Freshman Tracker: No Freshmen Play on Offense or Defense in Ohio State’s Season Opener Against Notre Dame

Opening the season in the Shoe, on primetime television and against fifth-ranked Notre Dame is not the recipe for true freshmen to see the field.

Ohio State has veteran depth and talent at every position. As a result, the Buckeyes did not turn to any of their true freshmen to play snaps on offense or defense against the Fighting Irish.

The only two true freshmen to see playing time against Notre Dame were walk-on kicker Jayden Fielding, who handled kickoff duties in place of Noah Ruggles, and defensive end Caden Curry, who did not play on defense but was on the field goal team. (Correction: The initial version of this story said Fielding was the only freshman to play against the Fighting Irish.)

Fortunately for the other freshmen, there should be more ample opportunities to earn playing time over the next two weeks, when the Buckeyes will play a pair of Group of Five opponents in Arkansas State and Toledo. As of now, however, none of the Buckeyes’ freshmen have earned a major role on offense or defense, which means redshirts will likely be in store for many of them this season as a result.

Class of 2022 Tracker
NAME	POS	DEBUT	NOTRE DAME STATS	GP	SEASON STATS
OMARI ABOR	DE
KOJO ANTWI	WR
DEVIN BROWN	QB
JYAIRE BROWN	CB
KALEB BROWN	WR
CALEB BURTON	WR
BENNETT CHRISTIAN	TE
CADEN CURRY	DE	Notre Dame	Played on FG team	1	Played on FG team
JAYDEN FIELDING	K	Notre Dame	4 kickoffs	1	4 kickoffs
GEORGE FITZPATRICK	OT
KYION GRAYES	WR
DALLAN HAYDEN	RB
AVERY HENRY	OL
C.J. HICKS	LB
CARSON HINZMAN	OL
KENYATTA JACKSON	DE
HERO KANU	DT
GABE POWERS	LB
KYE STOKES	S
SONNY STYLES	S
TEGRA TSHABOLA	OL
RYAN TURNER	CB