Ohio State moved to 7–0 today after beating Minnesota, 30-14, and has a passing attack that Buckeye fans have long pined for, but it may be time to sound the alarm on the team's running game.
With just 92 yards on 32 attempts, the Bucks finished under 100 yards rushing in a game for the first time since losing 31-0 to Clemson in the 2017 College Football Playoff semifinal.
The 92 yards against Minnesota today marked only the third time an Ohio State team under Urban Meyer did not crack 100-yards on the ground. In 2015, the Buckeyes rushed for just 86 yards on the way to a 17-14 loss to No. 9 Michigan State, ending a perfect year. A season later, Clemson would hold the Buckeyes to just 88 yards.
Ohio State got the win today, but the rushing attack has been on a downward trend all season long.
After running for 782 yards on 5.02 yards per carry in the first three games of the season, Ohio State has struggled in the last month, rushing 155 times for just 516 yards in wins over Tulane, Penn State, Indiana and Minnesota.
| OPPONENT | RUSH ATT | RUSH YARDS | YARDS PER CARRY | TOUCHDOWNS |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| OREGON STATE | 53 | 375 | 7.08 | 5 |
| RUTGERS | 40 | 225 | 5.63 | 2 |
| TCU | 42 | 182 | 4.33 | 1 |
| TULANE | 38 | 151 | 3.97 | 2 |
| PENN STATE | 37 | 119 | 3.22 | 1 |
| INDIANA | 48 | 154 | 3.21 | 1 |
| MINNESOTA | 32 | 92 | 2.88 | 0 |
Amazingly, the team's yards per attempt has gone down in each game, from the high of 7.08 yards per carry against Oregon State in the opener to just 2.88 per tote against the Golden Gophers Saturday.
While Dwayne Haskins' arm will keep Ohio State in any game, the lack of a ground attack could come back to haunt the Buckeyes. The Buckeyes need a fix, and soon.
