According to Pro Football Focus, the three highest-graded players from the Buckeyes’ 32-31 loss to Oregon were Lathan Ransom, Will Howard and Emeka Egbuka.
For the first time all season, however, no Ohio State player who played more than 10 snaps received a game grade of 80 or better from PFF. The only Buckeye who did was tight end Will Kacmarek, who received a grade of 92.9 for his three snaps but did not play for the remainder of the game due to injury.
| ELITE | GOOD | ABOVE AVG. | AVG. | BELOW AVG. | POOR | VERY POOR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 90-100 | 80-89 | 70-79 | 60-69 | 50-59 | 40-49 | Below 40 |
Which Buckeyes had the best game in the loss to the Ducks? The worst game? Using Pro Football Focus, which grades every player after every game based on how they perform on a snap-to-snap basis, we have compiled their ratings on Ohio State's players for last week's game.
The five Buckeyes who had the best and worst games against Oregon are highlighted below.
The Top Five
1. S Lathan Ransom (78.0)
A safety earns Ohio State's top grade from PFF for the first time this season. Ransom has been solid in pass rushing and coverage through the first six games. He led the Buckeyes in both categories against Oregon, and for the season, Ransom led the nation among safeties with a pass rush grade of 93.9. Against Oregon, he received a pass-rush grade of 90.4, which was good for being second-best in the country among safeties.
With that, Ransom's overall grade of 78.0 is the lowest among this year's top performances for Ohio State players. To put it in comparison, RB Quinshon Judkins (92.6) has the highest grade for an Ohio State player in 2024.
A key third down stop by Ohio State late in the first half. DE J.T. Tuimoloau gets pressure, and safety Lathan Ransom + CB Davison Igbinosun make the tackle. pic.twitter.com/QLS9etoPzm
— Andy Backstrom (@andybackstrom) October 13, 2024
2. QB Will Howard (75.2)
Another first this season is Howard making the top five. The Kansas State transfer performed better against Western Michigan (81.9), but his grade against Oregon was the second-best among the Buckeye players. He also earned a passing grade of 81.7 against the Ducks which was 21st among the nation's signal-callers in Week 7 of the NCAA schedule.
3. WR Emeka Egbuka (74.5)
Egbuka is ranked as a top-five Buckeye for the third consecutive week, joining Jack Sawyer as the only Ohio State players to make this list three times. Egbuka led the team with 10 catches and finished the night with 93 yards and a score. The receiver's drop grade of 80.9 ranked third in the nation in Week 7 behind Minnesota's Daniel Jackson (81.5) and Syracuse's Jackson Meeks (81.5).
4. DE JT Tuimoloau (73.8)
Like Howard, this is the first time this season that Tuimoloau has made the top five. Playing in front of friends and family on the West Coast, the Seattle native finished the night with a tackle for loss and two quarterback hurries.
5. S Caleb Downs (73.2)
Since the season opener against Akron, Downs has consistently graded above 70 in five straight games. Against Oregon, he ranked third on Ohio State in rush defense and pass coverage. This is the second time in three games for Downs to make the top five.
The Bottom Five
Four of Ohio State’s five lowest-rated players who played at least 10 snaps against Oregon were offensive linemen, while the other was cornerback Denzel Burke.
1. T Zen Michalski (37.6)
Michalski, who replaced Josh Simmons at left tackle after Simmons went down with an injury in the second quarter, received the lowest overall grade for the game with a grade of just 24.6 in pass blocking.
2. T Josh Simmons (38.3)
Simmons’ grade wasn’t much better than Michalski’s before he had to leave the game with his injury, which is expected to be season-ending.
3. CB Denzel Burke (41.7)
Cornerbacks are used to playing on an island and it is typically easy to spot if a player had a good or bad game. Burke had a rough go of it on Saturday, allowing eight catches for 179 yards – by far the most he’s ever allowed in a game – and two touchdowns.
Evan Stewart making Denzel Burke look SILLY
— NFL Rookie Watch (@NFLRookieWatxh) October 13, 2024
The Oregon WR is putting on a CLINIC against one of the nations best CBs. pic.twitter.com/csCCxbuNJz
3. G Tegra Tshabola (41.7)
Tshabola, who also missed part of the game due to injury, received his lowest grade of the season. His previous low was 56.2 against Michigan State and Western Michigan.
5. T Josh Fryar (52.0)
To put the offensive line's performance in perspective, Donovan Jackson (64.4) and Seth McLaughlin (61.7) were the only offensive linemen who received grades above 60, which is considered average by PFF. This was Fryar's lowest grade of the season.
Offensive Ratings By Position
Quarterbacks
Will Howard: 75.2 (69 snaps)
Running Backs
TreVeyon Henderson: 65.0 (42 snaps)
Quinshon Judkins: 60.9 (28 snaps)
Wide Receivers
Emeka Egbuka: 74.5 (62 snaps)
Jeremiah Smith: 70.1 (63 snaps)
David Adolph: 60.0 (1 snap)
Brandon Inniss: 56.6 (6 snaps)
Carnell Tate: 55.3 (61 snaps)
Tight Ends
Will Kacmarek: 92.9 (3 snaps)
Jelani Thurman: 63.3 (2 snaps)
Patrick Gurd: 60.0 (2 snaps)
Bennett Christian: 57.7 (20 snaps)
Gee Scott Jr.: 57.6 (55 snaps)
Offensive Line
Donovan Jackson: 64.4 (69 snaps)
Seth McLaughlin: 61.7 (69 snaps)
Austin Siereveld: 53.9 (30 snaps)
Josh Fryar: 52.0 (69 snaps)
Tegra Tshabola: 41.7 (39 snaps)
Josh Simmons: 38.3 (23 snaps)
Zen Michalski: 37.6 (46 snaps)
| QB | RB | WR | TE | OL | DE | DT | LB | CB | S |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Will Howard | TreVeyon Henderson | Emeka Egbuka | Bennett Christian | Donovan Jackson | JT Tuimoloau | Tyleik Williams | Sonny Styles | Davison Igbinosun | Lathan Ransom |
| 75.2 | 65.0 | 74.5 | 57.7 | 64.4 | 73.8 | 66.7 | 71.5 | 61.6 | 78.0 |
Defensive Ratings by Position
Defensive Ends
Mitchell Melton: 78.2 (9 snaps)
JT Tuimoloau: 73.8 (56 snaps)
Kenyatta Jackson Jr.: 63.8 (17 snaps)
Jack Sawyer: 62.3 (60 snaps)
Caden Curry: 60.0 (12 snaps)
Defensive Tackles
Tyleik Williams: 66.7 (53 snaps)
Kayden McDonald: 65.3 (11 snaps)
Ty Hamilton: 60.5 (51 snaps)
Jason Moore: 58.7 (5 snaps)
Hero Kanu: 48.6 (3 snaps)
Linebackers
Sonny Styles: 71.5 (69 snaps)
Cody Simon: 69.9 (69 snaps)
C.J. Hicks: 35.6 (4 snaps)
Cornerbacks
Davison Igbinosun: 61.6 (65 snaps)
Jordan Hancock: 56.4 (64 snaps)
Lorenzo Styles Jr.: 48.4 (3 snaps)
Denzel Burke: 41.7 (65 snaps)
Aaron Scott Jr.: 40.3 (5 snaps)
Safeties
Lathan Ransom: 78.0 (69 snaps)
Caleb Downs: 73.2 (69 snaps)
| GAME | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Akron | DE Caden Curry (83.9) | DT Tyleik Williams (81.8) | DE Jack Sawyer (81.2) | CB Denzel Burke (78.5) | S Lathan Ransom (77.8) |
| WMU | RB Quinshon Judkins (92.6) | QB Devin Brown (89.1) | LB Cody Simon (86.3) | DE Jack Sawyer (85.2) | DT Ty Hamilton (83.2) |
| Marshall | G Donovan Jackson (86.6) | OT George Fitzpatrick (86.3) | RB TreVeyon Henderson (85.3) | OT Zen Michalski (84.5) | RB Quinshon Judkins (79.7) |
| MSU | TE Bennett Christian (84.6) | WR Jeremiah Smith (80.0) | S Caleb Downs (79.6) | CB Jordan Hancock (79.1) | WR Emeka Egbuka (76.8) |
| Iowa | DT Ty Hamilton (91.3) | DE Jack Sawyer (89.3) | DT Tyleik Williams (86.6) | WR Emeka Egbuka (76.3)* | C Seth McLaughlin (76.3)* |
| Oregon | S Lathan Ransom (78.0) | QB Will Howard (75.2) | WR Emeka Egbuka (74.5) | DE JT Tuimoloau (73.8) | S Caleb Downs (73.2) |
| *Egbuka and McLaughlin tied for 4th | |||||
