SCOUTING REPORT ON OHIO STATE (10-2, 8-1 BIG TEN)
Wisconsin and Ohio State square off for the Big Ten championship at 7:17 p.m. Saturday at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis.
Offense
Quarterback J.T. Barrett, who had to leave the Michigan game because of problems with his right knee, is expected to be ready to face Wisconsin. Barrett finished the regular season No. 1 in the Big Ten in pass efficiency with 33 touchdown passes and seven interceptions, a completion rate of 66.2% and 227.3 passing yards per game. He is also second on the team in rushing with 672 yards and nine touchdowns. Barrett is capable of brilliance as he showed last season when he was responsible for 318 of Ohio State’s 411 yards in the Buckeyes’ 30-23 overtime victory over UW.
However, he sometimes struggles to locate open receivers and can freeze in the pocket. He was out of sync in losses to Oklahoma and Iowa this season. Barrett was just 19 of 35 for 183 yards with one interception in the 31-16 loss to Oklahoma. He missed open receivers and was sacked three times, and after the loss fans were calling for his benching.
Then one week after completing 33 of 39 passes for 328 yards and four touchdowns in a 39-38 victory over Penn State, Barrett looked like a raw freshman at Iowa. His first pass was intercepted and returned for a touchdown and Barrett finished the day with four interceptions in the 55-24 loss. Despite Barrett’s skill, the Buckeyes are at their best when tailbacks J.K. Dobbins and Mike Weber are fed.
Ohio State’s line is more consistent than last season and Dobbins (1,190 yards, 7.3-yard average and seven TDs) and Weber (602-6.5-10) are both capable of starting for most teams in the Big Ten. The Buckeyes, who led the Big Ten in scoring (43.8 points per game) and total offense (529.8 yards per game), are at their best when they establish the tailback running the ball.
Ohio State’s receivers aren’t gamebreakers but the quarterbacks have plenty of options.
The top six wide receivers play and, led by redshirt sophomore K.J. Hill with 51 catches, all six have at least 17 catches. Hill had 12 catches for 102 yards against Penn State and had receptions of 29 and 24 yards to extend drives in the victory over Michigan.
Hill leads the team in receptions. Parris Campbell leads the team in receiving yards (530) and is second in receptions (38). Johnnie Dixon has only 17 receptions but leads the team in receiving touchdowns (eight). Tight end Marcus Baugh has five touchdown catches.
Defense
Led by an athletic defensive line, the unit is built on speed. Nineteen players have at least two tackles for loss, led by end Nick Bosa with 121⁄2.
The Buckeyes are at their best when the staff deploys four ends in obvious passing situations. Bosa (six sacks), Sam Hubbard (41⁄2 sacks, 10 tackles for loss) and Tyquan Lewis (five sacks) are the three players to watch in that scheme. Injuries have affected the linebacker corps, which also has struggled to cover fullbacks and tight ends. The unit has been vulnerable to play-action passes, which could help UW.
Iowa tight ends T.J. Hockenson and Noah Fant combined for nine catches for 125 yards and four touchdowns against the Buckeyes.
Chris Worley, Jerome Baker and Tuf Borland have anchored the unit in recent weeks. Baker leads the unit in tackles (51). Worley, who has missed three games because of a foot injury, has 49 tackles. Borland, the son of former UW player Kyle Borland, has 45 tackles. The Buckeyes had to replace three starters in the secondary and the unit needed time to develop.
Junior Denzel Ward is the top cornerback. He broke up two passes and recorded personal-high marks in solo tackles (seven) and total tackles (eight) in the victory over Michigan. Safety Damon Webb, with 25 consecutive starts, is the leader of the group. He has a team-high seven interceptions and fellow safety Jordan Fuller leads the team in tackles with 57.
Special teams
The Buckeyes always seem to find outstanding punters and redshirt freshman Drue Chrisman is the latest. The 6foot-3, 212-pounder averages 43.7 yards per punt and has placed 20 of his 39 punts inside the opponent’s 20-yard line. He has 11 punts of 50 yards or longer. The Buckeyes are 17th nationally in net punting with a 40.7 average. Campbell averages 36.6 yards on kickoff returns so UW would be wise to keep the ball out of his hands. Kicker Sean Nuernberger has made 14 of 17 field-goal attempts. His longest kick was 43 yards against Michigan. He also missed a 44-yarder in the game and is just 1 of 3 from 40 or longer.