Snap Counts: Ohio State Rarely Rotates on Defensive Line, TreVeyon Henderson and Arvell Reese Play Season-High Snap Counts in Michigan Loss

Ohio State used only 52 players against Michigan, its lowest total of the season, as the Buckeyes relied as heavily on their starters as they have all year. Each of their primary 11 players on offense played at least 40 of the Buckeyes’ 62 offensive snaps against the Wolverines while nine of their 11 defensive starters played more than 50 of Ohio State’s 59 defensive snaps.

The lack of rotation was particularly striking on the defensive line, where all four of Ohio State’s starters played at least 52 snaps while Kayden McDonald was the only backup to play double-digit snaps. Ohio State’s running back rotation was also more one-sided than usual as TreVeyon Henderson played twice as many snaps as Quinshon Judkins, resulting in a season-high 44 snaps for Henderson, while Arvell Reese played a career-high 36 snaps as the Buckeyes used a 4-3 defense rather than their typical base formation of a 4-2-5 for most of the game.

Our full breakdown of how many snaps each Buckeye played in Ohio State’s 13-10 loss to the Wolverines, using data from Pro Football Focus’ premium statistics, can be found below. (Note: Special teams data for The Game had not been made available by PFF as of Sunday night. This article will be updated with Ohio State’s special teams snap counts when those numbers become available.)

Quarterbacks

Will Howard: 61
Devin Brown: 1

While Howard was briefly knocked out of the game in the second quarter after taking a hit to the head that required a trip to the medical tent, he returned to the game following a Michigan timeout after missing only one play. He played every snap the rest of the game but finished with a season-low 175 passing yards as he completed only 19 of 33 passing attempts with one touchdown and two interceptions while he ran the ball four times for 10 combined yards.

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Brown took Howard’s place for the one play he had to miss, a 4th-and-1 play on which Ohio State lined up as if Brown was going to run a quarterback sneak but instead handed the ball off to Quinshon Judkins, who ran for a 10-yard gain.

Running Backs

TreVeyon Henderson: 44
Quinshon Judkins: 22

Henderson played his highest snap count of the season while Judkins played his second-lowest as Henderson played exactly twice as many plays as his counterpart. Despite that, Judkins was still Ohio State’s leading rusher against Michigan – though neither had any consistent success running the ball – as he gained 46 yards on 12 carries while Henderson ran for just 21 yards on 10 carries, though he added two catches for 27 yards.

Wide Receivers

Jeremiah Smith: 60
Carnell Tate: 58
Emeka Egbuka: 56
Brandon Inniss: 6
David Adolph: Special teams only
Jayden Ballard: Special teams only

Ohio State’s three starters played nearly every snap at wide receiver for the second game in a row. Smith was on the field for all but two of Ohio State’s 62 offensive snaps while Tate was on the field for all but four and Egbuka was in the game for all but six. Inniss played most of his snaps in four-receiver formations as he saw only single-digit snaps on offense for a second straight game.

Tate led all Buckeyes with six receptions for 58 yards against Michigan while Smith had five catches for 35 yards and a touchdown and Egbuka had four receptions for 51 yards.

Tight Ends

Gee Scott Jr.: 40
Will Kacmarek: 20
Bennett Christian: 4
Patrick Gurd: Special teams only
Jelani Thurman: Special teams only

Kacmarek played his highest snap count since returning from injury as he started the game in place of Scott, though Scott still played twice as many snaps as Kacmarek over the course of the contest. Christian played his lowest snap count of the season against Michigan as he played only in two-tight end packages, while Thurman played zero snaps on offense for the first time all season.

Offensive Linemen

Donovan Jackson: 62
Austin Siereveld: 62
Carson Hinzman: 62
Tegra Tshabola: 62
Josh Fryar: 62
George Fitzpatrick: Special teams only
Luke Montgomery: Special teams only
Joshua Padilla: Special teams only

While Ohio State’s offensive line struggled against Michigan, the Buckeyes used the same front five for the entire game – Jackson at left tackle, Siereveld at left guard, Hinzman at center, Tshabola at right guard and Fryar at right tackle – as Josh Simmons’ and Seth McLaughlin’s season-ending injuries left them with limited options up front.

Defensive Ends

JT Tuimoloau: 53
Jack Sawyer: 52
Kenyatta Jackson Jr.: 7
Caden Curry: 3
Mitchell Melton: 3

Jackson and Curry played single-digit snap counts for the first time all year as Ohio State relied almost entirely on the starting defensive end tandem of Sawyer and Tuimoloau.

Sawyer recorded four tackles and made Ohio State’s best play of the game with an interception on the goal line, while Tuimoloau made three tackles, but the lack of rotation may have played a part in Ohio State’s struggles to get off the field in the fourth quarter – when the Buckeyes allowed Michigan to convert five third downs – as the defensive line didn’t play at its best on Michigan’s last two drives outside of Sawyer’s interception.

Defensive Tackles

Ty Hamilton: 53
Tyleik Williams: 53
Kayden McDonald: 13
Eddrick Houston: 2
Hero Kanu: 1

Ohio State didn’t rotate much at defensive tackle against Michigan either as Williams and Hamilton were each on the field for all but six of the Buckeyes’ defensive snaps. Both players tied their season-highs in tackles as Williams recorded seven tackles while Hamilton notched five.

McDonald played most of his snaps near the goal line as the Buckeyes put him in the game as a fifth defensive lineman in between Hamilton and Williams. He was the only backup defensive tackle to see playing time of significance against Michigan as Houston got in the game for just two defensive plays while Kanu got in for just one.

Linebackers

Cody Simon: 59
Sonny Styles: 59
Arvell Reese: 36
C.J. Hicks: 4
Payton Pierce: Special teams only
Gabe Powers: Special teams only
Joey Velazquez: Special teams only

Reese played a career-high 36 snaps as Ohio State had three linebackers on the field for a majority of defensive plays against Michigan. The Mike linebacker in the Buckeyes’ 4-3 defense, Reese tied his career-high with seven tackles against the Wolverines.

Simon and Styles were both on the field for every defensive play for the second game in a row. Simon recorded nine tackles with a pass breakup while Styles tallied five tackles. Hicks played all four of his snaps in goal-line situations where the Buckeyes had four linebackers on the field to stop the run.

Cornerbacks

Davison Igbinosun: 51
Denzel Burke: 42
Jordan Hancock: 20
Jermaine Mathews Jr.: 16
Lorenzo Styles Jr.: 4

Ohio State continued to rotate at outside cornerback against Michigan, though not quite as much as it had in its last three games, as Mathews rotated in on multiple drives – primarily in place of Burke, including some snaps in the fourth quarter – for a total of 16 plays. As a result, Burke played the fewest snaps of any defensive starter except Reese, though he still recorded four tackles.

Hancock tied his second-lowest snap count of the season as the Buckeyes had only four defensive backs on the field for a majority of plays in The Game. Ohio State brought Styles into the game as a sixth defensive back for four third-down plays on which the Buckeyes had only one defensive tackle on the field.

Safeties

Caleb Downs: 59
Lathan Ransom: 59
Malik Hartford: Special teams only
Jaylen McClain: Special teams only

For the third game this season (Oregon and Penn State), Downs and Ransom were the only safeties to play any snaps as both of them were on the field for all 59 of Ohio State’s defensive plays against the Wolverines. Downs led Ohio State with a season-high 11 tackles and recorded his first interception as a Buckeye while Ransom recorded nine tackles.