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Western Kentucky will test Ohio State’s biggest defensive unknown — and it’s not the pass rush
COLUMBUS, Ohio — Many are eager for Ohio State football’s defensive line to unleash itself via the four-man pass rush.
Both coach Ryan Day and defensive coordinator Jim Knowles said they expect more opportunities to attack the quarterback against Western Kentucky. That’s technically true, because the Hilltoppers rank third in pass attempts per game over the past two seasons.
Yet in over 700 pass attempts in that span, they’ve allowed only 14 sacks. Quarterback Austin Reed is an RPO savant, freezing ends and drawing in linebackers with potential handoffs, then snapping up to throw darts to receivers.
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Whether J.T. Tuimoloau, Jack Sawyer, Mike Hall Jr. and others will have time to take Reed down in the backfield remains to be seen. Western Kentucky, though, will almost certainly target OSU’s biggest vulnerabilities from last season.
Knowles called them “eye violations.” Do the Buckeyes play with discipline in the back end and avoid the kinds of explosive touchdowns that marred the end of their 2022 season?
“You have to be able to keep the ball in front of you,” Knowles said. “I call it ‘smart swarm.’ We’ve got to go chase with proper leverage. You can’t just chase randomly on the screens. Everybody’s got to be at the right place.”
Two teams tied for the national lead in plays of 20-plus yards last season. One was Georgia, which used several to beat Ohio State and TCU while winning its second straight national championship.
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The other was Western Kentucky, which also ranked in the top three in plays of 30-plus yards and the top 10 in plays of 40-plus yards.
Ohio State has allowed only one play of 30-plus yards in the first two games. A year ago, though, they were an epidemic — especially since so many of them resulted in touchdowns in crucial games.
Some of those explosives allowed coincided with moments of aggression. Knowles had great success in the Big 12 — especially in 2021 — with a willingness to sell out with blitzes. His first season at Ohio State, though, prompted him to reflect on that philosophy.
“If you live in that world, against teams where you have a skill advantage, it can look really nice,” Knowles said. “But when you get into the matchup games, I found that it can hurt you. So you need to be able to adjust.”
The question, especially when considering playing style, is which of Knowles’ two descriptions applies to Western Kentucky? No one in college football threw for more yards than Reed’s 4,744 last season. His favorite receiver, Malachi Corley, turned 101 catches in 1,295 yards and 11 touchdowns. He missed last week’s win over Houston Christian with bruised ribs but is expected back Saturday.
To disrupt this offense, Knowles may need to bring pressure, forcing Reed to make decisions on the Buckeyes’ terms. Knowles blitzed a lot last week against Youngstown State. He also felt the defense lost leverage regularly by “trying to do too much” and overreaching their responsibilities.
Ohio State has not really played a team comparable to WKU during the current players’ tenures. Knowles has seen this before, though. Plenty of teams in the Big 12 used these philosophies when he served as Oklahoma State’s defensive coordinator.
“We built it over the years for the RPO,” Knowles said. “I think sometimes you can get lulled to sleep or lose your eyes. A lot of it is about eye discipline.
“But the answers are there. They’re in the system. I feel good about what we have. It’s just continued training.”
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