MY THOUGHTS.....Minnesota

Despite being outplayed for much of the game by an inspired bunch of Golden Gophers, the Ohio State Buckeyes pulled away in the second half to defeat Minnesota 30-14.  

For the first half, and for part of the third quarter, Minnesota clearly had the upper hand on the line of scrimmage on both offense and defense.  Ohio State was held under 100 yard rushing for only the third time since Urban Meyer became coach.  Neither Mike Weber nor J.K. Dobbins could get on track.  Part of this was due to the fact the Minnesota defense was known to be stout against the run and many times they loaded the box.  But, I also noticed, in particular, the right side of the offensive line with Demetrious Knox and Isaiah Prince, fail to get any consistent push off the ball.  Prince had the worst game of his career.  Time after time, I saw him get pushed back, in addition to the two or three false start penalties called against him.  To add to the offensive line woes, LT Thayer Munford twisted an ankle in the third quarter and had to leave the game, although he should be ready to go for next week.  With the Gophers selling out to stop the run, it enabled Dwayne Haskins to, once again, move the offense, and that he did, throwing for 412 yards.  In the long history of Ohio State football, there have been only three 400-yard passing games.  Dwayne Haskins has two of the three and he’s done it back-to-back.  K.J. Hill once again, was the top receiver, and his awesome one-handed grab and run for a touchdown in the second quarter, is highlight material.  As of late, whenever the Buckeyes have needed a big play, he has been the man to deliver.  Parris Campbell also had an outstanding day, catching eight balls for 56 yards.  So did Terry McLaurin, with three receptions for 55 yards and a touchdown.

The Ohio State defense, after making adjustments at halftime, played better and was able to get at least a stalemate along the line of scrimmage for the most part.  They forced stops when they had to; recording three take aways and shut out Minnesota in the second half.  Jordan Fuller led the way with 12 tackles and Pete Werner played well, getting 10, including 2.5 tackles for loss.  Justin Hilliard got his first career start and made the most of it, getting five tackles and two pass deflections.  Despite adjusting somewhat in the second half, the Ohio State secondary was surprisingly vulnerable to the slant route.  During the first half, when not under pressure, it seemed on every second or third down, Minnesota quarterback Zack Annestad would throw a slant right over the middle, most of time completing it for a first down.  Still, in the second half, the secondary seemed to defend better.  After struggling a bit against Indiana last week, they came back to allow 218 yards through the air, nearly 100 less than last week.  It was a vital improvement and one they need to carry forward.

Next week, Ohio State travels to Purdue.  West Lafayette has been a trap place for Ohio State teams in the past, as they have lost two of their last three visits to Purdue.  The running game, which has hit the skids, needs to reverse that trend, starting next week.  While Dwayne Haskins and his arm will keep Ohio State in any game, sooner or later, the lack of production on the ground will cost the Buckeyes a game.