Ohio State dominated Oregon and Pro Football Focus took notice of some Buckeye youngsters and established stars.
Freshmen Jeremiah Smith and Eddrick Houston earned the site's highest grades in Ohio State's 41-21 blowout victory over Oregon in the Rose Bowl, which also served as a quarterfinal for the College Football Playoff. Tyleik Williams, Caleb Downs and Quinshon Judkins were among the other Buckeyes who earned high marks from PFF.
| ELITE | GOOD | ABOVE AVG. | AVG. | BELOW AVG. | POOR | VERY POOR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 90-100 | 80-89 | 70-79 | 60-69 | 50-59 | 40-49 | Below 40 |
While we all have our own opinions on who Ohio State’s best and worst players were against the Ducks, we compiled the PFF grades for every player from the Rose Bowl below. We start by highlighting the Buckeyes who received the five best grades and the five worst grades, excluding those who played fewer than 10 snaps.
The Top Five
1. WR Jeremiah Smith (94.5)
For the first time this season, Smith earned the highest grade among the Buckeyes. In fact, Smith's offensive grade of 94.5 is the highest for any wide receiver in a playoff game since PFF began grading college football players.
Smith finished the game with a program record 187 receiving yards for a freshman, and his two touchdowns set the Big Ten's freshman record for touchdowns in a season at 14. His receiving grade of 93.2 against Oregon is also the highest of any player during this year's postseason.
Legendary pic.twitter.com/G4Iov9EWO4
— Jeremiah Smith (@Jermiah_Smith1) January 3, 2025
2. DT Eddrick Houston (79.3)
What a difference a week makes. Last game, Houston's grades of 21.5 in tackling and 52.2 in run defense were the lowest on the team against Tennessee. In the Rose Bowl, Houston had a career-high four quarterback pressures and was Ohio State's highest-graded defensive player.
This marks the first time two Ohio State freshmen earned the team's two highest grades for a game this season.
3. DT Tyleik Williams (77.0)
Williams' name appears in the top five for the fourth time this season. This is also the third time this season for two defensive tackles to make the top five during the same week. Williams was one of the two DTs each time this occurred.
4. S Caleb Downs (75.5)
Downs graded out with a team-high 81.4 in tackling in the Rose Bowl and broke up three passes, a career-high.
5. RB Quinshon Judkins (75.3)
Judkins' grade of 75.3 was the third-highest among running backs in the Big Ten this postseason. The one-two punch of Judkins and TreVeyon Henderson has been dominant lately, as the dynamic backs have made the top five in six of the last seven games.
| 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) |
| Nebraska | WR Carnell Tate (80.7) | OT Josh Fryar (77.7) | CB Jordan Hancock (76.5) | TE Bennett Christian (75.0) | G Donovan Jackson (74.5) |
| PSU | CB Davison Igbinosun (78.0) | RB TreVeyon Henderson (77.9) | LB Cody Simon (76.9) | DE JT Tuimoloau (74.6) | QB Will Howard (74.3) |
| Purdue | DE JT Tuimoloau (91.7) | S Lathan Ransom (90.1) | WR Jeremiah Smith (80.6) | QB Will Howard (80.4) | RB TreVeyon Henderson (78.7) |
| Northwestern | DE Jack Sawyer (91.8) | QB Will Howard (90.5) | LB Cody Simon (82.2) | RB Quinshon Judkins (79.7) | LB Sonny Styles (77.6) |
| Indiana | QB Will Howard (85.7) | WR Emeka Egbuka (85.4) | LB Cody Simon (81.4) | S Lathan Ransom (75.2) | RB TreVeyon Henderson (74.9) |
| Michigan | LB Arvell Reese (91.2) | DE Jack Sawyer (88.6) | DT Kayden McDonald (80.6) | S Caleb Downs (76.1) | DT Tyleik Williams (74.2) |
| Tennessee | DE JT Tuimolau (88.3) | RB TreVeyon Henderson (85.6) | QB Will Howard (84.9 | DE Jack Sawyer (79.4) | WR Jeremiah Smith (77.9) |
| Oregon | WR Jeremiah Smith (94.5) | DT Eddrick Houston (79.3) | DT Tyleik Williams (77.0) | S Caleb Downs (75.5) | RB Quinshon Judkins (75.3) |
| *Egbuka and McLaughlin tied for 4th | |||||
The Bottom Five
This week, four of the five players in the bottom five are offensive linemen. This might not pass the eye test as the offensive line did not allow a sack and Ohio State finished the game with 181 rushing yards. However, most of those yards were picked up outside the tackles as the Buckeyes only rushed for 28 yards between the tackles, according to PFF.
1. C Carson Hinzman (45.1)
Hinzman earned the lowest overall offensive grade (45.1) and lowest pass-blocking grade (32.6.) for any Buckeye against Oregon. This is the fourth consecutive game Hinzman has graded below 60 since he moved back to center to replace the injured Seth McLaughlin. He's also been the lowest-graded player for a team-high third time.
2. TE Will Kacmarek (47.9)
Ohio State's lowest passing grade of 51.1 against Oregon belonged to Kacmarek. With an overall grade of 47.9, it is his second-lowest of the season with 47.4 against Michigan State in Week 4 being his worst.
3. RT Josh Fryar (49.1)
Fryar is among Ohio State’s five lowest-graded Buckeyes for a game for the first time since they played Oregon in the regular season. The good news for Fryar is Ohio State won't be playing the Ducks again. The bad news is he had a team-low grade of 46.7 in run blocking in the Rose Bowl.
4. G Austin Siereveld (52.2)
Siereveld is in the bottom five for the second time in three games. His pass-blocking grade of 33.2 was the second worst on the team.
5. RG Tegra Tshabola (52.3)
Tshabola is the fourth offensive lineman to make the bottom five this week. He had the third-worst grades in pass-blocking and run-blocking on the team against Oregon, which put him in the bottom five for the fifth time this season.
| GAME | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Akron | QB Devin Brown (52.3) | TE Jelani Thurman (53.1) | LB C.J. Hicks (54.0) | TE Gee Scott Jr. (54.5) | WR Brandon Inniss (54.8) |
| WMU | LB C.J. Hicks (45.5) | DE Caden Curry (54.5) | TE Gee Scott Jr. (55.7) | G Tegra Tshabola (56.2) | CB Denzel Burke (56.5) |
| Marshall | TE Gee Scott Jr. (44.8) | WR Bryson Rodgers (49.3) | OT Josh Fryar (52.6) | TE Jelani Thurman (54.5) | DE Caden Curry (55.2) |
| MSU | G Carson Hinzman (45.2) | QB Julian Sayin (46.6) | CB Davison Igbinosun (47.2) | TE Will Kacmarek (47.4) | OT Josh Fryar (48.7) |
| Iowa | TE Gee Scott Jr. (52.5) | LB Arvell Reese (55.1) | WR Bryson Rodgers (55.9) | DE Kenyatta Jackson Jr. (56.5) | TE Bennett Christian (58.6) |
| Oregon | OT Zen Michalski (37.6) | OT Josh Simmons (38.3) | G Tegra Tshabola (41.7) | CB Denzel Burke (41.8) | OT Josh Fryar (52.0) |
| Nebraska | LB Arvell Reese (41.4) | CB Lorenzo Styles Jr. (43.2) | DT Kayden McDonald (49.0) | G Tegra Tshabola (53.9) | G Austin Siereveld (55.2) |
| Penn State | TE Bennett Christian (30.4) | LT Donovan Jackson (39.4) | LB Arvell Reese (44.1) | WR Emeka Egbuka (51.5) | WR Carnell Tate (52.8) |
| Purdue | WR Brandon Inniss (29.7) | CB Lorenzo Styles Jr. (41.6) | CB Aaron Scott Jr. (44.4) | TE Gee Scott Jr. (44.9) | DT Tywone Malone (49.9) |
| Northwestern | CB Jermaine Mathews Jr. (45.8) | DT Ty Hamilton (47.2) | TE Jelani Thurman (53.8) | LB C.J. Hicks (54.4) | TE Bennett Christian (55.4) |
| Indiana | CB Davison Igbinosun (46.5) | TE Bennett Christian (47.1) | DE Kenyatta Jackson (47.7) | CB Jordan Hancock (50.0) | LT Donovan Jackson (52.3) |
| Michigan | C Carson Hinzman (42.3) | LB Sonny Styles (45.0) | G Tegra Tshabola (46.5) | G Austin Siereveld (49.2) | TE Gee Scott Jr. (50.4) |
| Tennessee | CB Aaron Scott Jr. (48.4) | DT Eddrick Houston (54.4) | C Carson Hinzman (55.7) | WR Carnell Tate (55.8) | DT Kayden McDonald (56.7) |
| Oregon | G Carson Hinzman (45.1) | TE Will Kacmarek (47.9) | T Josh Fryar (49.1) | G Austin Siereveld (52.2) | G Tegra Tshabola (52.3) |
Offensive Ratings By Position
Quarterbacks
Will Howard: 71.5 (57 snaps)
Running Backs
Quinshon Judkins: 75.3 (33 snaps)
TreVeyon Henderson: 74.1 (25 snaps)
Wide Receivers
Jeremiah Smith: 94.5 (36 snaps)
Emeka Egbuka: 67.0 (50 snaps)
Brandon Inniss: 63.3 (17 snaps)
Mylan Graham: 60.0 (2 snaps)
Bryson Rodgers: 58.2 (5 snaps)
Carnell Tate: 53.8 (33 snaps)
Tight Ends
Gee Scott Jr.: 65.5 (32 snaps)
Bennett Christian: 64.9 (15 snaps)
Will Kacmarek: 47.9 (37 snaps)
Offensive Line
Donovan Jackson: 68.8 (57 snaps)
Luke Montgomery: 56.8 (29 snaps)
George Fitzpatrick: 55.7 (2 snaps)
Tegra Tshabola: 52.3 (43 snaps)
Austin Siereveld: 52.2 (40 snaps)
Josh Fryar: 49.1 (57 snaps)
Carson Hinzman: 45.1 (57 snaps)
| QB | RB | WR | TE | OL | DE | DT | LB | CB | S |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Will Howard | Quinshon Judkins | Jeremiah Smith | Gee Scott Jr. | Donovan Jackson | Jack Sawyer | Eddrick Houston | Cody Simon | Denzel Burke | Caleb Downs |
| 71.5 | 75.3 | 94.5 | 65.5 | 68.8 | 72.2 | 79.3 | 71.6 | 70.4 | 75.5 |
Defensive Ratings by Position
Defensive Ends
Jack Sawyer: 72.2 (49 snaps)
Mitchell Melton: 69.4 (9 snaps)
JT Tuimoloau: 65.0 (54 snaps)
Caden Curry: 64.1 (10 snaps)
Kenyatta Jackson Jr.: 57.8 (22 snaps)
Defensive Tackles
Eddrick Houston: 79.3 (14 snaps)
Tyleik Williams: 77.0 (49 snaps)
Hero Kanu: 66.4 (8 snaps)
Tywone Malone Jr.: 59.5 (3 snaps)
Ty Hamilton: 57.8 (54 snaps)
Kayden McDonald: 56.8 (9 snaps)
Linebackers
Cody Simon: 71.6 (71 snaps)
Arvell Reese: 60.6 (2 snaps)
C.J. Hicks: 60.0 (1 snap)
Sonny Styles: 55.8 (71 snaps)
Cornerbacks
Denzel Burke: 70.4 (41 snaps)
Jermaine Mathews Jr.: 69.8 (40 snaps)
Davison Igbinosun: 65.0 (63 snaps)
Jordan Hancock: 64.1 (69 snaps)
Lorenzo Styles Jr.: 52.9 (9 snaps)
Safeties
Caleb Downs: 75.5 (72 snaps)
Lathan Ransom: 55.8 (72 snaps)
