Ohio State football has to have a reckoning after losing to Oregon at home. Who is the most to blame for the performance?
That Week 1 performance against Minnesota was no fluke, it turns out. Ohio State had all the advantages they could hope for against No. 12 Oregon and found a way to lose, 35-28.
After being upset as a 14-point favorite at home, someone has to shoulder the blame in Columbus.
Who is the most to blame for Ohio State football losing to Oregon?
3. The run defense
When Ohio State fans close their eyes tonight, they’ll dream about CJ Verdell running off the left. They’ll wake up in a cold sweat.
The Buckeyes had no answers for the Ducks rushing attack. They couldn’t set the edge and got eaten alive because of it.
Oregon had 269 rushing yards and averaged 7.1 yards per carry. When you give up those kinds of yards, you’re bound to lose.
2. Ohio State defensive coordinator Kerry Coombs
In his last three outings as Ohio State’s defensive coordinator, Kerry Coombs has given up 35 points to Oregon, 31 points to Minnesota and 52 points to Alabama. A team hoping to compete for the Big Ten title and a place in the College Football Playoff can’t afford their defense to unravel like that.
Coombs’ greatest sin was not adjusting well enough to the Ducks rushing attack. They ran outside over and over and Ohio State simply let them. It was always going to be tough replacing Justin Fields, but the Buckeyes defense isn’t doing CJ Stroud any favors this season so far.
1. Head coach Ryan Day
The buck has to stop with Ryan Day. Who hired Kerry Coombs? Who let him stick around after his defense got roasted in the national title game against Alabama?
More importantly, whose offense failed to keep up in the shootout with Oregon?
The Buckeyes defense was facing a full-strength Oregon offense. The offense was going against a Ducks defense that was down their two best players, including the best defensive player in the country, Kayvon Thibodeaux. They should have had the upper hand. The fact they didn’t rests at Day’s feet.
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