Ohio State Football: 3 bold predictions vs. Youngstown State

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BLOOMINGTON, INDIANA – SEPTEMBER 2: Jaylin Lucas #12 of the Indiana Hoosiers is tackled by Caden Curry #92 and Arvell Reese #20 of the Ohio State Buckeyes during the game at Memorial Stadium on September 2, 2023 in Bloomington, Indiana. (Photo by Michael Hickey/Getty Images) /

2. Saturday will be a sackapalooza

After finishing with only one sack against Indiana, which came in mop-up duty, the defensive line is going to be like sharks circling a boat and the menu is going to call for Penguin quarterbacks.

Indiana surprisingly ran a triple-option offense for most of the game and made sure to get the football out of the quarterback’s hand as quickly as possible when they did have to throw, which was often. This led to almost zero opportunities for the Buckeye defense to get home on the quarterback.

All offseason, we heard about how explosive and deep the defensive line was. They definitely bottled up the run against Indiana, allowing the Hoosiers to only rush for 71 yards despite their chosen method of attack against the Silver Bullets. Ohio State stayed disciplined and read their keys perfectly, not allowing the surprise Indiana offensive attack to startle them.

Next up is a Youngstown State team which will be running a more traditional offense. Buckeye linemen will be salivating before the snap against an inferior opponent on the offensive line.

On third-and-long plays, look for Ohio State defensive coordinator Jim Knowles to pin his ears back and dial up some aggressive looks. If ever there was a game to try some more aggressive plays out, it would be in this one.

I look for the Ohio State defense to finish with six sacks or more on Saturday.

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