Entering the season, USC quarterback Sam Darnold was one of the favorites to win the 2017 Heisman Trophy.
While he won't win the stiff-armed trophy this year, the Trojan gunslinger – who is a projected top-five pick in the upcoming 2018 NFL Draft should he choose to declare – has a chance to put together a second consecutive outstanding bowl performance.
Darnold's national coming-out party came in the 2017 Rose Bowl, when the USC quarterback threw for 453 yards and five touchdowns in a 52-49 win over Penn State.
This season, Darnold's numbers have dipped a bit. After throwing 31 touchdown passes to just nine interceptions a season ago, Darnold tossed 26 touchdowns to 12 interceptions this year. His 2017 campaign also featured an embarrassing 49-14 loss to Notre Dame.
Despite his numbers being down a little this year, Darnold's abilities are not lost on Ohio State's defense. Senior safety Damon Webb said Friday that Darnold's ability to extend plays with his feet is one of the many things that makes him dangerous.
"When he scrambles, we still have to be on our man until he crosses the line of scrimmage. We are going to be ready for him," Webb said. "We got Tate Martell as a good scout-team quarterback. He has been doing that all year so I feel like we are going to be ready."
While Darnold isn't a run-first quarterback, his ability to extend plays in the pocket is one of many traits that seems to have NFL scouts drooling. Containing him will likely be a key for Ohio State's defense to slow him down, and the effort to do so will be on the Buckeye defensive ends.
One of Ohio State's most consistent defensive ends over the last three years has been Tyquan Lewis, another player who is expected to have an NFL future. Lewis echoed Darnold's ability to extend plays on third down as a weapon, adding that his poise on third down is something Ohio State will have to prepare for.
"Based on the film I have watched so far, he is a good quarterback. They have a lot of great things that they do. He can sling the rock around. He makes a lot of plays on third down. He is a competitor as you can see," Lewis said. "On third down if it's not there, he extends the play very well."
The fact that Darnold is projected as one of the top quarterbacks, if not the top quarterback, in the upcoming draft only adds to the excitement of the game, Lewis said.
"It definitely intrigues me and it definitely excites me to go against a big-time talent," Lewis said. "It's just another opportunity to put on a show under the lights and make a statement, especially for everyone on the D-line. Anytime you get an opportunity like that, you want to take advantage of it."
