Ohio State Offensive Line Shuffle Continues Against Indiana

Two Ohio State offensive linemen have suffered season-ending injuries this season, causing changes at several positions. Saturday, that group faces an Indiana defense that leads the Big Ten in sacks and tackles for loss.

Ohio State Buckeyes offensive linemen Tegra Tshabola (77), Seth McLaughlin (56), Carson Hinzman (75) and Donovan Jackson (74) line up against Penn State at Beaver Stadium. / Adam Cairns/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – Ohio State’s offensive line is forced to make a change yet again ahead of Saturday’s game against Indiana.

The Buckeyes lost starting left tackle Josh Simmons to a season-ending knee injury in their 32-31 loss at Oregon on Oct. 12. And while preparing for the Hoosiers, starting center Seth McLaughlin suffered a season-ending torn achilles during practice. 

As a result, Donovan Jackson is in line to make his fourth straight start at left tackle. Ohio State coach Ryan Day said Carson Hinzman will replace McLaughlin at center against Indiana.

That continues a string of rotations throughout the season. Out of the five offensive linemen set to start Saturday’s game, three have played at least two different positions this year, save for right guard Tegra Tshabola and right tackle Josh Fryar. 

Jackson shifted from left guard to left tackle. Austin Siereveld started the season at left guard, then flipped to right guard. He’ll move back to left guard against Indiana. Hinzman has rotated more than any Buckeye, going from right guard to center, then to left guard, and now back to center. 

Across 10 games, Ohio State ranks 79th in the nation with a 67.8 pass blocking grade, per Pro Football Focus (PFF), and 21st in run blocking, with a 71.3 grade A position group that relies heavily on chemistry and communication built over time, Ohio State’s offensive line will have to adjust on the fly against perhaps the toughest defense they’ve faced. 

Indiana enters Saturday’s game allowing just 13.8 points per game, seventh fewest in the nation. The Hoosiers are tied for 10th nationally with 31 sacks and tied for 12th with 73 tackles for loss, both of which lead the Big Ten.

Indiana has the nation’s second-highest overall grade for defense at 94.0, per PFF, behind only Ohio State. The Hoosiers also rank third in run defense grade, 93.5, and fourth in pass rush grade, 88.6

Leading that charge for the Hoosiers is defensive end Mikail Kamara, who’s tied for fourth in the nation with 14.5 tackles for loss and tied for seventh with 9.5 sacks. Among all edge rushers in the country, Kamara ranks sixth with a 90.1 grade for defense. 

Mikail Kamara (Indiana) ranks 2nd in the P4 in total pressures. Not the typical size profile for an edge but he's quick as hell pic.twitter.com/c37UY5vdwg

— James Foster (@NoFlagsFilm) October 30, 2024

But he’s not alone. An additional 10 Hoosiers have at least 3.5 tackles for loss, and 16 have joined Kamara in with at least one assisted sack. With other edge rushers like Lanell Carr Jr. and Jacob Mangum-Farrar, the Hoosiers have depth to keep each other fresh throughout the game. 

The pressure hasn’t just come off the edge, either. Indiana rotates interior defensive linemen James Carpenter, CJ West, Tyrique Tucker and Marcus Burris Jr. Carpenter leads that group with eight tackles for loss and four sacks, but each Hoosier has at least two tackles for loss and one sack.

Indiana’s defensive line – the ends and tackles – emulate the attacking mindset with which coach Curt Cignetti and defensive coordinator Bryant Haines want them to play. At James Madison, Cignetti and Haines’ defenses always ranked high in sacks and tackles for loss, and they’ve carried that over to Indiana. 

Along with Kamara, Carpenter and Tucker, other James Madison transfers like linebackers Aiden Fisher and Jailin Walker and cornerback D’Angelo Ponds have played key roles in turning around the Indiana football program.

“That whole JMU crew that came over really facilitated the culture change here, and they're all major contributors for the most part between the white lines,” Cignettis said. “And on defense you've got some real key guys playing at a high level.” 

The battle in the trenches between Indiana’s havoc-creating defense and Ohio State’s depleted offensive line is shaping up to be instrumental in deciding Saturday’s game. The Buckeyes, ranked No. 2 in the latest College Football Playoff rankings, are used to these types of games.

But for No. 5 Indiana, which has achieved its first 10-win season ever, Saturday’s noon ET game at Ohio Stadium is perhaps the program’s biggest game yet.

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