Meet the potential new left tackle for the Ohio State football team

If you were immediately familiar with who replaced starting left tackle Josh Simmons when he went down with an injury during Ohio State’s battle with Oregon Saturday night, you’re probably someone who closely follows the program. But for those who are not, I’m sure the name Zen Michalski had a lot of Buckeye fans saying, “Wait…WHO??!!”  Here’s a look at who is probably going to be the starting left tackle for the remainder of the season.

The backstory

Michalski was a part of the Buckeyes’ 2021 recruiting class and was one of those who enrolled early. The Floyds Knobs, Indiana native was the nation’s 21st-ranked offensive tackle and number four player in Indiana. A lot of Power 5 schools got in on his recruitment late because he went through an unreal growth spurt by adding seven inches and 100 pounds during his high school career.

He was definitely considered far more a project than a finished product. He was committed to Louisville before flipping to Ohio State a few weeks after receiving their offer. As a true freshman, he played in one game before redshirting.

In 2022 and 2023, he played in every game as one of those faceless (to the fans) linemen who trundle onto the field for field goals and extra points or mop-up duty with the second or third-team offense when the Buckeyes have a game well in hand.

Up until Saturday night, this season had been much of the same for him with one exception. He had earned his way onto the two-deep depth chart and was one play away from being pressed into meaningful playing time. Well, as we know, that one play happened.

Stepping into the spotlight

Michalski did not step into an easy situation for the first meaningful playing time of his college career. A night game on national TV in one of the toughest stadiums in the country to play, when your team is in a dogfight with the nation’s third-ranked team who has a very active and athletic defensive line. To say I was skeptical of how he’d perform is an understatement. To say I was thrilled with his performance is another understatement.

There were times Michalski looked like he was battling for all he was worth and hanging on for dear life, but he got the job done. His career-high 46 snaps may not have been all-star level, but he certainly wasn’t a liability. This was a performance that gives hope and that hope is he will improve at a faster rate now that he will be preparing to play as a starter.

With Simmons’ injury looking to be season-ending, the Buckeyes need someone who is going to be solid in protecting Will Howard’s blind side. We may have just a small sample, but Michalski looks capable of being that solid someone.

Zen Michalski is a redshirt junior who is a three-time OSU Scholar-Athlete and two-time Academic All-Big Ten.