Ohio State Football: 3 keys to beating Penn State
By Ryan Stano
Ohio State football must block downhill aggressively in the run game
The offensive line has been outstanding for the last few games. After starting out a bit rough at times, they have been excellent. That is especially true in the run game where it looks like they can run it wherever they want with whoever they want in the backfield.
Getting downhill has been a large part of that. All of the offensive linemen have done a great job of getting to that second level to open up holes for TreVeyon Henderson and the rest of the running backs. That has made their jobs a lot easier in the backfield.
Thayer Munford in particular has done a much better job of this than he was at the start of the year. Moving to guard, he had a hard time adjusting to a new position at first. Now he knows exactly what he’s doing and can take on defensive tackles and linebackers during run plays.
Penn State’s defense is fairly stout, but they can be exploited here. They are just 10th-best in the Big Ten at stopping the run. Henderson should have a field day, especially if he gets 15 or more carries. The Nittany Lions simply won’t have an answer for him.
The second key to the Buckeyes winning this game has to deal with how they approach the play-calling aspect of the game on the offensive side of the ball.