Do Ohio State Buckeyes Have Running Game Issues?
In the absence of junior starting running back TreVeyon Henderson, the No. 3 Ohio State Buckeyes had some serious issues in the run game in their win over Maryland on Saturday.
The offense only picked up 62 rush yards, of which senior back Chip Trayanum had 61 yards on 20 carries and a touchdown.
Ohio State finished third in Big Ten rushing offense in 2022 behind a stout offensive line including current Arizona Cardinals tackle Paris Johnson Jr. and Cleveland Browns tackle Dawand Jones.
This season, the Buckeyes have been unable to run the ball effectively — they rank ninth in the conference in yards per game and 11th in total rush yards.
Though Henderson is No. 7 in the conference with 73.8 rush yards per game, the team had three backs in the top 20 rushers in the Big Ten last season — Henderson, senior Miyan Williams, and sophomore Dallan Hayden.
And without a solution in sight, quarterback Kyle McCord said the team has to do a better job of finding a balance in both phases of the offense.
“There’s been points this year where we weren’t throwing the ball great and the running game picked us up," McCord said. "There’s been points where we weren’t running the ball great and I think we picked it more on throwing.
“If they’re going to try and take away the run, I think we have to do a good job passing the ball and vice versa.”
How serious are the issues on the ground?
Well, the only top-50 run defense the Buckeyes have faced this year is Maryland.
Besides that, they have eclipsed 200 total rush yards only once - that opponent was Western Kentucky.
McCord is right about one thing: Ohio State has to start faster overall. The run game has to get going — the offensive line has to be better at creating holes and backs have to be better at finding those holes.
If they don't, they may be able to get by Purdue next Saturday, but the looming date with No. 6 on Oct. 21 could present major problems.
The Buckeyes and Boilermakers will kick off at 12 p.m. ET.
