Ohio State football roundup: 6 quick shots

The Ohio State football team got off to a fast start against the Florida Atlantic Owls and won 45-21 but things need cleaned up.

The first Ohio State football game is in the book.  It ended in a nice 45-21 win over Florida Atlantic.

Here are the quick shots:

Offense

Justin Fields had a solid debut passing for 229 yards and four touchdowns and rushing for 66 yards and a touchdown.  He gave Buckeye Nation a taste of his potential.

Seeing him play under center shows his versatility. That is a dimension the Buckeyes lacked under Urban Meyer.  Short-yardage areas probably won’t be an issue this season.

J.K. Dobbins played with determination finishing with 91 yards and a touchdown.  I liked his grit.

The offensive line struggling to own the line of scrimmage for several series once the Owls made adjustments is a little concerning.

It appeared that some of the play calling did not help the line.  Slowing the game down and moving away from tempo killed the rhythm.

The counterpunching in the second half showed resiliency.

Defense

Fast.  The defense was relentless limiting the Owls in the first half.

Lane Kiffin was able to exploit the holes in the second half, but that’s correctable because the running game was completely shut down.

Greg Mattison and Jeff Hafley’s influence are already apparent.  The speed of pursuit to the ball carrier looks sharp.

The entire unit shined, but Chase Young and Jeffrey Okudah were in full on beast mode.

Special Teams

Day is continuing the tradition set by Jim Tressel and Urban Meyer by dominating this part of the game.  All phases were strong.

Punt returns stood out.  Demario McCall and K.J. Hill looked good and made smart decisions.

Coaching

More from Ohio State Football

• Ohio State Football: How Denzel Burke has bounced back so far this season
• Ohio State Football rolling into form at the perfect time
• How Ohio State football has done historically versus new Big 12
• Ohio State Football: We need to see “Killer Ryan Day” at South Bend
• Ohio State Football vs. Notre Dame Prediction, Odds, Spread and Over/Under for College Football Week 4

Day’s team looked disciplined and focused early.  The offense lost its determination after building the huge lead.

That has to change with a tough Cincinnati team coming to the Shoe next Saturday.

Head Scratchers

Getting a delay of game penalty on a punt. Can’t let that happen.

Second quarter sloppiness.  Credit Florida Atlantic for making adjustments, but it seemed like the offense got complacent and loose with its execution.

Day and Kevin Wilson called too many plays that allowed unnecessary shots on Fields.   Those will add up.

Overall

1-0 with a chance to go to 2-0.  No one can argue with that.  Day and the coaches can work on cleaning up the mistakes and get better for the Bearcats next week.