Snap Counts: Caleb Downs Leads Buckeyes in Playing Time, Tywone Malone Plays Second-Most Snaps Among Defensive Tackles Against Marshall

Ohio State’s defense was on the field for 14 more plays from scrimmage than its offense, in part due to Marshall sustaining four first-half drives of eight plays or more and in part due to Ohio State having three touchdown drives of two plays or fewer. Downs played the most snaps of any defender as the Buckeyes’ highly touted transfer safety was on the field for every play until Marshall’s final two possessions for a total of 64 snaps.

While Hero Kanu started the game at defensive tackle in place of Tyleik Williams, who was out with an undisclosed injury, Tywone Malone ended up playing the second-most snaps among defensive tackles; he more than tripled his previous game-high snaps as a Buckeye as he was on the field for 28 defensive plays.

On the other side of the ball, Will Howard and the first-team offense played through the first three plays of the fourth quarter, when Quinshon Judkins scored his second touchdown of the day to give the Buckeyes a 49-14 lead that would hold for the contest’s final score. Donovan Jackson, the only Buckeye to make his season debut against Marshall, returned to the starting lineup at left guard and played all 45 snaps with the first-team offense after missing the first two games due to injury, though Austin Siereveld continued to see first-team action as he rotated in with starter Tegra Tshabola at right guard.

Only four position players who didn’t see action on offense or defense got in the game on special teams, but the Buckeyes used five specialists as Austin Snyder replaced Jayden Fielding on kickoffs and extra points in the second half while Nick McLarty was brought in for the Buckeyes’ final punt for the second game in a row.

In total, the 66 Buckeyes to see action against Marshall were four fewer than they used in the season opener against Akron and 17 fewer than the total players against Western Michigan, but Ohio State still used 28 players on offense and 30 players on defense as backups played the vast majority of the fourth-quarter snaps.

Our full look at how Ohio State divided up playing time in each unit in its third game of the season against Marshall can be found below. Snap counts are courtesy of Pro Football Focus’ premium statistics.

Quarterbacks

Will Howard: 45
Devin Brown: 13

Howard was on the field for every play of Ohio State’s first 10 drives, seven of which resulted in touchdowns. Individually, Howard attempted passes on just under half of his snaps in the game, completing 16 of 20 attempts for 275 yards and two touchdowns with one interception; he also ran for his second touchdown in as many games on a 1-yard quarterback sneak.

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— FOX College Football (@CFBONFOX) September 21, 2024

Brown was the only backup quarterback to see action against Marshall as he took the field for Ohio State’s final two possessions of the day.

Running Backs

Quinshon Judkins: 27
TreVeyon Henderson: 20
James Peoples: 13

Henderson started against Marshall as he has in all three games so far this season, but Judkins ended up playing the higher share of snaps against Thundering Herd. They were on the field together for two snaps – one in a T-formation on Howard’s touchdown run and another on Ohio State’s kneeldown to end the first half.

Both made the most of the opportunities they got against Marshall as Judkins ran for 173 yards and two touchdowns on 14 carries (and caught two passes for 14 yards) while Henderson ran for 75 yards and two touchdowns on only six carries.

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Peoples was the running back for the entirety of Ohio State’s final two possessions and ran the ball six times for 31 yards.

Wide Receivers

Carnell Tate: 35 
Jeremiah Smith: 32 
Emeka Egbuka: 26
Brandon Inniss: 17
Bryson Rodgers: 15
David Adolph: 8
Kojo Antwi: 8
Jayden Ballard: 5

Tate played the most snaps among all wide receivers for a third straight game to begin the year as he continued to make his presence felt as both a receiver and a blocker, catching four passes for 64 yards and making multiple key downfield blocks. In a change from the first two games, Smith played the second-most snaps at wide receiver ahead of Egbuka, who nevertheless had his first 100-yard game since 2022 as he caught five passes for 117 yards, highlighted by a 68-yard touchdown.

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Inniss and Rodgers each mixed in for occasional work with the first-team offense but played most of their snaps as OSU’s fourth and fifth receivers on the Buckeyes’ final three possessions of the game. Ballard played his only offensive snaps on Ohio State’s penultimate drive of the game while Adolph and Antwi got in for the Buckeyes’ final drive of the day, on which Adolph made his first career catch.

Tight Ends

Will Kacmarek: 25
Jelani Thurman: 21
Gee Scott Jr.: 17
Bennett Christian: 12
Patrick Gurd: 9

Scott started at tight end as he has in every game so far this season but played only the third-most snaps among tight ends against Marshall. Kacmarek played his highest snap count so far as a Buckeye as the second tight end to enter the game while Thurman also topped 20 snaps for the second game in a row.

All five tight ends who saw action against Marshall played at least one snap with the first-team offense. Christian played all of his first-team snaps in multi-tight end formations – as he has in each of Ohio State’s first three games – while Gurd lined up as the fullback in the T-formation on Howard’s touchdown run in addition to playing tight end for the Buckeyes’ final possession of the game.

Offensive Linemen

Josh Fryar: 45
Donovan Jackson: 45
Seth McLaughlin: 45
Josh Simmons: 45
Tegra Tshabola: 32
Austin Siereveld: 26
George Fitzpatrick: 13
Carson Hinzman: 13
Zen Michalski: 13
Luke Montgomery: 13

With Jackson’s return to action against Marshall, Ohio State’s starting offensive line consisted of Simmons at left tackle, Jackson at left guard, McLaughlin at center, Tshabola at right guard and Fryar at right tackle. Siereveld took Tshabola’s place with the first-team offensive line for four drives – all drives that ended in touchdowns, including both of the Buckeyes’ one-play touchdown drives – while Tshabola played one drive with the second-team unit at RG behind Siereveld returned to finish out the game at RG.

The rest of the second-team offensive line for Ohio State’s final two drives against Marshall consisted of Michalski at left tackle, Montgomery at left guard, Hinzman at center and Fitzpatrick at right tackle.

Defensive Ends

Jack Sawyer: 45
JT Tuimoloau: 41
Kenyatta Jackson Jr.: 32
Mitchell Melton: 21
Caden Curry: 11
Dominic Kirks: 3
Joshua Mickens: 3

Sawyer played the most snaps among defensive snaps for the third straight game to begin the year while Tuimoloau also topped 40 snaps for the first time this season against the Buckeyes.

Jackson played a career-high 32 snaps while Melton played a career-high 21 snaps as both of them saw extensive playing time in the second half after Curry was ejected for targeting in the final minute of the first half. Kirks and Mickens played their only snaps of the game on the Buckeyes’ final defensive series; five-star freshman Eddrick Houston, who was OSU’s sixth defensive end in its first two games, did not see action against Marshall.

Defensive Tackles

Ty Hamilton: 34
Tywone Malone Jr.: 28
Hero Kanu: 26
Kayden McDonald: 22
Jason Moore: 14
Will Smith Jr.: 7
Eric Mensah: 3

With Tyleik Williams sidelined by injury, Kanu made his first career start alongside Hamilton. Moore and Malone also mixed in at 3-technique with the first-team defense, though, with Malone ultimately playing the second-most snaps among DTs. Malone was the most productive defensive tackle on the day for the Buckeyes, recording three total tackles with one for loss and disrupting several other plays.

Malone, Kanu, McDonald and Moore all played the highest snap counts of their Ohio State careers to date as Williams’ absence led to more rotation on the interior defensive line than the first two games of the year. Smith played all of his snaps in the fourth quarter as Mensah – one of only six freshmen who have played in all three games so far – entered the game at nose tackle for Ohio State’s final two defensive series.

RELATED Freshman Tracker: Jeremiah Smith Scores Fourth Touchdown in Three Games As Eight Ohio State Freshmen Play vs. Marshall

Linebackers

Sonny Styles: 54
Cody Simon: 42
Arvell Reese: 29
C.J. Hicks: 15
Payton Pierce: 3
Gabe Powers: 3
Joey Velazquez: Special teams only

Ohio State rotated four linebackers with the first-team defense for a second straight game. Reese played the most snaps among backup linebackers for a third straight game as he rotated with Simon at Mike linebacker. Hicks replaced Styles at Will linebacker for one series in the first half before returning for more playing time alongside Reese in the fourth quarter.

Pierce and Powers saw their only defensive snaps of the game on Marshall’s final possession.

Cornerbacks

Davison Igbinosun: 61
Jordan Hancock: 59
Denzel Burke: 57
Jermaine Mathews Jr.: 19
Lorenzo Styles Jr.: 11
Aaron Scott Jr.: 8
Calvin Simpson-Hunt: Special teams only

While Igbinosun and Burke continued to play the vast majority of snaps at outside cornerback against Marshall, Mathews spelled each of them for a few plays. He also joined them on the field for a few plays on which the Buckeyes brought him into the game in place of strong safety Lathan Ransom as a fourth cornerback, helping them matchup with Marshall’s Air Raid offense, in which the Thundering Herd often had four wide receivers on the field.

Styles checked into the game at nickel with the first-team defense on two occasions after Hancock had to leave the game for at least one play after his helmet came off. Mathews, Styles and Scott were Ohio State’s cornerback trio for Marshall’s final two possessions of the game.

Safeties

Caleb Downs: 64
Lathan Ransom: 61
Malik Hartford: 8
Jaylen McClain: 8
Brenten “Inky” Jones: Special teams only
Keenan Nelson Jr.: Special teams only

Downs was the only Ohio State defender to be on the field for every play of Marshall’s first 10 possessions as he never left the field until the Thundering Herd’s final two drives, when Hartford replaced him at free safety. Ransom, who led the Buckeyes with eight tackles against Marshall, was in the game for all but three plays with the first-team defense before McClain replaced him for Marshall’s first two possessions.

Ohio State has yet to play beyond its two-deep at safety through three games this season.

Extra Points

Joe McGuire (holder): 7
John Ferlmann (long snapper): 7
Zen Michalski (end): 7
Austin Siereveld (guard): 7
George Fitzpatrick (end): 7
Jelani Thurman (wing): 7
Will Kacmarek (wing): 7
Josh Simmons (tackle): 7
Tegra Tshabola (guard): 7
Josh Fryar (tackle): 7
Jayden Fielding (kicker): 5
Austin Snyder (kicker): 2

Snyder replaced Fielding for Ohio State’s final two extra points against Marshall after already replacing him on kickoffs. The rest of Ohio State’s placekicking lineup was unchanged from the previous game against Western Michigan.

Kickoffs

Brenten "Inky" Jones: 8
Jaylen McClain: 8
Gabe Powers: 8
Calvin Simpson-Hunt: 8
Lorenzo Styles Jr.: 8
Patrick Gurd: 6
Jermaine Mathews Jr.: 6
Keenan Nelson Jr.: 6
Arvell Reese: 6
Jayden Fielding (kicker): 5
C.J. Hicks: 4
Payton Pierce: 4
Austin Snyder (kicker): 3
Kojo Antwi: 2
Denzel Burke: 2
Caden Curry: 2
Joey Velazquez: 2

Snyder replaced Fielding for Ohio State’s three second-half kickoffs after Fielding had three straight kickoffs out of bounds in the second quarter. Ohio State will evaluate this week whether to keep Snyder on kickoffs or go back to Fielding.

“We'll evaluate him and see if there's any tweak or something that happened in the hip or whatever, but either way, we can't have that,” Ryan Day said after the game. “I mean, that's putting our defense in a terrible situation. Having three out of bounds and three drives start at the 35-yard line, that's completely ridiculous. So we've got to get that fixed, however we do that.

“You get to the point where you want to let somebody play through it, but then at another point, we've got to make a change. So I thought Austin did a nice job of stepping in there.”

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Kickoff Returns

Brandon Inniss (returner): 3
Kojo Antwi: 3
Bennett Christian: 3
Malik Hartford: 3
Jaylen McClain: 3
Gabe Powers: 3
Arvell Reese: 3
Bryson Rodgers: 3
Lorenzo Styles Jr.: 3
Jelani Thurman: 3
Joey Velazquez: 3

Inniss replaced Jayden Ballard at kickoff returner against Marshall after Ballard misplayed Western Michigan’s only kickoff – giving the Buckeyes the ball at the 6-yard line after he allowed the kick to bounce on a fair catch – in Ohio State’s previous game. Inniss did not return any of Marshall’s three kickoffs.

With Inniss’ move to returner, Rodgers took Inniss’ place as one of the front-line blockers on the unit.

Punts

John Ferlmann (long snapper): 3
Calvin Simpson-Hunt: 3
Joe McGuire (punter): 2
Patrick Gurd: 2
Malik Hartford: 2
Brenton “Inky” Jones: 2
Jaylen McClain: 2
Gabe Powers: 2
Arvell Reese: 2
Gee Scott Jr.: 2
Nick McLarty (punter): 1
Caleb Downs: 1
C.J. Hicks: 1
Mitchell Melton: 1
Lathan Ransom: 1
Cody Simon: 1
Lorenzo Styles Jr.: 1
Sonny Styles: 1

McGuire started at punter for a third straight game to begin the year while Ohio State brought McLarty on for its final punt of the game for the second game in a row. McLarty’s punt traveled only 30 yards while McGuire averaged 43.5 yards on his two punts.

Punt Blocks/Returns

Brandon Inniss (returner): 9
Arvell Reese: 9
Payton Pierce: 8
David Adolph: 7
Brenten “Inky” Jones: 7
Gabe Powers: 7
Calvin Simpson-Hunt: 7
Lorenzo Styles Jr.: 7
Jeremiah Smith: 5
Bennett Christian: 4
Patrick Gurd: 4
Caden Curry: 3
Kojo Antwi: 2
Tywone Malone: 2
Jaylen McClain: 2
Carnell Tate: 2
Denzel Burke: 1
Caleb Downs: 1 
Ty Hamilton: 1
Malik Hartford: 1
Davison Igbinosun: 1
Kenyatta Jackson: 1
Hero Kanu: 1
Jermaine Mathews Jr.: 1
Mitchell Melton: 1
Lathan Ransom: 1
Jack Sawyer: 1
Aaron Scott Jr.: 1
Sonny Styles: 1
JT Tuimoloau: 1

Inniss was the returner for all nine of Marshall’s punts, staying in the game even after he muffed a punt that would have given the Thundering Herd the ball in the red zone if not for an illegal formation penalty against Marshall. He was only able to return one of Marshall’s nine punts but gained 21 yards on that return – and had a path to potentially go all the way for a touchdown if he hadn’t slipped on the turf.

Extra Point Block

Denzel Burke: 2
Caleb Downs: 2
Ty Hamilton: 2
Jordan Hancock: 2
Davison Igbinosun: 2
Lathan Ransom: 2
Jack Sawyer: 2
Cody Simon: 2
Sonny Styles: 2
JT Tuimoloau: 2
Hero Kanu: 1
Tywone Malone: 1

The extra point block team for each of Marshall’s two point-afters consisted of Ohio State’s starting 11 on defense except for Malone replacing Kanu on Marshall’s second extra point.