Ohio State Offensive Keys to Beating Oregon

Here's what the Buckeye offense needs to do if they're going to beat the Ducks on Saturday.

Ohio State's offense had a monster night to open the 2021 season, reaffirming their place among college football's elite units.

C.J. Stroud earned Big Ten Freshman of the Week honors and the team broke an all-time single-game school record by averaging 10.3 yards per play during their win over Minnesota.

If Saturday is going to follow a similar script, here's what the Buckeye offense needs to do:

Protect the Quarterback

C.J. Stroud had a perfect circumstance in his debut in that the offensive line didn't give up a single sack, nor did the Buckeyes have a single negative offensive play. Talk about dominating the line of scrimmage!

Oregon's pass rush is going to be much tougher than Minnesota's, especially if Kayvon Thibodeaux is healthy. Dawand Jones made just his second career start and graded out as the best offensive tackle in the country last week. Thayer Munford and Nick Petit-Frere were also excellent on the left hand side. This week will be tougher, but keeping Stroud upright and intact is the primary objective for this group up front.

Establish the Run

Last week, the Buckeyes only had a chance to run 48 offensive plays and they only got the football for 21 minutes time of possession. That's certainly abnormal and I expect them to have more snaps on Saturday, if only because Oregon's defense is going to be a little tougher to hit some big home run plays against than Minnesota's.

Will Miyan Williams get the start again? I have to think he's probably earned that right, but Ohio State hasn't made that decision publicly. TreVeyon Henderson's explosive play last week certainly will warrant more chances to be seen, while Master Teague is a proven commodity (especially in short yardage situations and in the red zone).

We know the Buckeyes can move the ball through the air. If they can continue to roughly split their total offense between the run and pass, I think they've got a great chance to make a big splash on the scoreboard.

Give Chris Olave a Chance to Shine

Ohio State's top receiver reminded everyone this week that Oregon was his dream school growing up and that he was a huge Ducks fan. But until the Buckeyes offered him, nobody really paid much attention to him as a high school player - including his beloved Ducks.

Now with a chance to play against the team he used to adore, I think the Buckeyes need to get Olave involved early in the game. Mykael Wright won't play against a guy who runs better routes all season than Ohio State's top receiving threat. Look for Olave to have a big day against a Ducks secondary that should be better than last week, but not good enough to slow down the Buckeyes.

Game Preview: No. 3 Ohio State Buckeyes vs. No. 12 Oregon Ducks

Game Prediction: No. 3 Ohio State Buckeyes vs. No. 12 Oregon Ducks

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