Ohio State Football: Four biggest things to watch for in 2021

Good linebackers have always come through the Ohio State football program. The Buckeyes may have some good talent there, but no one has experience there right now. The entirety of the room has no starting experience at all. It’s quite concerning heading into this season.

I’m not expecting this group to be great. I’m watching to see if they can just be average. As long as they’re not terrible, the defensive line should be able to help them in the run game. The great defensive line also helps the linebackers in coverage as well.

Cody Simon and Teradja Mitchell look like the starters at linebacker, although Dallas Gant could take Simon’s spot. Whoever plays there just needs to make the solid plays. The Buckeyes don’t need anything spectacular from an inexperienced unit. They just can’t make dumb plays that make them get beat.

I’d be very surprised if this group was horrible. I wouldn’t be shocked if they were in the bottom half of the Big Ten in terms of quality of play though. There are just so many unknowns with this unit right now and I truly don’t know what to expect as far as quality of play is concerned.

The final thing I’m looking for is perhaps the most obvious thing everyone wants to see.