SEATTLE — What is Ohio State’s offensive identity?
A quick look at its roster and you’d think a team featuring a five-star quarterback with a boatload of five-star receiving and a receiving weapon at tight end would have no problem choosing to lean into that talent and throw it as much as possible. You’d think this roster had the potential to rival the passing attack it had back in 2021 when C.J. Stroud was under center, throwing it to Garrett Wilson, Chris Olave and Jaxon Smith-Njigba. Only this version had an elite defense to pair with that you could rely on to get stops.
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On paper, that is what Julian Sayin, Jeremiah Smith, Carnell Tate, Brandon Inniss and even tight end Max Klare were supposed to turn into by the time this team left for Seattle to face Washington. But that is not the team that showed up on Sept. 27.
Instead of this being a team so deadly in 11 personnel that opponents can’t find any answer for it, we’ve seen an offense throwing out so many different formations that you’re wondering who and what this is all for?
The Buckeyes believe in their tight end room, which is why five of the six people in it have constantly played meaningful snaps through four games. Even in a win over Washington we constantly saw them in heavy packages in the middle of the field leaving Smith as the only receivie out there. It’s fine to be able to do all of that, but is that actually maximizing your offense?
Is taking future first-round NFL Draft picks off the field in favor of playing in a phone booth to establish the run every week actually a productive use of this team’s time?
Seriously, what Big Ten team is watching what OSU has done through four games and changing its opinion on what should be Priority No. 1 in slowing down this offense? Averaging ___ yards per carry against the Huskies is fine, but that’s not going to make a team worry about the run game first by bringing another safety down and risk having Smith or Tate kill you for 40-yard touchdowns all game.
Ohio State’s bread and butter is its passing game. It’s where all of its superstars are, and the reason year in and year out for why it’s considered a national championship contender. But for whatever reason, it’s not completely leaning into that.
Maybe having an elite defense that’s managed to give up just ___ touchdowns all season has provided the Buckeyes room to keep tinkering with it offense because it’ll have plenty of chances to eventually flip the switch. Then all it takes is an 18-yard touchdown pass to Smith or a sideline throw to Tate and all of the issues you saw are just wiped away.
Winning matters and OSU continues to accomplish that mission even if it’s ot getting the style points that go along with it. But as Ryan Day has said plenty of times, the issues are the issues even if you haven’t played someone who can make you pay for them yet.
Ohio State’s first-half effort against Washington looked oddly familiar to what it did against Michigan last season. It played conservatively while trying to establish something that was never there, only to go back to what it’s best at in an emergency situation when it absolutely had to have it. The problem is just like with that game; eventually, you go to flip that switch and the light doesn’t come on.
Ohio State is in a bit of an identity crisis after four games, regardless of what the score says by the time the clock strikes zero.
At some point, it needs to lock in on that identity. The one it knows it can rely on. Or someone is going to catch them slipping.