Ohio State has speed. This is something every Ohio State fan knows. A few ignorant Southerners might disagree, but the Sugar Bowl semi-final will not be a lost track meet for the Buckeyes. No, the one area that worries me the most isn't if we can run with Bama. I am worried about how our D-Line stacks up against the Bama O-Line and how that will play out, particularly in the second half.
Our D-Line, while very athletic and active in the pass-rush, has been challenged on the ground at times by teams far weaker than Bama (see Indiana, Minnesota, Navy, etc.). Sure, we stuffed Melvin Gordon and the Badgers in the B10CG. But Wisconsin was one-dimensional and while possessing a large and strong offensive line, they were not the caliber of Bama's line, in terms of athletic ability or depth. In addition, we flew out ahead early and effectively took away their running game.
What worries me is that Bama's size and depth far outweigh ours. If the Silver Bullets are taking body blows all first half from the Tide, our defensive line will be run ragged, particularly in the 4th quarter. Bosa, Washington and Bennett can play with anyone. Their NFL-level talent is undeniable. However, there is a huge drop off in national semi final ready talent behind them.
The starting starting D-Lineman for OSU averages 278 pounds, while Bama's O-Line averages 315. That's nearly 40 pounds per man. That is the kind of difference that will show up in the second half if we do not control the tempo of the game or jump out to a big lead.
In essence, we have to keep Bama from running the ball when they want to. Our front 7 on defense must keep the Tide offense behind the chains on drives on a fairly consistent basis, forcing them to pass more than they want. Sims has shown a propensity for making bad mistakes under duress (don't the vast majority of college QBs?), but if Bama's run game is effective, Sims becomes a bear to contain, both scrambling and passing.
(In the end, this game, the large spread, the personnel on both sides and one Urban Meyer all seem eerily familiar. Bama has a good dual threat QB with a big O-Line and offensive weapons out of the ying yang, with a questionable defensive secondary and relatively slow linebackers. Ohio State's D is undersized, our QB of somewhat unknown quality and media and the nation question if we should even be in the playoff. The game this eerily reminds me of is the 2006 NCG, but this time, we have Urban Meyer and this time we are the David to the Tide's Goliath. Urban's biggest game he has coached in to this date was that NCG vs. the Buckeyes, but this game carries more weight perhaps. Inside, Urban knows he has, is and will always be measured against Nick Saban.)
