by It is almost here. In just under three months, we will once again be enjoying another Ohio State football season. Thankfully, it will be in front of a packed crowd.
The Buckeyes are coming off, well, an ass-kicking by the hands of Alabama in the National Championship game. While that still stings, Ohio State has some bigger problems to worry about. Most importantly, who is going to replace Justin Fields at quarterback?
While they will be returning a lot of production in their skill room, there are still some question marks around this offense. So, here are my official predictions for who will start on offense for Ohio State.
Quarterback
Starter: C.J. Stroud
Backup: Jack Miller III
For the first time in decades, the week-one starting quarterback will not have attempted a pass at the collegiate level. While we did see some reps last season from Stoud and Miller, we don’t really know what to expect. In the spring game, Stroud got the majority of the reps with the ones. Unfortunately for Coach Ryan Day, the first two weeks of the season are tough matchups with the opening game being a Thursday night game in Minnesota and then the much-anticipated matchup with Oregon in Columbus, so there really is no time to experiment.
Since Stroud got the most run in the spring game, and was the back-up to Fields last season, he is the clear favorite to lead the Buckeyes at quarterback this season.
Running Back
Starter(s): Master Teague, TreVeyon Henderson
Backup(s): Marcus Crowley, Miyan Williams, Steele Chambers
Teague was the obvious replacement for J.K. Dobbins coming into the 2020 season. Obviously, last year was bizarre for many reasons, but the emergence of Oklahoma transfer Trey Sermon pushed Teague back into his backup role. He will come into the season with the most experience of anyone in the running back room and he will once again have very high expectations, especially after scoring two touchdowns in the National Championship game after Sermon’s injury.
While Williams looked fairly effective in his few carries last season, all eyes will be on incoming five-star freshman TreVeyon Henderson to play the role of Robin to Teague this season. Coming out of high school, many coaches raved about his “Christian McCaffrey” like versatility. He has excellent speed, burst, and change-of-direction ability and will be a very dangerous pass-catching threat out of the backfield.
Wide Receiver (Slot)
Starter: Jaxon Smith-Njigba
Backup: Emeka Egbuka
Smith-Njigba quickly introduced himself to college football with a spectacular touchdown catch that dominated social media that day. While he did not have much production after that, he showed his impressive athletism that would allow him to claim the starting spot at the slot. Because of his experience, he will get the nod over Egbuka, who is another incoming five-star freshman who had seven catches for 123 yards in the spring game.
Wide Reciever (Z)
Starter: Chris Olave
Backup: Marvin Harrison Jr.
It was quite a welcoming surprise to Buckeye fans when Olave announced that he will be returning for his senior season. In the COVID-shortened 2020 season, Olave had 50 receptions for 729 yards and seven touchdowns. He will come into the season as the longest-tenured receiver on the roster. Harrison is another one of those talented freshmen who turned heads in the spring game. He had seven receptions for 49 yards and a touchdown.
Wide Receiver (X)
Starter: Garrett Wilson
backup: Julian Fleming
Wilson is arguably the most talented player on this roster. with 43 receptions for 723 yards and six touchdowns, Wilson and Olave make up one of, if not the best, receiver combinations in the country. As is the theme of Brian Hartline‘s receiver room, his young depth is pretty amazing to think about. Fleming came into Columbus as the number-one ranked receiver in the 2019 class. While he didn’t get much playing time last year, he will more than likely see a bigger role once he is fully healthy from a lingering shoulder injury.
Tight End
Starter: Jeremy Ruckert
Backup: Gee Scott Jr.
There is no real debate here, Ruckert is the starting tight end for the Buckeyes. The most interesting note for this position is the position change of Scott from receiver to tight end. With his large 6’3″ frame, Scott brings some much-needed athletism to this room.
Offensive Line
Left Tackle
Starter: Thayer Munford
Backups: Dawand Jones
Left Guard
Starter: Harry Miller
Backups: Josh Fryar
Center
Starter: Matthew Jones
Backups: Luke Wypler
Right Guard
Starter: Paris Johnson
Backups: Mathew Jones
Right Tackle
Starter: Nicholas Petit-Frere
Backups: Dawand Johnson
The offensive line will be led by Munford, who has started 46 games in his time with the Buckeyes. On the other side of him, Petit-Frere will look to rebound from a season where he could not stay healthy. Dawand Johnson would be the “next man up” with Paris Johnson moving inside to guard.
With Paris Johnson presumably moving to right guard, and Miller already penciled in as the starting left guard, that opens up a battle for the starting center. While Wypler took the majority of the snaps with Stroud, Jones will most likely get the nod due to his experience. With three starts in 2020, you have to think that the Buckeyes would rather have the experience while Wypler learns the system as a redshirt freshman.
Summary
While there are quite a few familiar faces that will be starting this year, the Buckeyes will have to rely on a lot of their young talent. It is unfair to have National Championship-like expectations for this team because we don’t know what this team will look like.
For now, we will just be excited about the future of this team, and we will be excited about the upcoming season.
