New OL alignment shows Ohio State is far from determining the starting lineup

After the first day of practice, the Ohio State Buckeyes had an offensive line that had Austin Siereveld at right guard and Ian Moore at left tackle. After spring practice, that was the starting lineup most people thought the Buckeyes would use. Moore had a great spring and really pushed for that starting role.

Ryan Day mentioned during Big Ten Media Day that he wanted to have the offensive line solidified by the eighth, ninth, or 10th day of practice. On day two, he decided to roll out a completely different starting lineup, showing that the line is far from settled.

Ohio State's starting offensive line is far from settled early in camp

On the second day of practice, the Buckeyes put Siereveld back at left tackle and rolled with Joshua Padilla at right guard. Siereveld started all of last season at left tackle after splitting time at both left guard and right guard in 2024. Siereveld played pretty well for most of last year at that left tackle spot.

However, missing the spring game has opened up the door for him to be moved back to guard. It's clear that Moore would be the left tackle in that scenario, but that is clearly far from being decided. Padilla had a good spring and pushed Tegra Tshabola for the starting right guard spot late last year before getting hurt.

Luke Montgomery is locked in at the left guard position. Carson Hinzman will start at center. Phillip Daniels is the starter at right tackle for now, although he had some issues against Indiana and Miami last season. Still, it seems like he will be the Week 1 starter at that spot.

That leaves left tackle and right guard as the two spots in flux. Those two spots must be resolved early on in Fall camp so the full offense can be assessed before games start. The offensive line will need to be judged before Julian Sayin and the wide receivers can be fairly assessed.

Ohio State's title hopes could hinge on the offensive line

Had the offensive line not been a turnstile in the postseason, the Buckeyes might have won back-to-back national championships. Instead, Sayin was sacked 10 times in the final two games. That kept him from finding open receivers that he had down the field, stunting the offense.

Having a higher level of offensive line play could be the difference between the Buckeyes winning another title this year and flaming out. Tyler Bowen's coaching chops will be tested once and for all, as he has proven to be a solid recruiter. However, questions remain about whether he can develop linemen.

The Buckeyes will get a quick answer to their offensive line test in Week 2 in Austin. Texas will quickly let them know if they have the right combination or if they need to reconfigure. The key is to keep the guys playing well all the way to the end of the season in what will be a brutal road to the College Football Playoff.

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