Ohio State has the best passing offense in the country, but no offense can survive being one-dimensional. They are 81st in FBS in rushing yards per attempt. The running back room has not been up to standard. There are some positions where Ohio State is lacking because they have not put resources into the position. Running back is not one of them.
There is plenty of time for things to change; Ohio State could still play as many as 12-13 more games this season, but last week's win over Iowa seemed to reveal a lot about how they feel about their running back rotation. Ja'Kobi Jackson led the team in rushing yards and had the Buckeyes' only rushing touchdown.
He got the first 3 carries of the game for Ohio State on designed run plays and was the lead back for most of the first half. Bo Jackson led the team in carries, most of which came in the second half. In Ohio State's final two drives as they put the game away, Ja'Kobi Jackson had 5 carries, Bo Jackson had 8, and Isaiah West had 4.
When JaKobi Jackson was brought in as a transfer from Florida this offseason, most assumed that he was brought in as a depth piece. Ohio State has been ahead of the curve in college football in its use of multiple running backs to get them through a long season, which peaked in 2024 with TreVeyon Henderson and Quinshon Judkins. Jackson averaged just 3.6 yards per carry on 27 carries for a bad Florida team last season. No one expected that he would be a co-starter for this Buckeye team.
Bo Jackson became Ohio State's top back early last season as a true freshman. After not playing a single snap in their season-opening win over Texas, he led the Buckeyes in carries in every game except for one the rest of the season. He rushed for 1,090 last year, becoming the 5th Buckeye to rush for 1,000 yards as a freshman.
After the season, there were rumors of Bo Jackson transferring out of Columbus. He never actually entered the portal and stayed with the Buckeyes for his sophomore season. While nothing has officially come out, one would be right to assume that Ohio State is paying good money in NIL resources for Bo Jackson, who is now essentially a co-starter at running back.
Isaiah West was one of the stories out of camp. He was the first-team running back on the first day of fall camp after being Ohio State's second running back as a true freshman a year ago. Now that we have actually gotten into the season, West has not been featured in the same way. He has just 22 carries in the first five games. He did run for a season-high 21 yards on 7 carries this past week against Iowa.
There is one other major player who could be a major piece of the OSU running back room who has yet to be fully unlocked. True freshman Legend Bey had an intense recruitment process, in which he flipped from Ohio State to Tennessee, and then back to Ohio State at the last minute. So far in his true freshman season, he has just 8 carries for 37 yards.
He also has 2 catches for 37 yards and a touchdown. He started the season as the kick returner, but he has only kept that job for the Ball State and Kent State games. Bey has not played a single snap since the Kent State game and is their most electric player.
The problem is, seemingly, if you read the tea leaves, that Bey has shown a lack of professionalism in the program. If that is the case, Ohio State is right for not playing him. If you relax the rules for someone, you are relaxing the rules for everyone. Bey can be a big piece of the Buckeyes winning in December and January, but he needs to get his stuff together in October and November for that to be a factor.
Ohio State fans expect everything to be elite all the time, as they should. The Buckeyes having an elite run game this season is probably out the window. For Ohio State to accomplish its goals, they don't necessarily need to have a great running game, because its passing game is currently the best in the country.
There will probably come a game where Ohio State will need to be able to run the ball to win in a playoff setting. The question is whether or not the run game can support the passing game to the point that Ohio State can overcome any kind of defense. If the Buckeyes were an NFL team, they'd be heavily criticised for how they've used their resources on this position, but if they can accomplish all of their goals, money doesn't matter all that much.
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