Ohio State sophomore running back Master Teague III (33) is lifted up by redshirt junior center Josh Myers (71) after scoring a touchdown during the Ohio State-Nebraska game on Oct. 24. Ohio State won 52-17. Credit: Mackenzie Shanklin | Photo Editor
Following a 52-17 blowout victory over Nebraska, Ohio State’s offensive line is looking to build off of a strong opening performance.
The offensive line is one of the more experienced units on the Buckeyes roster and contains two potential first-round selections in the 2021 NFL draft in redshirt junior guard Wyatt Davis and redshirt junior center Josh Myers. Despite the offense putting up 52 points Saturday, Myers said that the line still has a lot to work on heading into Happy Valley.
“There are definitely some things we weren’t happy with. I would be lying to you if I said it went perfect because it didn’t,” Myers said Tuesday in a conference call. “It’s not something we’re extremely worried about, I think we have confidence they’re all things we can get fixed.”
Against Nebraska, junior quarterback Justin Fields was sacked three times and the running game was inconsistent, however the Buckeyes still amassed 498 yards.
Following the game, Davis said that Ohio State’s front made unacceptable errors in pass protection that could hurt them in its Halloween matchup at Penn State.
“Definitely needs to be fixed moving forward, especially going against Penn State,” Davis said Saturday. “They got us on some stunts up front with some blitzes, we gotta look back at the film. It’s not acceptable.”
Similar to the Cornhuskers, Penn State sacked Indiana redshirt sophomore quarterback Michael Penix Jr. three times in its 36-35 overtime loss Saturday.
Penn State defensive end Shaka Toney added two sacks and a quarterback hit in the loss.
Ohio State head coach Ryan Day said that the Buckeye offensive tackles will have their hands full with Toney and the Nittany Lion defense.
“They have really good players. The defensive ends are excellent and their scheme is just really solid,” Day said. “Those guys really like to blitz. They’re really aggressive and so we have to be ready for that. We gotta be able to handle the pressure.”
Redshirt sophomore right tackle Nicholas Petit-Frere had a strong start to the season, being named a champion — a distinction given to players by the coaching staff for excellent play — thanks to his performance against Nebraska.
Although Petit-Frere had a breakout performance in his opening game, he said Toney and the Penn State ends are a difficult challenge for the Ohio State offensive tackles.
“[Toney] is a very athletic defensive end, very talented,” Petit-Frere said. “He’s gonna be a great competitor for me and Thayer (Munford) to go up against.”
On the interior, Davis and Myers have combined for 31 career starts. However, sophomore right guard Harry Miller made his first career start against Nebraska.
Myers said he was proud to play alongside Miller and that he had a sound outing against the Cornhuskers.
“It was particularly special for me because Harry’s my little brother in the big brother program that we have here,” Myers said. “I think he did solid. Definitely has some things to work on, all of us do, not just him, but I thought he played solid and it’s tough to have your first start be against Nebraska.”
With Davis and Myers having plenty of experience playing with one another, Myers said he’s confident in their ability to break open any hole together.
“We’ve become so close over the years. I think really we’ve been on the line next to each other for the vast majority of our careers,” Myers said. “It’s a perfect teammate relationship honestly.”
The Buckeyes were originally supposed to be playing in hostile conditions due to Penn State’s annual White Out game; however, due to Big Ten guidelines, Ohio State will be battling the Nittany Lions in a much more manageable environment.
With fans being barred from the game, Myers said that it’ll be easier to communicate on the offensive line without the added noise.
“It won’t be a white out with 105,000 or 110,000 fans so that’ll make communicating easier this week,” Myers said. “Just playing together in terms of what we see pre-snap and being loud and communicative is huge.”
Although the Ohio State offensive line didn’t have time to gel in the offseason due to the pandemic, Myers said the Buckeyes line worked well together against Nebraska and will continue to do so throughout the season.
“I thought we were on page with each other,” Myers said. “I think our unit plays well together and I think we’ve had enough time, at this point, to get used to playing next to each other.”
