will Howard: 57

Even though Ohio State raced out to a 34-0 lead in the first half, Howard played every offensive snap of the game for the Buckeyes. He attempted passes on 26 of those plays for 319 yards and three touchdowns with 212 of those yards coming in the first quarter and 269 coming before halftime as he attempted only eight passes in the second half with just two pass attempts in the fourth quarter.

Running Backs

Quinshon Judkins: 33
TreVeyon Henderson: 25

Judkins was on the field for just over half of Ohio State’s offensive snaps and ran the ball on just over half of those plays, gaining 85 yards on 17 carries. Henderson tied his third-lowest snap count of the season but made the most of his touches, running for 94 yards and two touchdowns on just eight carries while also catching three passes for an additional 20 yards.

Wide Receivers

Emeka Egbuka: 50
Jeremiah Smith: 36
Carnell Tate: 33
Brandon Inniss: 17
Bryson Rodgers: 5
Mylan Graham: 2
David Adolph: Special teams only

After playing the fewest snaps among Ohio State’s top three receivers in the Buckeyes’ College Football Playoff opener against Tennessee, Egbuka played the most snaps among the receivers against the Ducks, leaving the field for only seven of Ohio State’s 57 offensive plays.

Smith played his fourth-lowest snap count of the season while Tate played his lowest snap count of the year (excluding the Iowa game, which he did not play in due to injury) as Ohio State used a heavy dose of two-tight end sets for a second game in a row to start the CFP. That didn’t stop Smith from making an enormous impact, however, as the Buckeyes’ superstar freshman caught seven passes for 187 yards and two touchdowns.

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Inniss subbed in for six more snaps than he played against Tennessee while Rodgers got in the game for five fewer plays. Graham, who made just two game appearances during the regular season, got in for late-game action as a backup wide receiver for the second game in a row.

Tight Ends

Will Kacmarek: 37
Gee Scott Jr.: 32
Bennett Christian: 15
Patrick Gurd: Special teams only
Jelani Thurman: Special teams only

Kacmarek played a season-high snap count for the second game in a row as the Buckeyes leaned heavily on the Ohio transfer as an extra blocker. Both of Ohio State’s top two tight ends played more than 30 snaps for a second game in a row as both Kacmarek and Scott started the game. Ohio State used two-tight end sets throughout the game with Christian playing 15-plus snaps for the seventh time in the Buckeyes’ last nine games.

Offensive Linemen

Donovan Jackson: 57
Carson Hinzman: 57
Josh Fryar: 57
Tegra Tshabola: 43
Austin Siereveld: 40
Luke Montgomery: 29
George Fitzpatrick: 2
Joshua Padilla: Special teams only

Ohio State used a guard rotation for the second game in a row with Siereveld starting at left guard, Tshabola starting at right guard and Montgomery mixing in at left guard, with Siereveld also occasionally seeing snaps at RG over Tshabola when Montgomery was in the game. Fitzpatrick also saw action at RG on Ohio State’s final two offensive plays.

Jackson played every snap at left tackle, Hinzman played every snap at center and Fryar played every snap at right tackle. Collectively, Ohio State‘s offensive line allowed zero sacks in the Rose Bowl while leading the way for the Buckeyes to rush for 181 yards.

Defensive Ends

JT Tuimoloau: 54
Jack Sawyer: 49
Kenyatta Jackson Jr.: 22
Caden Curry: 10
Mitchell Melton: 9

Tuimoloau was on the field for exactly 75% of Ohio State’s defensive snaps while Sawyer played just five fewer snaps against the Ducks as Ohio State’s defensive end tandem was dominant for the second game in a row. Both of them recorded two sacks with Sawyer adding three pass breakups and Tuimoloau addng a third tackle for loss with one pass breakup.

Jackson played more than 20 snaps for a second straight game to begin the CFP, contributing one tackle off the bench, while Curry and Melton also rotated in for occasional action.

Defensive Tackles

Ty Hamilton: 54
Tyleik Williams: 49
Eddrick Houston: 14
Kayden McDonald: 9
Hero Kanu: 8
Tywone Malone Jr.: 3

Hamilton played the same number of snaps as Tuimoloau and Williams played the same number of snaps as Sawyer as the Buckeyes deployed a similar rotation at defensive tackle. Both of Ohio State’s starting DTs recorded three tackles with one tackle for loss in the Rose Bowl as they led the way for an OSU run defense that held Oregon to a net loss of minus-23 rushing yards when factoring in sacks.

Houston played the most snaps among backup defensive tackles for a second straight game as Williams’ top backup at 3-technique. McDonald played his second-lowest snap count of the season with Kanu also mixing in for backup duty behind him at nose tackle. Malone also saw action for the second game in a row after playing in only three of Ohio State’s final six regular-season games.

Linebackers

Cody Simon: 71
Sonny Styles: 71
Arvell Reese: 2
C.J. Hicks: 1
Payton Pierce: Special teams only
Joey Velazquez: Special teams only

Simon and Styles were both on the field for every play until the final play of the game, when they were replaced by Reese and Hicks for Oregon’s final snap. Simon played a season-high 71 snaps and led the Buckeyes with 11 tackles, including three tackles for loss and two sacks, and added a pass breakup; Styles recorded four tackles.

Reese joined Simon and Styles on the field for just one play as the Buckeyes used a three-linebacker package only once against the Ducks.

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Cornerbacks

Jordan Hancock: 69
Davison Igbinosun: 63
Denzel Burke: 41
Jermaine Mathews Jr.: 40
Lorenzo Styles Jr.: 9
Bryce West: Special teams only

Hancock played a season-high 69 snaps as he was on the field for all but three plays against the Ducks. Styles played a couple of snaps in his place and also joined Hancock on the field for several snaps of dime defense on which Styles was on the field as a sixth defensive back.

After playing only on special teams in Ohio State’s regular-season loss to Oregon, Mathews saw regular playing time in the Buckeyes’ cornerback rotation in the Rose Bowl, tying his season-high with 40 snaps. He replaced Burke much more often than he did Igbinosun, but not due to any lack of performance by Burke, who bounced back from his struggles in Ohio State’s first matchup against the Ducks by allowing zero catches on 29 coverage snaps.

Safeties

Caleb Downs: 72
Lathan Ransom: 72
Malik Hartford: Special teams only
Jaylen McClain: Special teams only
Keenan Nelson Jr.: Special teams only

Downs tied his season-high in snaps played and Ransom set a new season-high for playing time as both of them were on the field for all 72 of Oregon’s offensive plays. Downs recorded three tackles and three pass breakups while Ransom recorded seven tackles with one sack.

Field Goals/Extra Points

Jayden Fielding (kicker): 7
Joe McGuire (punter): 7
John Ferlmann (long snapper): 7
Bennett Christian: 7
George Fitzpatrick: 7
Josh Fryar: 7
Luke Montgomery: 7
Joshua Padilla: 7
Austin Siereveld: 7
Jelani Thurman: 7
Tegra Tshabola: 7

Ohio State made no changes to its field-goal kicking unit against Oregon. After missing three of his four field goal attempts in Ohio State’s previous two games, Fielding bounced back against the Ducks, making both of his field goal attempts including a 46-yard kick to tie his season-long.

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Kickoffs

Jayden Fielding (kicker): 8
Malik Hartford: 8
Jaylen McClain: 8
Jordan Hancock: 8
C.J. Hicks: 8
Payton Pierce: 8
Arvell Reese: 8 
Lorenzo Styles Jr.: 8
Jermaine Mathews Jr.: 7
Patrick Gurd: 6
Denzel Burke: 5
Keenan Nelson Jr.: 3
Caden Curry: 2
Bryce West: 1

Oregon did not attempt to return any of Fielding’s eight kickoffs in the Rose Bowl.

Kickoff Returns

Emeka Egbuka (returner): 3
Brandon Inniss: 3
Gee Scott Jr.: 3
David Adolph: 2
Bennett Christian: 2
Patrick Gurd: 2
C.J. Hicks: 2
Jaylen McClain: 2
Payton Pierce: 2
Lorenzo Styles Jr.: 2
Joey Velazquez: 2
Caden Curry: 1
Caleb Downs: 1
TreVeyon Henderson (returner): 1
Lathan Ransom: 1
Cody Simon: 1
Jeremiah Smith: 1
Sonny Styles: 1
Carnell Tate: 1

Egbuka was deployed deep for each of Oregon’s first two kickoffs and did not attempt to return either of them. He moved up to the hands team with Henderson deployed deep for Oregon’s third and final kickoff in anticipation of an onside kick; Henderson had a bit of trouble fielding Andrew Boyle’s short kickoff but ultimately got the ball back safely to the 15-yard line to avoid giving the Ducks a free possession.

Punts

Joe McGuire (punter): 5
John Ferlmann (long snapper): 5
Caden Curry: 5
C.J. Hicks: 5
Lathan Ransom: 5
Cody Simon: 5
Sonny Styles: 5
Lorenzo Styles Jr.: 5
Jaylen McClain: 2
Jermaine Mathews Jr.: 1
Bryson Rodgers: 1
Carnell Tate: 1 

McGuire averaged 40.4 yards per punt on his five punts against the Ducks. Ohio State had two opportunities to potentially pin the Ducks at the Oregon goal line, but Ohio State’s gunners slipped on the Rose Bowl grass both times, allowing the ball to bounce into the end zone for a touchback.

Punt Blocks/Returns

Caleb Downs (returner): 8
Lathan Ransom: 8
Sonny Styles: 8
Denzel Burke: 5
Brandon Inniss (returner): 5
Jermaine Mathews Jr.: 5
Cody Simon: 5
Caden Curry: 4
JT Tuimoloau: 4
David Adolph: 3
Bennett Christian: 3
Ty Hamilton: 3
C.J. Hicks: 3
Davison Igbinosun: 3
Brenten Jones: 
Jaylen McClain: 3
Lorenzo Styles Jr.: 3
Arvell Reese: 3
Jack Sawyer: 3
Tyleik Williams: 3
Eddrick Houston: 2
Kenyatta Jackson Jr.: 2
Kayden McDonald: 1
Hero Kanu: 1

Downs and Inniss shared punt returner duties against Oregon. Neither of them returned any of Oregon’s eight punts.

Field Goal/Extra Point Block

Denzel Burke: 1
Caleb Downs: 1
Ty Hamilton: 1
Davison Igbinosun: 1
Lathan Ransom: 1
Arvell Reese: 1
Jack Sawyer: 1
Cody Simon: 1
Sonny Styles: 1
JT Tuimoloau: 1
Tyleik Williams: 1

Ohio State only needed to deploy its extra point block unit once as Oregon attempted two-point conversions – the first of which was successful, the second of which wasn’t – after its other two touchdowns in the Rose Bowl.