Three reasons Ohio State football won’t win the National Championship
By Ryan Stano
Yesterday, we gave you three reasons why the Ohio State football team will win the National Championship this year. Today, we give you the glass-half-empty version of the Buckeyes’ season. They currently sit at 6-0 and are ranked second in the AP Poll.
The bye week does come at the perfect time for the Buckeyes because they are still nicked up. They have a lot of players who have been dealing with injuries throughout the season. They needed this week to get healthy and get some players back into a rhythm.
What I’m about to write is the absolute worst-case-scenario finish for this season. It’s not going to be anything absurd like Ohio State losing three regular-season games down the stretch or anything like that. These are reasonable concerns that could keep OSU from winning it all.
The first concern I have is something that I’ve heard fans concerned about as much as I am.
1. The cornerback play continues to falter for the Ohio State football team
The defense has made really big strides this year. The defensive line has improved in stopping the run. Tommy Eichenberg and Steele Chambers have been great at linebacker. Even the safeties have been much better for the most part, save Josh Proctor.
It’s the cornerbacks that have been surprisingly bad. It also hasn’t just been one guy. Denzel Burke had a rough start to the season, getting burned for deep completions and a few touchdowns as well. He is not playing at the All-American level that I thought he could this year.
Last week, Burke may have played his best game. Instead, it was Cam Brown who struggled. He got beat and got called for multiple pass interference calls on one drive. It was by far the worst game that Brown has played. When he got replaced by JK Johnson, Johnson got beat for a touchdown.
When Ohio State is playing an elite offense, like Alabama, Michigan, or USC, poor cornerback play can get you beat. Those teams can pick you apart on the outside if you can’t play man-coverage well. These corners are something to watch for the rest of the season. If they don’t get better, OSU’s national title dreams could end.
The next reason why Ohio State might not win it all has to deal with something they hope gets fixed this week.