It might not have been the front-to-back destruction that Ohio State fans were hoping for, but a 52-6 win against any opponent is about as dominant as it gets in college football. Anyone looking for issues with the defense will find little to be upset about, and while the offense didn't immediately click, there are is some clear star power present (including and especially a certain wideout who immediately lived up to the hype).
With all of that considered, here are three key stats from Ohio State's win over the Akron Zips.
10 Tackles for Loss, 5 Sacks
The expectations and attention given to Ohio State's defense, relative to the amount of ink spilled over the new-look offense, is not quite equal. Sure, people have hoped for great things from Burke and Tuimoloau and Sawyer and company, but most people have spent the offseason laser-focused on how the offense would perform in the season opener.
Which is fine! That's important, and we'll get to that in a second, but I think we'd be remiss if we didn't point out how crazily disruptive Ohio State's defense (and defensive line in particular) was against the Zips.
Linemen Tyliek Williams (7 tackles, 1.5 tackles for loss, 1 sack) and JT Tuimoloau (3 tackles, 1.5 sacks) were essentially unblockable for most of Saturday afternoon, and as a whole the effort of the defensive line allowed the Buckeyes to stay aggressive against the Akron running game, which ended up with just 47 yards on the ground. We expected them to be great, and they were great.
6 Receptions, 92 Yards, 2 Touchdowns
Jeremiah Smith, baby!
Fans, coaches, the media, and his teammates have spent the entire offseason hyping this kid up. Marvin Harrison, Jr. himself was saying that the guy would be a top three pick in the NFL Draft, and on Saturday Smith lived up to the hype and then some.
Jeremiah Smith, welcome to college football.
— CBS Sports College Football (@CBSSportsCFB) August 31, 2024
His first touchdown for @OhioStateFB. pic.twitter.com/vtXiHPxDAD
His twisting touchdown catch was probably the most notable of his plays, but one thing to keep an eye on is the true freshman touchdowns record at Ohio State, which stands at eight. At this rate, Jeremiah Smith may own that record by October, and push it far out of reach for anyone else anytime soon by the end of the season.
4 Returns, 60 yards
Four punt returns wouldn't normally be a big deal unless one of them went to the house or something, but Brandon Inniss racking up 60 punt return yards is significant because A) that's good, instead of bad, which is what the Buckeyes were at returning punts in 2023, B) wait, I don't think you really appreciate how much better it is, Ohio State had 75 punt return yards during the entirety of the 2023 season, and C) that's a dramatic improvement that can probably be attributed to Ryan Day getting personally involved with Special Teams and Inniss being really, really good at this.
Also, the Buckeyes are totally getting a punt return for a touchdown this season, for the first time in about a billion years. I can smell it.
Anything Else?
Quarterback Will Howard had an up and down day in terms of passing consistency, but finishing the game going 11 for his final 12 passes is a good way to debut. TreVeyon Henderson was only needed for 8 carries, but still racked up 65 yards (Quinshon Judkins, his counterpart, wasn't quite as successful).
Lastly, we can't forget about leading tackler Lathan Ransom, who had 9 and played one of the most complete games of his career. If he can keep that up, he is going to be one of the most impactful players on Ohio State's defense all season long.
