The Ohio State football team's defense needs an overhaul

The Ohio State football team fell to Oregon on Saturday night. It was another example of the Buckeyes faltering in a big game under Ryan Day. Day knows he has to fix some things if he wants to stay employed after the season is over. One of those things is fixing the defense.

Heading into the season, the Ohio State Buckeyes were supposed to have one of the best defenses in the country. The secondary was supposed to be the best in the nation. Everyone expected the defensive line to get after the quarterback and get some sacks.

After the game against the Ducks, that facade was lifted. It's clear that the good stats that the Buckeyes accumulated on that side of the ball were a product of bad competition. Against an actual good team, the defense crapped down their leg and gave up 496 yards.

The Ohio State football team needs an overhaul on defense

Jim Knowles is in charge of this unit. For some reason, he hasn't been able to get this defense to play well in big games. Denzel Burke was burnt toast by the time this game was over. Oregon kept going after him over and over. Yet, there were no adjustments to protect him.

The lack of sacks and pressure is a massive problem. They didn't get a single sack on Saturday night. Dillon Gabriel was able to set up a picnic in the pocket every time he dropped back to pass. I thought J.T. Tuimoloau and Jack Sawyer were supposed to be great pass-rushers?

Not forcing any turnovers was an issue as well. Those two problems have been hanging over the Buckeyes all year long. Knowles needs to figure out how to get his best guys to actually play like his best guys. Even if Ohio State had won this game, the defense still would have needed an overhaul.

We know Ohio State no longer has an elite defense. This season is far from over. This loss doesn't take them out of the Big Ten race or the CFP. But if the defense doesn't get fixed, that unit will cost this team another game.