Ohio State’s vaunted defensive unit ranks fifth in the nation in total defense (262.5 yards per game) and scoring defense (12.2 points per game) and fourth in the nation in turnover margin.
The Buckeyes have not allowed a 100-yard rusher this season and are 46-3 since 2005 in games where the opposition scores 21 or fewer points.
Not only are the numbers impressive, but also the “Silver Bullet” looks the part.
“Our team, there are some big guys, but most of the guys are pretty normal-looking dudes. At least we think so, being around each other, but when we go out in public we’re giants,” Oregon offensive lineman Carson York said. “I saw all those Ohio State guys at Disneyland (on December 26, for the first Rose Bowl press conference), and there is not a small guy on that team. Every guy just seems big. I don’t know if they have 70 lineman or what. I don’t know if they left the DBs or wide receivers at home, but I didn’t see them.”
York, who checks in at 6-foot-5 and 285 points, expressed a common viewpoint among the Ducks.
“They’ve got a good defense over there. They’re physical, big — they’re really big guys,” running back Kenjon Barner said.
“They look good on film. They’re big up front; they’ve got some guys that can run around and make some plays behind them,” six-foot-four tight end David Paulson said.
“Pretty stout,” wide receiver Drew Davis said.
“They’re the biggest and strongest. They’re a Big Ten defense—big, big and big,” York said.
Got it. They’re big. And, as the numbers indicate, they use their size well, which could present problems for the Ducks’ offensive line.
“It’s not really something that we’ve dealt with all year, just within the Pac-10,” York said. “I think Purdue is probably the closest in size that we’ve dealt with, and Ohio State’s a step up.”
The key to minimizing the impact of Ohio State’s defense is to minimize the impact of the big guys up front. Junior defensive ends Thaddeus Gibson (6-foot-2, 240 pounds) and Cameron Heyward (6-foot-6, 287) combined for 20 tackles for loss and 9.5 sacks this season. Senior defensive tackles Todd Denlinger (6-foot-2, 292) and Doug Worthington (6-foot-6, 276) have applied the pressure requisite to maintain the nation’s fifth-best rushing defense (83.42 yards per game). To them, the Ducks present a unique challenge.
“Their option offense is very disciplined; (it’s) something that makes you accountable on every play,” Worthington said. “They’re firing on all cylinders right now.”
Worthington expressed significant concern toward stopping Oregon quarterback Jeremiah Masoli, who averages 59.9 of his 247.7 total yards per game on the ground.
“He’s one of those guys where, if you have a gap open and you have a little bit of a ways to get to him, he can make a play with his feet,” he said. “He has a great arm, and he’s playing his best football right now, which is what you can expect from a guy who’s had a great season as well. We need to be able to contain him.”
Those skeptical of the Buckeyes’ ability to contain a spread offense do not ignore the fact that Ohio State has been exposed to – and sometimes by – more open offensive schemes. Gibson, nevertheless, sees Oregon as an entirely different beast.
“You really can’t [compare the Ducks to previous opponents], to be honest with you. They’re a different type of offense,” he said. “But it’s nothing that we can’t stop. We have to play our best game all year to beat these guys, and I think we can do that.”
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