Ohio State football: 3 takeaways from win over Western Kentucky

After slipping in the Associated Press Poll two consecutive weeks, the Ohio State football team seemed to have turned the corner offensively on Saturday afternoon against the Western Kentucky Hilltoppers, winning 63-10 in front of 102,000-plus at Ohio Stadium.

After playing to a 14-10 score, with half of the second quarter remaining, the Ohio State offense woke up, scoring 28 points on 9 plays to finish the first half. They continued their scoring streak into the second half finishing the game on a 49-0 run.

The Ohio State defense was flying all around, and after they figured out the air raid offense a quarter and a half into the game, the Hilltoppers never saw the endzone again.

This was the most dominating complete game that the Buckeyes have played this season. Here are my three takeaways from the game against Western Kentucky:

1. The Ohio State passing game took another step forward

Earlier this week during his Tuesday press conference with the media, Ryan Day announced that Kyle McCord was going to be the starting quarterback moving forward. Whether it was the confidence that came from being named the starter, the extra reps as the starter, or a combination of both, it was clear that the Ohio State passing game took another step forward on Saturday.

Kyle McCord was in sync with his receivers most of Saturday afternoon finishing the game 20 of 24 passing for 318 yards and three touchdowns. The passing game looked elite and what Ohio State fans are used to seeing under former quarterback C.J. Stroud. But it wasn’t just the passing game that looked like it was much improved.

The offensive line was not only doing a good job in pass protection but was getting off of the ball in the run game as well. TreVeyon Henderson finished the game Saturday with 88 yards and a pair of touchdowns on 13 carries while Chip Trayanum once again ran strong with a touchdown and 56 carries on just five touches.

If Ohio State can get this kind of offensive output next week in South Bend, Indiana, they will come away with a big win over the Notre Dame Fighting Irish.

2. Marvin Harrison Jr. is unguardable in one-on-one coverage

Last week, it was reported by Reel Analytics that Marvin Harrison Jr. was recorded running 22 miles per hour during the game.

Harrison Jr. may not have run 22 mph on his career-long 75-yard touchdown pass in the second quarter from quarterback Kyle McCord, but it was clear at that point that no one on the Western Kentucky defense was going to be able to stop him.

Harrison Jr. finished the game with five receptions for 126 yards and a score. If by some miracle teams do happen to stop Harrison Jr. through double coverage, McCord has plenty of other talents to throw to.

Emeka Egbuka had four snags, two of which were touchdowns, and tight end Cade Stover had five catches for 90 yards.

It has been made perfectly clear that all of the preseason hype Harrison Jr. was getting by the local and national media is warranted. He is one of the best talents in all of college football.

3. Ohio State’s defensive line Is still not getting enough pressure

It’s hard to nitpick a 63-10 victory, but the defensive line is still having trouble getting to the quarterback without bringing additional rushers from the linebackers or secondary. As the offense came alive, so did the defense, who caused four turnovers Saturday afternoon, including a fumble recovery in the endzone by defensive tackle Tyleik Williams. However, the Buckeyes only recorded two sacks on the afternoon.

As Ohio State turns its attention to Notre Dame this week, there will be a lot of focus placed on the defensive line’s inability to get home against the quarterback. Ohio State’s sack totals through three games are not impressive. They have totaled only five sacks this season, two of which came in mop-up duty late in the game.

The other three sacks have come from the defensive tackles and a linebacker on a blitz. The Buckeyes are going to need their two starting five-star defensive ends to step up and start to get more pressure at some point. J.T. Tuimoloau and Jack Sawyer have yet to get that elusive sack and at some point, they are going to start to press.

Next week against Notre Dame, and it’s the kind of game where Tuimoloau and Sawyer need to wreak havoc. If they are ever going to reach their recruiting ranking expectations, this is the game to do it in.