Ohio State faces a tough test when they travel to Norman to take on the Oklahoma Sooners. But here are five reasons they should be confident in winning.
In the first two weeks of the college football season, Ohio State has firmly established itself as the favorite in the Big Ten. Two dominant wins at home to Bowling Green and Tulsa prove they haven’t missed a step despite their incredible roster turnover. Their game against Oklahoma is their biggest test of the season, and will show what this young group is capable of doing.
Unlike other non-conference games, this isn’t being played in a neutral location. Ohio State has to deal with a very hostile environment and an offensive unit that is tough to stop. If Urban Meyer has proven anything, it’s that he thrives in these types of environments.
He’d hardly call this the toughest test of his career, and his players feed on his confidence. Plus, thanks to a certain backup quarterback, Ohio State’s players should come in more motivated than they were before.
It figures to be a lot closer than Ohio State’s first two games, but these are the five reasons why the Buckeyes will emerge with a win over the Sooners.
5. Austin Kendall poked the bear
Sooners backup quarterback caused a stir in Buckeyes country when he called Ohio State’s defensive unit “basic” and added that Baker Mayfield would light them up. If he was hoping to rattle them, it didn’t work. A couple of Ohio State players already weighed in on his comments, and they brushed them off more than anything:
https://twitter.com/TSprinkle93/status/776447865543614464
https://twitter.com/JayHolmes_/status/776433551944388608
A couple of Buckeyes alumni even weighed in, saying it was not a wise move on Kendall’s part:
https://twitter.com/Cardale7_/status/776764694212276224
You don’t need to do much to fire up the Buckeyes, but given how so many of them have responded to Austin Kendall, it seems that he’s poked the bear. Even if they ignored him, it would’ve been big talk for a backup quarterback. But now, they’re probably going to hang that quote up on the wall now, and will want to win by such a large margin that they can bring in their own backup quarterback.
Next: 4. Ohio State's defense is far from basic