Ohio State vs. Indiana Preview: Offensive Line, Cornerbacks in Focus For Buckeyes in Likely Big Ten Championship Game Play-In

#5 Indiana

Hoosiers

10 - 0 (7-0)

roster  |  schedule

NOV. 24, 2024 - NOON

Ohio Stadium

Columbus, OH

FOXOSU -12

That's all that matters for Ohio State from this point forward in the 2024 season. If the Buckeyes beat No. 5 Indiana and Michigan in the next two weekends, they will be in the Big Ten Championship Game for a rematch with No. 1 Oregon. A win there would not only achieve the program's first Big Ten title since 2020, it would secure a first-round bye and likely the No. 1 seed in the College Football Playoff.

Standing in the way of all that this Saturday is an Indiana team that's taken no prisoners en route to a historic season. The Hoosiers have obtained their first 10-win season in school history by starting their 2024 campaign 10-0. They've won all but one of those games by multiple scores.

First-year head coach Curt Cignetti has taken Indiana from the doldrums of the conference to near its summit. In their school-record third top-five matchup of the regular season, the Buckeyes must deny the Hoosiers the mountaintop. With both teams slated to be heavy favorites against their most bitter rivals (Michigan and Purdue) next weekend, their clash on Saturday will likely prove to be a Big Ten Championship Game play-in.

The Headlines

Another Moment for the Offensive Line

There is nothing more Ohio State can do to respond to the second season-ending injury to a top offensive lineman it's faced this season. Center Seth McLaughlin's college career is over due to an Achilles injury and the Buckeyes were quick to move left guard Carson Hinzman back to center and plug Austin Siereveld in his place.

From the Buckeyes' original starting five, only two offensive linemen remain in the lineup in their original positions, right guard Tegra Tshabola and right tackle Josh Fryar. Donovan Jackson slid from left guard out to left tackle after Josh Simmons' season-ender at Oregon and Zen Michalski's injury vs. Nebraska, a game where the Buckeyes rushed for a meager 2.1 yards per carry behind a struggling OL.

After Jackson's move, the front five found a season-defining performance at then-No. 3 Penn State, a bit of a breakout game for Hinzman after he drew ire for his performance at center in 2023. The unit kept gaining steam against Purdue and Northwestern until taking another hit with this McLaughlin injury. A semifinalist for the Joe Moore Award, Ohio State's offensive line has responded fantastically to the canyon of criticism it faced this offseason, only to be snake-bitten at each turn.

But in war, your foe does not care whether your soldiers are wounded or downtrodden. It's those weaknesses enemies tend to exploit. Indiana has the defensive front to exploit any weakness the Buckeyes might have; thus, there's no time for complaining or bemoaning what could have been.

"It sucks when it happens," Jackson said on Wednesday. "You never wish that on anybody, especially, first of all, a man of that caliber, a player of that caliber. ... But it's next man up. We all wear Block O's on our chest for a reason. We're not here for a free vacation, we're here to play football."

Indiana leads the Big Ten with 31 sacks and 73 tackles for loss this year. Defensive end Mikhail Kamara has been elite, racking up 39 tackles, 14.5 tackles for loss and 9.5 sacks in 2024. CJ West weighs in at 315 pounds at defensive tackle and has collected 30 takedowns with five TFLs and two sacks this year. The Hoosiers hold the No. 1 run defense in all of college football, allowing just 72.2 rushing yards per game, and are No. 2 in yards allowed per carry at 2.5.

They've yet to face a ground game or even – despite the injuries – an offensive line near the caliber of Ohio State's, however. Jackson and Ryan Day are confident that Hinzman and Siereveld can get the job done.

“Those guys were there today, had a very good practice, a very spirited practice,” Day said Wednesday. “So I’m excited for those guys to get in there and have a great game. It’s a great opportunity for those guys now. They’ve both played a lot of football. We’ve won a lot of games with Carson at center, and Austin's played.”

Wary of the Weapons

Indiana's rushing attack is nothing to scoff at, but the combination of a ruthlessly efficient quarterback and a strong stable of wide receivers make the passing game the most dangerous portion of the Hoosiers' offense.

Former Ohio quarterback Kurtis Rourke has been one of the nation's most efficient quarterbacks, ranking second in the FBS for passing yards per attempt (10.1) and sixth in completion percentage (71.8). He's thrown 21 touchdowns with only four interceptions.

The Hoosiers have four wideouts with at least 340 receiving yards this campaign, led by Elijah Sarratt's 38 receptions for 685 yards and six touchdowns. Omar Cooper Jr. is a big-play magnet, averaging 22 yards per reception with 24 catches for 527 yards and five scores. Indiana ranks third nationally and first in the Big Ten in yards per pass attempt at 9.9.

Ohio State's cornerbacks, especially Denzel Burke, fell flat in the Buckeyes' last game against a passing attack this good at Oregon. For its best chance at victory, OSU needs to slow down Indiana's weaponry. Nickel Jordan Hancock and safeties Caleb Downs and Lathan Ransom have been elite most, if not all season, but it's great efforts from Burke and Davison Igbinosun that will be crucial.

RELATED Buckeyes Need Best From BIA Against Indiana

Generate Disruption

One way to ensure Rourke isn't finding his receivers downfield is if he's lying on his back.

Ohio State could use some chaos in the Indiana backfield from its defensive line. The Buckeyes are tied for 13th with three sacks per game nationally, and tied for 27th with 6.7 TFLs per contest. Part of the re-engineering of their defense that occurred after a zero-sack outing against the Ducks was a mixture of more pressures and stunts to get after quarterbacks better.

It paid dividends at Penn State, especially in the second half. The Buckeyes collected four sacks with 15 total pressures of Drew Allar, per Pro Football Focus. JT Tuimoloau has five sacks this season while Jack Sawyer has three, though blitzes have found more success in recent weeks for OSU, too, as Sonny Styles has three sacks in his last three games.

Indiana's offensive line has also played quite well this year. Led by a seasoned tackle combo of Carter Smith and Trey Wedig, a Wisconsin transfer, the Hoosiers have only allowed 11 sacks this year, tied for the second-fewest in the Big Ten behind the Nittany Lions. IU does rank just 54th nationally in yards per carry at 4.7.

Due to the lack of premier defense they've played and their own offensive efficiency, Indiana hasn't dealt with a ton of disruption in its backfield this year. It's up to Sawyer, Tuimoloau, Tyleik Williams and company to take the Hoosiers out of that comfort zone.

Watch Out for These Guys

Indiana LB Aiden Fisher

Aiden Fisher has emerged as one of the best linebackers in the Big Ten. (Credit: Jacob Musselman-Imagn Images)

Patrolling behind Indiana's vaunted defensive line is one of the conference's premier linebackers. Fisher has collected 98 tackles, 3.5 TFLs, 1.5 sacks and three pass breakups in 2024. He's fresh off a 14-tackle outing in the Hoosiers' 20-15 win over Michigan on Nov. 9.

Indiana WR Elijah Sarratt

The Hoosiers' receiving leader in all three categories has shown he can post big performances. He has three 100-yard receiving games this season and the chemistry between him and Rourke, particularly on back-shoulder throws, makes him someone Ohio State will need to identify on every down.

Ohio State QB Will Howard

Howard had a huge outing at Oregon but had two costly turnovers in the first half at Penn State, though he did enough to win the game in the second half. The former Kansas State signal caller came to Ohio State to play in games like these, and he's been excellent overall this season, second nationally completing 72.9% of his passes for 2,484 yards and 24 touchdowns with five interceptions. 

Game Week Talk

“We get to do this at home. And so let's make it a great weekend. Let's make it the loudest Ohio Stadium's ever been.”– Ryan Day

Ohio State's first two top-five tilts were both on the road. There have been some sleepy environments for a lot of noon games in the Shoe this year, but the Buckeyes have made a big social media push to get the stadium rocking as two marquee opponents close their home slate.

MAKE IT THE LOUDEST STADIUM IN COLLEGE FOOTBALL SATURDAY pic.twitter.com/DhyUKn6DdJ

— Ohio State Football (@OhioStateFB) November 20, 2024

“Obviously, an excellent football team. One of the favorites to win the national championship. A lot of great players. Extremely well-coached.”– Curt Cignetti on Ohio State

The often quotable Indiana head coach Curt Cignetti kept things pretty close to the vest this week, staying respectful of his opponent. This is one of the biggest regular-season games in Hoosier history, thus he knows the challenge ahead.

“You have to be physical and violent with your hands through the route. They’re very good at (back-shoulder throws). It's tough to defend because of all the pushing and shoving that occurs and whether you're going to get a PI, but you really got to be physical back through the receiver and then violent at the catch point.”– Jim Knowles on defending back-shoulder throws

Stopping the back-shoulder passes downfield from Rourke to his wide receivers will be a key for Ohio State's defense on Saturday. Defensive coordinator Jim Knowles is emphasizing physicality without penalties in preparation.

Get Smart

• Ohio State has won 29 straight games against Indiana, its longest winning streak against any opponent. The Buckeyes have an 80-12-5 record against the Hoosiers all-time.
• This will be Ohio State’s third game of the season between two top-five teams, the most Ohio State has ever played in one year. It will be Indiana’s first game ever between two top-five teams as the Hoosiers have reached 10 wins for the first time in school history.
• ESPN’s College GameDay and FOX’s Big Noon Kickoff will both be in attendance for Saturday’s game. Ohio State has a 3-3 record in previous games where both pregame shows were in attendance, with all three wins coming over Penn State and all three losses coming to Michigan.
• Ohio State has six players from Indiana on its roster: Offensive linemen Josh Fryar, Ian Moore and Zen Michalski, defensive ends Caden Curry and Joshua Mickens and wide receiver Mylan Graham.
• Indiana has six players from Ohio on its roster: Starting left tackle Carter Smith (Powell), No. 3 linebacker Isaiah Jones (London) and reserve tight end Brody Foley (Cincinnati).
• Multiple Ohio State assistant coaches have ties to Indiana as offensive line coach Justin Frye played for the Hoosiers from 2002-06 and safeties coach Matt Guerrieri was Indiana’s co-defensive coordinator last year.

How It Plays Out

Line: Ohio State -12, O/U 51.5

Big games are won and lost in the trenches, and one really has to like Ohio State's odds if they get good play on the offensive and defensive lines. Pressure in Rourke's face will aid the Buckeyes' cornerbacks better than anything else, and the OL has to give Howard time to find his elite receivers.

Overall, despite all that Indiana has accomplished this year, it feels like there is a talent discrepancy in Ohio State's favor. Add in the fact that it's a home game and that the Buckeyes seem focused this November, it's easy to see why the staff at Eleven Warriors unanimously selected Ohio State in this one, with 12 of the 14 staffers having it as a multi-score win.

Eleven Warriors Staff Prediction
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