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Ohio State football: The Buckeyes form of winning is scary for the rest of college football

By Jacob Rhymer

Sep 17, 2022; Columbus, Ohio, USA; Ohio State Buckeyes quarterback C.J. Stroud (7) calls a play during the first half of the NCAA Division I football game against the Toledo Rockets at Ohio Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Adam Cairns-The Columbus DispatchNcaa Football Toledo Rockets At Ohio State Buckeyes
Sep 17, 2022; Columbus, Ohio, USA; Ohio State Buckeyes quarterback C.J. Stroud (7) calls a play during the first half of the NCAA Division I football game against the Toledo Rockets at Ohio Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Adam Cairns-The Columbus DispatchNcaa Football Toledo Rockets At Ohio State Buckeyes /
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The Ohio State football team has dominated their opponents through the first 4 weeks of the college football season. The Buckeyes are 4-0 on the season, other than Notre Dame, the wins so far have been in blowout fashion. The way that the Buckeyes have been winning so far is scary for the rest of college football.

The Buckeyes’ offense picked up right where they left off last year, scoring a lot of points in a frenzy. If you blink you’ll miss them walking into the end-zone, that’s how fast this offense can get down the field and punch it in for six. You may think that this is obviously a normal thing for Ohio State to do, but the crazy part is that the offense hasn’t been fully healthy at all so far this season.

Their most lethal weapon on offense, Jaxon Smith-Njigba, hasn’t been 100% since he got injured in the Notre Dame game. Ryan Day was thinking Smith-Njigba would be fully ready to go against Wisconsin, but now he is listed as day-to-day with no timetable for a return.

Even with the offense a little banged up, Stroud and company have been producing ridiculous numbers. Marvin Harrison Jr. and Emeka Egbuka have been tremendous in the passing game with Smith-Njigba going down and Fleming injured coming into the season. Fleming is now back and has been playing really well. Once Smith-Njigba can get back on the field this offense just gets even tougher to stop.

The biggest question surrounding this Ohio State football team coming into the 2022 season was how Jim Knowles would turn this defense around. Despite some lapses in the secondary, I think the defense has been incredible. Tommy Eichenberg has been the nucleus of the defense and has been playing like the best linebacker in America. However, much like the offense, the defense has been missing a lot of key players due to injury as well.

The Buckeyes only had three scholarship corners available last week in the win over Wisconsin. Denzel Burke, Cameron Brown, and Jordan Hancock were all sidelined due to injuries. They were also missing safety Lathan Ransom, who didn’t appear on the status report prior to the game.

The longer these guys are out, the thinner it leaves the Buckeyes’ secondary. Having the top three corners and safety out just goes to show how much better this defense can be.

The Buckeyes need to have a good week in preparation for Rutgers. There is optimism from Ryan Day that some of the guys in the secondary who missed time last week will be available. The status of Smith-Njigba for Week 5 is still uncertain. Once this team is back to full strength offensively and defensively, the college football landscape will be put on notice.

Next. Ohio State football: C.J. Stroud top QB on draft boards. dark

Ohio State opens as a gargantuan 40-point favorite over Rutgers according to FanDuel. Their health and depth will determine if they cover the spread against the Scarlet Knights on Saturday.

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