Ohio State football wipes off sluggish start for 23-3 win over Indiana (2024)

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. — It took nearly three quarters for the Ohio State offense to find its footing.

Locked in a sloppy affair for the first two-plus quarters, in which they scored three points, punted twice and threw an interception from their second drive to their fifth, the Buckeyes came alive in the third quarter.

Kyle McCord, the new starter at quarterback, delivered two strong drives that totaled 17 plays for 164 yards (9.64 yards per play) and took 8:48 off the clock. Those drives were the death knell for an Indiana team that couldn’t do much of anything offensively, as Ohio State gutted its way to a 23-3 win over Indiana at Memorial Stadium in Bloomington.

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After a stellar opening drive, in which Ohio State scored a touchdown on the back of an 11-play, 80-yard drive, the offense hit a wall. They gained just 97 yards on 22 plays for the rest of the first half, and allowed a non-existent Indiana offense to hang around, at least on the scoreboard, into the second half.

The Buckeyes’ defense slowed down the Hoosiers’ rushing attack to the tune of 2.1 yards per carry, but that was aided in part by the fact that Indiana seemed scared to throw the ball — it had thrown just five passes for 27 yards at the break.

A starter already chosen?

McCord entered Week 1 with the starting nod from coach Ryan Day, but it appeared that there would be far more of a split than anyone saw on Saturday.

Well into the fourth quarter, McCord was the only quarterback to attempt a pass. Devin Brown entered the game for one series in the second quarter, but handed the ball off twice and ran a quarterback power play that was stopped cold. Even with Ohio State up 20-3, Day opted to keep McCord in the game and Brown on the sideline.

Brown entered the game on the final Buckeye drive with the outcome no longer in doubt.

McCord ended his debut start 20 of 33 for 239 yards and an interception, one that was thrown on fourth down while running out of options to throw the ball to. He also had a touchdown pass to Marvin Harrison Jr. wiped off the board.

But the choice by Day to keep McCord in the game, like in the second half with the Buckeyes up by three scores, or in the first half in a two-minute drill, should be more telling about how the coaching staff views the quarterback battle than anything else.

Offensive line struggles

The offensive line was a major concern for Ohio State entering the season. Those worries have not faded after one game.

It wasn’t a banner day for the offensive line, notably Josh Simmons at left tackle, as the Buckeyes had a few major gaffes up front that didn’t allow the offense to flow as intended.

Notably, the pass blocking appeared to give McCord time all afternoon. The issues arose in the run game, where a few missed assignments led to negative plays and missed opportunities.

What it means

In the short term, Ohio State’s performance against Indiana shouldn’t be a major cause for concern.

The Buckeyes will play Youngstown State and Western Kentucky at home in the next two weeks, and they’ll face far less of a challenge than they got against the Hoosiers.

But early returns, for a team with national title aspirations, show that there’s still a ton of work to be done — specifically along the offensive line.

The defense, while putting forth a statistically stout afternoon, won’t be tested until Western Kentucky and won’t seriously be tested until Notre Dame in Week 4.

What’s next

A bye game.

Ohio State will play FCS Youngstown State next week at home in a game that won’t be as close as its win over Indiana. That much is for certain. What’s uncertain is what comes after Youngstown State and beyond.

In essence, they’ve now got a two-game ramp up period before a showdown against potentially 4-0 Notre Dame looms. Then the Buckeyes will have a bye week, at which point the direction of the 2023 team will be far more clear.

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