by Photo via Adam Cairns/Columbus Dispatch
Incredibly enough, the end of the 2024 regular season is just around the corner, and after a convincing win against No. 5 Indiana last week, the No. 2 Ohio State football team is set to face the team that they’ve had circled on their schedule for months: the Michigan Wolverines. While Michigan’s firmly out of the College Football Playoff conversation, the Buckeyes are not, and a win would cement their spot in the Big-10 Championship.
After beating Michigan eight straight times from 2012-2019, Ohio State’s fallen into a bit of a rut, dropping the last three matchups. Now, though, former Wolverines Head Coach Jim Harbaugh is off to the NFL, and former interim coach Sherrone Moore has not kept the program up to its recent standard. So far, Michigan stands at 6-5, and haven’t looked anything like the team that dominatingly won a National Championship last season.
The Wolverines’ struggles start on offense, as the team is second to last in the conference in total yards per game. Much of that falls on the quarterback room, as there doesn’t seem to be one viable option. Davis Warren began the year as the starting quarterback, then was replaced by Alex Orji, who was replaced by Jack Tuttle, who was once again replaced by Warren. While Warren now seems to have a firm(ish) grip on the starting job, he’s been far from good as he has 1,064 yards with only six touchdown passes and seven interceptions on the season.
The running game has been a bit more of a strength, as the Wolverines’ sit eighth in the conference in rushing yards per game. Much of that can be attributed to Kalel Mullings, who’s been a breakout star. In his fifth season with the program, Mullings has finally become the guy, running for 832 yards and 11 touchdowns this year. Donovan Edwards, who torched Ohio State a couple of years ago, has fallen into a reserve role.
The receiving room is headlined by tight end Colston Loveland, who is the projected top tight end in the 2025 NFL Draft. Loveland is elite in his pass catching ability, as he leads the team with 582 yards and five touchdowns. The rest of the receiving room is pretty barren as Tyler Morris is second on the team with 234 yards.
Defensively is where Michigan hangs its hat. The group is laden with first round-level talent, most notably cornerback Will Johnson and defensive tackle Mason Graham. Edge rusher Josiah Stewart, defensive tackle Kenneth Grant, and safety Rod Moore are other elite guys that will most certainly be playing on Sundays. As can be seen by the above sentiments, the pass rushing group in particular has been good, and should give Ohio State’s banged up offensive line some trouble.
Because of that, much of the pressure will continue to be on quarterback Will Howard to keep plays alive and push the ball downfield. Howard looked strong at navigating the pocket last week and that’ll only get more difficult with higher-level players coming at him. But if his recent play is any indication, he’ll be just fine. Also, we’re all here for the Johnson vs. Jeremiah Smith matchup (insert popcorn emoji here).
With Michigan’s abysmal passing game, the Ohio State secondary that’s struggled all year hopefully shouldn’t get burned too badly. A combination of Caleb Downs, Jordan Hancock, Lathan Ransom and others will have to pay extra attention to Loveland, but the other Michigan receivers should hopefully give the inconsistent Denzel Burke and Davison Igbinosun chances to build their confidence.
As far as stopping the run game, the Buckeyes have done a very good job all year. Tyleik Williams will be one of the premier run defenders at defensive tackle in next year’s draft, and defensive ends Jack Sawyer and J.T. Tuimoloau have proved to be stout on that front. The linebacker pairing of Cody Simon and Sonny Styles has drawn heavy praise over the past few weeks, so look for them to make their presence felt early and often.
While this season’s iteration of ‘The Game’ won’t have the top-five feel of recent seasons, it’s still arguably the most meaningful game on Ohio State’s schedule. Not only would a win put to bed some of the ghosts of the past three seasons, but it’ll set up the Buckeyes for a chance to earn a first round bye in the College Football Playoff.
