Ohio State Buckeyes face first road test vs. Washington Huskies

The Ohio State Buckeyes will go on the road for the first time this season on Saturday when they travel to Seattle to face the Washington Huskies at Husky Stadium.

Husky Stadium is a much tougher place to play than many realize, and the Huskies are currently sporting a 22-game winning streak defending their home turf. The Seattle weather and the west coast time change are both factors that could affect some of the Buckeyes’ roster.

It was announced this week that the team would travel to Washington on Thursday rather than on Friday. The extra day of adjustment could be crucial for a Buckeyes team that has not had a road test. Last season, the team left for Oregon on Friday in a matchup that they ultimately lost to the Ducks, so it appears Ryan Day may have considered that for this showdown.

This will be a big time test of quarterback Julian Sayin’s maturity and growth within the Ohio State program. Sayin has performed well overall this season, completing almost 80% of his passes while throwing eight touchdowns to three interceptions. However, most of these stats came against lesser opponents in Grambling State and Ohio.

Sayin was not asked to do too much in the season opener against Texas, showing competence but not impressing greatly. Sayin has not been tested on the road yet, and the offense will be counting on him more than they did in Week 1, now that he has a few games under his belt.

Washington’s offense could be a more difficult task for an Ohio State defense that has not been greatly tested yet this season. The Huskies are currently 2nd in the nation in scoring offense, averaging over 55 points per game. They are strongly propelled by a two-headed monster in the backfield in running back Jonah Coleman and quarterback Demond Williams.

Senior Jonah Coleman has picked right up where he left off after finishing last season with over 1000 rushing yards. He is currently No. 1 in the nation with nine rushing touchdowns while also having 347 yards on the ground to a tune of 6.8 yards/carry.

Demond Williams may be even more impressive as a true dual-threat gunslinger. This season, he has nearly 800 passing yards on a 73.5 % completion rate with six passing touchdowns and zero interceptions. Additionally, he has 220 rushing yards, averaging 6.5 yards/carry despite being sacked six times. (College counts sacks as negative rushing yards for quarterbacks. For the record, this writer believes that rule is ridiculous.)

The Buckeyes’ defense has looked great over the first month of the year, though. They are tied at No. 1 in the nation for scoring defense, giving up an average of 5.33 points/game, and they are stacked with playmakers across the board. They are only No. 41 in the country in terms of rushing defense, so this will certainly be an intriguing matchup.

.@OfficialAJHawk loves what he's seen from the Ohio State defense this year

"I think Patricia has done a great job empowering those guys."

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— Bobby Carpenter Show (@BobbyCarpShow) September 19, 2025

A question mark for the Buckeyes will be what happens in the middle of that front seven at defensive tackle. Former five-star Eddrick Houston was expected to be the guy up front, but he has failed to live up to that billing so far, recording only four tackles and receiving multiple encroachment penalties.

Against Ohio, Tywone Malone got the start instead. This may not be a huge issue, but it is certainly something to keep an eye out for against a potent Huskies’ rushing attack.

Ohio State should win this game. They are too talented and well-coached not to be prepared for Washington, especially coming off a bye week. Don’t discount the Huskies making the Buckeyes work a little harder for the dub than some people may expect.