Can the Buckeye Defense Stop Trevor Lawrence on Friday?
The Ohio State Buckeyes believe in their abilities, and at the end of the day, that's literally the only thing that matters.
But as they are preparing to play the Clemson Tigers for the second straight year in the College Football Playoff, I think there is a magnifying glass on the Ohio State defense. In a game where two vaunted offenses are squaring off against each other, it's going to take a really impressive defensive effort to win Friday's game.
I think they're ready for the challenge.
The Buckeye defense has been more impressive this year than they seem to get credit for. The defensive line has been substantially better than advertised, considering most of the national preseason headlines revolved around replacing Chase Young and two other tackles that were drafted last April.
Led by Jonathon Cooper, this Ohio State defensive end rotation has had a balanced, consistent pass rush and they've been fabulous in the run game. And while the defensive tackles may have been the most unproven group coming into the year, all Haskell Garrett did was turn in an All-American campaign. Tommy Togiai has also played quite well.
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The strength of the Ohio State defense is the linebacking corps. Tuf Borland, Pete Werner and Baron Browning have been the top three tacklers this year and you don't need to see the stat sheet to know that. That group flies to the football as well as any group of linebackers the Buckeyes have had in recent memory and they've anchored the No. 7 rush defense in the nation. I also think they've done a nice job in pass coverage.
The secondary has been the most scrutinized position group on this year's team, and they've largely played well. Perhaps the expectations are too high, unfair even. They had three high-end NFL draft picks last year and their top returning player (Shaun Wade) was switching positions. Combined with such little time in spring ball, offseason workouts, preseason camp, plus without any non-conference games and three other games cancelled, they haven't had a ton of game reps to get in a real groove.
Marcus Hooker and Josh Proctor have had a few tough moments this year, and they'll need to play smart football against Clemson or else Trevor Lawrence could have a big day. Tigers' receivers Amari Rodgers and Cornell Powell are the real deal and both have had monster seasons. I also like Braden Galloway, although he hasn't made as much of an impact as Rodgers and Powell.
But the fact of the matter is the Buckeyes are about to play against a guy that is almost a lock to be the No. 1 overall pick in the upcoming NFL Draft and Lawrence has lost just once in his college career - last year to Joe Burrow and the LSU Tigers in the national championship game. Sevyn Banks, Marcus Williamson, Wade and the two aforementioned safeties must avoid giving up big plays over the top of the defense. While that's what the scheme of this defense is designed to do, it hasn't always worked out that way this year.
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On the plus side, the Silver Bullets have forced 16 takeaways in six games, which is awfully impressive. Only three other teams in the country had a better turnover margin per game than Ohio State (and one of them was Indiana, arguably the signature win on OSU's resume this year). Trevor Lawrence has only thrown four interceptions in his last 17 games, and all four of those have come in his last five contests. He hasn't thrown two picks in a game since the Louisville game last October. I think the Buckeyes will turn Lawrence over at least once on Friday.
This team is certainly capable of winning the Sugar Bowl, and I'm not necessarily worried about them scoring points against Clemson. With a couple of extremely high-octane offenses, I think Ohio State's national championship ticket lies more on the shoulders of the defense. Considering the different ways this team has been forced to win games this year, and with the momentum they're coming off of shutting out Northwestern in the second half of the Big Ten title game, I think the Buckeyes are up for the task.
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