Ohio State football vs. Penn State: Offensive grades

The Ohio State football team had their first real scare since the season-opener on Saturday. They were still able to beat Penn State by double-digits. This is despite having an offense that sputtered most of the first half. Here is how each unit grades out in Happy Valley.

This was not C.J. Stroud’s finest game. In the first half, he had several issues with the play clock. He was not aware that it was ticking down and it cost them yards and a couple of timeouts. The last play of the half, he got sacked instead of throwing the ball away quickly to still give the Buckeyes a chance to make a field goal.

Yet, Stroud still finished 26/33 for 354 yards and a touchdown. He did have some really good throws in the second half, including a beautiful throw to Emeka Egbuka in the fourth quarter that set up a touchdown. He also didn’t turn the ball over for the first time in a month.

Stroud could have been better but he could have been worse. Ryan Day did him no favors with the playcalling.

Ohio State struggled to run the ball for the second straight week. It’s starting to become a troubling trend as the season winds down. They only ran for 98 yards as a team and the running backs combined for just 87. Miyan Williams did get hurt, so that’s part of it. He did score before he left too.

TreVeyon Henderson did have two touchdowns, including a 41-yard scamper in the fourth quarter that opened the floodgates for the Buckeyes. That was the play that helped seal the game for the Ohio State football team. Even so, he has to run the ball better.

The offensive line was not very good in this game. They didn’t open up any holes in the run game and they allowed two sacks too. This is the second straight week that the Buckeyes have struggled up front. It’s something that needs to be fixed immediately.

The only reason the grade is even this high is because Cade Stove caught the only touchdown pass for Ohio State. He finished with 6 catches for 78 yards and that touchdown, but he also kept whiffing on blocks on wide receiver screens. He was a mixed bag. Mitch Rossi had a catch for 16 yards, but he’s a fullback/tight end hybrid.

Marvin Harrison Jr. showed why he might be the best receiver in the country. He had 10 catches for 185 yards and was the best offensive player for the Buckeyes. If you throw it in his direction, he’s going to catch it. Emeka Egbuka had 6 catches for 53 yards and Julian Fleming had just two catches. Harrison Jr. is why this grade is so high.

The Ohio State football team needs to get their offense going sooner. They have some issues in the running game they need to fix ASAP.