Just a little more than 24 hours before Ohio State kicks off its season at noon against Florida Atlantic, the Buckeyes released their Week 1 depth chart and a status report highlighting a number of injuries.
Jonathon Cooper, Taron Vincent, Rashod Berry and C.J. Saunders have already been ruled out for the season opener, and Demario McCall, Tyler Friday and Tyreke Smith are game-time decisions.
Now that we know who is sidelined for the first game and how the depth chart stacks up without them, we can break down what that might mean not only for the first game of the year, but for the rest of the season to come.
Offensive Depth Chart Thoughts
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The faux starting quarterback mystery ended on Aug. 19 when Ryan Day announced Justin Fields as the starter. As the Buckeyes head into their first game, though, they still don’t have a clear backup at the position. Gunnar Hoak and Chris Chugunov are listed as co-backup quarterbacks. They’ll likely get chances to separate themselves early in the season late in games.
- Demario McCall's roller-coaster of an Ohio State career continues. He’s a game-time decision for Saturday’s game. If he plays, he’ll likely serve as the backup running back behind J.K. Dobbins. But if he misses the opener? Master Teague has a chance to make up for the time he missed with an injury during preseason camp, and Marcus Crowley has a shot to show he deserves carries as a freshman. As much uncertainty as ever exists with McCall, and that has bled into the backup running back competition which now continues into the 2019 season.
- Austin Mack and Chris Olave are both listed as co-starters at Z receiver, signaling a rotation at the position. Ohio State did not include Mack on Friday’s status report, meaning he has returned from an injury that held him out of multiple practices in preseason camp.
- At the X receiver position, there could be a three-player rotation early in the season until somebody separates themselves from the rest of the pack. Ohio State named Binjimen Victor the sole starter, with Garrett Wilson and Jaylen Harris as co-backups. Given Wilson’s pedigree and skill set, it could be hard for Brian Hartline to keep him off the field as the season progresses, but he’ll have to show his skills early in the season in order to get to that point.
- With C.J. Saunders missing the season opener with an undisclosed injury, opportunity awaits for Jaelen Gill. He’s the only backup to K.J. Hill at H-back on the Week 1 depth chart due to Saunders’ injury. Day has said he hopes to have a true rotation at H-back rather than relying on Hill to play the majority of snaps. Can Gill make a statement that he deserves the backup spot even when Saunders returns? We’ll be watching to see how he plays against Florida Atlantic.
- Rashod Berry’s absence at tight end with an undisclosed injury opens up a path for Jeremy Ruckert to get more snaps as a second-year backup. Given the depth at the position, Ruckert might not get the opportunities necessary for a breakout season, but he now has an increased chance to prove in Week 1 that he deserves more targets as the season progresses. He might be the best pass-catcher at the position, and he only had one reception in 2018 as a freshman.
- No surprises across the offensive line. It’s notable, though, that the Buckeyes listed Branden Bowen as the only starter at right tackle without Nicholas Petit-Frere as a co-starter. Day has mentioned Petit-Frere will play on Saturday, along with a couple other offensive linemen, but it appears that Bowen won the starting job outright.
- Watch out for Harry Miller on the interior. With Jonah Jackson, Josh Myers and Wyatt Davis locking down left guard, center and right guard, respectively, he’ll have relatively limited opportunities. But Miller garnered consistent praise throughout preseason camp and is now positioned as the backup center as a true freshman.
- K.J. Hill is the top punt returner, and McCall is No. 2. McCall and Olave are the co-starters at kick returner. Day, though, has mentioned he expects Wilson to serve as a returner on Saturday at times.
Defensive Depth Chart Thoughts
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Ohio State has touted its defensive end depth in recent years, and it will get tested on Saturday. Jonathon Cooper is out, and Tyler Friday and Tyreke Smith are game-time decisions. On the first depth chart of the season, Jashon Cornell bounced back to defensive end after spending the offseason transitioning from the edge to defensive tackle. He prefers to play 3-technique and believes he’s more effective in that role, so this move is likely temporary. Not an optimal situation.
- Even with Cornell at defensive end, the Buckeyes will likely turn often to Zach Harrison and Javontae Jean-Baptiste on Saturday. Neither have played an in-game snap yet at the college level, and that will soon change.
- How much depth does Ohio State have at defensive tackle? Its starting 3-technique, Cornell, moves to defensive end. Its starting nose tackle, Davon Hamilton, moves to the starter at 3-technique. Its backup 3-technique, Taron Vincent, misses the season opener with an injury. Yet there doesn’t seem to be a major issue at either defensive tackle spot. With Robert Landers and Tommy Togiai at nose tackle and Hamilton and Garrett likely to play the majority of meaningful snaps at 3-technique in Week 1, both positions appear to be solidified.
- Ohio State clearly thinks highly of Togiai. The sophomore is listed as a co-starter with Landers, a fifth-year senior. If Hamilton eventually moves back to nose tackle, as expected, Togiai would be an overqualified third-stringer in line to start in 2020.
- All three of last year’s starting linebackers are once again the starters to open the season. At middle linebacker, Ohio State has Tuf Borland and Baron Browning as co-starters. Borland will likely start, but expect Browning to play more snaps this season than any other backup linebacker on the team. He had a strong fall camp.
- Dallas Gant is listed as the third-string middle linebacker, and Teradja Mitchell is the backup weakside linebacker. That highlights just how interchangeable Ohio State views middle linebacker and weakside linebacker, which are referred to as the two inside linebacker positions. Malik Harrison, Browning, Borland, Mitchell and Gant can all play both inside linebacker positions.
- Sevyn Banks and Cameron Brown, listed as the backups to Damon Arnette and Jeff Okudah, are the top two backups at outside cornerback. The team did not list Tyreke Johnson on the depth chart, likely because he missed time in preseason camp with an injury. However, Johnson was not listed on Friday’s status report, signaling he has returned to full health.
- The team listed its two bullets – Brendon White and Jahsen Wint – as strong safeties. A few months ago, Jeff Hafley said that position should be viewed as a strong safety. However, in both spring and preseason camps, they practiced with the linebackers. It's not too important, but just a bit interesting how Ohio State lists White and Wint.
- Jordan Fuller, as expected, will start at free safety. Behind him, Isaiah Pryor and Josh Proctor are co-backups. Proctor led the team in interceptions throughout fall camp, but he remains in a competition with Pryor.
- Ohio State listed 12 positions on its defensive depth chart. That, well, isn't exactly possible. However, it highlights the multiple personnel packages Hafley and Greg Mattison plan to use this season.
