Ohio State Football: Three takeaways from Michigan State win

3. The Buckeye defense was dominant in every phase

Ryan Day’s offense certainly had another memorable day as seen by the wideouts and Stroud’s outstanding days. However, what truly made this game vs. MSU so dominant was the Bucks’ defensive performance.

The Silver Bullets looked stifling, imposing their will in every area of the game holding MSU to only 224 total yards and 3.8 yards per play. The defensive line dominated from start to finish. There was consistent penetration in the run game and the pass rush was relevant. The linebackers led by Tommy Eichenberg’s seven tackles did a good job of wrapping up and staying disciplined.

Kenneth Walker, the Spartans’ standout running back, was held in check with only 25 rushing yards on six carries. Now, Walker got very few touches due to the insurmountable hole MSU was in for almost the entire game. Still, the once Heisman candidate did not impact the game that much when he did get his touches.

Payton Thorne, the Spartan QB, could not get anything going with only 158 passing yards and a completion percentage under 40%. The aggressive game plan from Matt Barnes (the defense’s play-caller) had a lot to do with that. Ohio State was not afraid to blitz consistently and man coverage is slowly starting to be used more and more by the Bucks once again.

If the secondary can cover as they did against Michigan State, man coverage will work against nearly anyone. Denzel Burke was lockdown in another tough matchup against MSU’s Jayden Reed (2 catches for 28 yards). Cameron Brown was great in coverage again, and safety play was good from Ronnie Hickman, Kourt Williams, and Bryson Shaw.

This showing from the defense is very encouraging with The Game vs. TTUN coming next week. The Wolverines’ offense is somewhat similar to Michigan State’s. TTUN will rely heavily on the run game with their two good backs in Hassan Haskins and Blake Corum—Corum’s status will be something to watch this week as he deals with an ankle sprain. If the run can be stopped or limited, TTUN will become one-dimensional resorting to their passing game against Ohio State’s secondary that just looked fantastic vs. MSU.

This was the first all-around eye-popping game from the Ohio State defense. This unit continues to head in the right direction as they improve nearly every week. If the defense can even come close to this level of play in every game, Ohio State football has a great chance of winning their first national championship since 2014. It would be nice if Ohio State football finally got their respect and jumped Alabama to claim the No. 2 spot in Tuesday’s new rankings, as they should.

With one regular-season game remaining, the Buckeyes are rolling. Their national title goal is very much alive and looks quite realistic after beating Michigan State 56-7. If they can take care of business in the greatest rivalry in sports vs. TTUN, Ohio State football will be one game away from another appearance in the College Football Playoff.