COLUMBUS — Dwayne Haskins is having a spectacular season as the Ohio State quarterback. The redshirt sophomore is a Heisman candidate and has yet to lose a game.
His teammates?
Well …
Saturday’s 49-26 pounding of Indiana kept the third-ranked Buckeyes (6-0 overall, 3-0 in the Big Ten) unscathed, but exposed a multitude of warts.
“Dwayne, obviously, had a great night,” said Ohio State coach Urban Meyer. “Incredible night, 455 yards, six touchdowns.
“Pass defense, pass pressure, rush, no it’s not very good. Knocking people off the ball and running the ball, I don’t think it’s great … We’re just not consistent in those areas. Those two areas are the problem child right now.”
Haskins ended up 33 of 44 passing. His yardage and touchdown marks are school records against a Big Ten opponent. His touchdown mark tied the school single-game record and his 455-yard game trails only Art Schlichter’s 458-yard game against Florida State in 1981.
“He’s an accurate passer now,” Meyer said. “You give him time and you give him a good group of receivers, he’s a dangerous guy.”
Haskins also tossed a pair of picks, and Mike Weber’s lost fumble all helped keep Indiana close deep into the third quarter. But OSU was never really in peril, with Haskins slinging from a mostly clean pocket.
Senior Parris Campbell led the way in receiving, reeling in nine catches for 142 yards and two touchdowns.
“I feel like we have a really dynamic group,” Haskins said. “We have a great group of guys, great talent across the board, a lot of depth and today was making plays when they mattered the most, whether it was passing or throwing. Everybody did a good job executing when we needed it.”
But there were issues, too. The defense has struggled without end Nick Bosa, perhaps the team’s best overall player. No timetable has been set if or when he will return. But without him the Buckeyes struggle to pressure the quarterback and the secondary can resemble a yield sign.
OSU got riddled by dual-threat sophomore quarterback Peyton Ramsey. In the first half alone Ramsey threw for 239 yards, more than his total against Florida International, Virginia and Ball State. Receivers J-Shun Harris (eight catches, 104 yards) and Nick Westbrook (five catches, 109 yards) helped Ramsey to a career day, 26-of-49 passing for 322 yards and three touchdowns.
“Defensively, that was not what we expected in the first half,” Meyer said. “Guys are making plays on us. It was a combination of a poor pass rush and not blocking on your guys. We’ve been fine against the run, but the pass has been killing us and that’s going to bite us, something we’ve got to get fixed.”
Haskins floated the idea of a Penn State hangover, something that led to a loss at Iowa last year.
“I’m not going to lie, we probably are still tired from last week,” Haskins said. “There definitely was a little low in energy during the practice during the week. But best thing about today, we found a way to win. Even though it wasn’t pretty at all times throughout the game, football is about overcoming adversity.”
Indiana allowed just 155 yards rushing on 48 carries (3.2 yards per carry). Neither J.K. Dobbins (26 carries, 82 yards) nor Weber (13 carries, 70 yards), hurt the Hoosiers.
“We are still not doing what we need to do in the run game,” Meyer said. “And that’s something that’s alarming. So we’ve just got to continue to work on that.”
