Ohio State leaned heavily on its starters for a third straight game to end the 2025 season as the Buckeyes attempted to battle back but ultimately fell short in the College Football Playoff quarterfinal at the Cotton Bowl.
Ten of Ohio State’s 22 starters – five on offense and five on defense – played every snap on their side of the ball in the Buckeyes’ season-ending 24-14 loss to Miami. Ten of Ohio State’s defensive starters played at least 50 of the Buckeyes’ 63 defensive snaps for the game, while seven players were on the field for at least 51 of Ohio State’s 60 offensive plays.
The Buckeyes made two mid-game switches along the offensive line. Joshua Padilla replaced Gabe VanSickle at right guard late in the first half, while Ian Moore replaced Austin Siereveld at left tackle at halftime, as VanSickle struggled in his first career start and Siereveld was hampered by a leg injury. CJ Donaldson came off the bench to play the most snaps among running backs in the Cotton Bowl, while Devin Sanchez played his second-highest snap count of the season at cornerback after starting nickelback Lorenzo Styles Jr. left the game with a shoulder injury in the first quarter. Brandon Inniss was the only other player who didn’t start the game that played more than a dozen snaps against Miami.
Ohio State used 18 players on offense, 18 players on defense and another 18 players on special teams only in the Cotton Bowl.
For the season as a whole, Carson Hinzman finished the season as Ohio State’s leader in playing time with 841 total snaps on offense, four more than fellow offensive lineman Luke Montgomery. Julian Sayin (832) and Austin Siereveld (810) also played more than 800 snaps for the season, while right tackle Phillip Daniels played the fifth-most snaps of the year (762) for any Buckeye.
Defensively, Jaylen McClain played the most of any Buckeye in 2025 with 708 snaps of the season. Six other defenders also played more than 600 snaps for the year: Jermaine Mathews Jr. (695), Caleb Downs (682), Sonny Styles (663), Davison Igbinosun (655), Arvell Reese (651) and Caden Curry (610).
Below, we‘ve compiled the snap counts for every Ohio State player for the Cotton Bowl and for the 2025 season as a whole, courtesy of Pro Football Focus.
Quarterbacks
Julian Sayin: 60
Sayin played every snap at quarterback for a third straight game to end the season and the seventh time overall in 14 games. He attempted passes on more than half of Ohio State’s 60 offensive snaps, completing 22 of 35 attempts for 287 yards and one touchdown with two interceptions.
For the season as a whole, Sayin played 832 snaps, completing a school-record 77% of his passing attempts – the third-best completion percentage in FBS history – for 3,610 yards and 32 touchdowns with eight interceptions.
Running Backs
CJ Donaldson: 31
Bo Jackson: 28
Isaiah West: 1
For the first time since the first half of the season, Donaldson played the most snaps among running backs in the Cotton Bowl. In his second-highest snap count of the season, the Miami native had seven carries for 31 yards and five catches for 31 yards.
Jackson, who started the game, still finished the season as Ohio State’s leader in playing time among running backs. He had 11 carries for 55 yards and a touchdown in the final game of his freshman season, finishing the year with 1,090 yards.
West, who was Ohio State’s No. 2 running back for a portion of the second half of the regular season, played just one snap against the Hurricanes. James Peoples, who began the year as Ohio State’s No. 2 RB behind Donaldson but fell to fourth on the depth chart by the end of the season, played zero snaps in what would be his final game as a Buckeye before entering the transfer portal on Friday.
Wide Receivers
Jeremiah Smith: 60
Carnell Tate: 59
Brandon Inniss: 34
Mylan Graham: 1
Smith and Tate both played their highest snap counts of the season in the Cotton Bowl. Smith was on the field for all 60 of Ohio State’s offensive plays while Tate was on the field for all but one play.
Smith caught seven passes for 157 yards and a touchdown to finish the season with 87 catches for 1,243 yards and 12 touchdowns. Tate caught three passes for 37 yards in his likely final game as a Buckeye to finish the season with 51 catches for 875 yards and nine scores.
Inniss was on the field for just over half of Ohio State’s offensive plays in the Cotton Bowl and caught four passes for 34 yards.
As Bryson Rodgers left the team before the Cotton Bowl and Quincy Porter was out due to injury, Graham was the only backup receiver to see offensive action against Miami, playing just one snap.
Tight Ends
Max Klare: 51
Will Kacmarek: 33
Bennett Christian: 2
After rotating five tight ends throughout the regular season, Ohio State leaned primarily on its top two tight ends in the Cotton Bowl.
Klare played his highest snap count of the season as he was on the field for all but nine of Ohio State’s offensive plays against Miami, though he didn’t receive any targets in the passing game. Kacmarek, who had three catches for 28 yards vs. the Hurricanes, was on the field for just over half of Ohio State’s offensive plays to finish the year as Ohio State’s leader in tight end snaps (509).
Christian played his lowest snap total of the season (excluding the Ohio game, which he missed due to injury) as he was brought in for just two snaps, as the Buckeyes moved away from the 13 personnel packages that they used frequently in the red zone in previous games. Neither Nate Roberts nor Jelani Thurman played an offensive snap against Miami after playing in all of Ohio State’s first 13 games of the year.
Offensive Linemen
Luke Montgomery: 60
Carson Hinzman: 60
Phillip Daniels: 60
Joshua Padilla: 42
Ian Moore: 31
Austin Siereveld: 29
Gabe VanSickle: 18
VanSickle made his first career start at right guard in place of Tegra Tshabola, who did not play against Miami due to injury. After VanSickle struggled on Ohio State’s first five drives, all of which ended without points, Padilla replaced him for the rest of the game.
Siereveld started the game at left tackle, but was replaced at halftime by Moore and ruled out for the rest of the game due to a leg contusion.
Montgomery, Hinzman and Daniels played every snap of the game at left guard, center and right tackle, respectively. As a result, Hinzman finished the year with the most snaps from scrimmage of any Ohio State player this season (841), with Montgomery finishing just behind him (837).
| Pos | Player | TEXAS | GSU | OHIO | WASH | MINN | ILL | WIS | PSU | PUR | UCLA | RUT | UM | IU | MIA | TOTAL |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| QB | JULIAN SAYIN | 59 | 32 | 62 | 64 | 48 | 65 | 70 | 57 | 74 | 59 | 52 | 73 | 57 | 60 | 832 |
| QB | LINCOLN KIENHOLZ | 0 | 22 | 1 | 0 | 11 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 11 | 12 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 62 |
| QB | TAVIEN ST. CLAIR | 0 | 13 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 13 |
| RB | BO JACKSON | 0 | 17 | 16 | 30 | 28 | 20 | 32 | 26 | 25 | 35 | 27 | 37 | 36 | 28 | 357 |
| RB | CJ DONALDSON | 42 | 17 | 28 | 19 | 10 | 31 | 17 | 15 | 14 | 0 | 15 | 28 | 12 | 31 | 279 |
| RB | JAMES PEOPLES | 20 | 21 | 20 | 16 | 21 | 13 | 10 | 11 | 19 | 16 | 12 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 184 |
| RB | ISAIAH WEST | 0 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 14 | 9 | 20 | 19 | 14 | 8 | 8 | 1 | 108 |
| RB | SAM DIXON | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| FB | KAYDEN MCDONALD | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| WR | JEREMIAH SMITH | 57 | 30 | 57 | 56 | 43 | 50 | 57 | 43 | 59 | 22 | 0 | 45 | 53 | 60 | 632 |
| WR | CARNELL TATE | 46 | 31 | 54 | 51 | 40 | 50 | 49 | 39 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 42 | 41 | 59 | 502 |
| WR | BRANDON INNISS | 23 | 16 | 32 | 22 | 24 | 34 | 41 | 20 | 52 | 49 | 53 | 23 | 21 | 34 | 444 |
| WR | MYLAN GRAHAM | 0 | 34 | 2 | 5 | 16 | 8 | 18 | 8 | 14 | 42 | 12 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 161 |
| WR | BRYSON RODGERS | 0 | 14 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 35 | 38 | 23 | 14 | 0 | 0 | 129 |
| WR | DAVID ADOLPH | 0 | 9 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 8 | 13 | 48 | 13 | 1 | 0 | 98 |
| WR | QUINCY PORTER | 0 | 25 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 0 | 13 | 0 | 0 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 57 |
| WR | PHILLIP BELL | 0 | 12 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 21 |
| TE | WILL KACMAREK | 48 | 9 | 50 | 47 | 27 | 43 | 33 | 44 | 46 | 12 | 7 | 65 | 45 | 33 | 509 |
| TE | MAX KLARE | 23 | 20 | 41 | 35 | 29 | 36 | 35 | 26 | 42 | 46 | 40 | 31 | 35 | 51 | 488 |
| TE | BENNETT CHRISTIAN | 28 | 4 | 0 | 19 | 19 | 20 | 15 | 23 | 25 | 19 | 32 | 26 | 23 | 2 | 255 |
| TE | NATE ROBERTS | 1 | 25 | 8 | 12 | 11 | 8 | 5 | 9 | 18 | 14 | 23 | 19 | 7 | 0 | 160 |
| TE | JELANI THURMAN | 7 | 32 | 5 | 6 | 14 | 9 | 10 | 7 | 10 | 14 | 11 | 8 | 2 | 0 | 135 |
| TE | BRODY LENNON | 0 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 |
| OL | CARSON HINZMAN | 59 | 32 | 63 | 64 | 49 | 65 | 70 | 57 | 75 | 59 | 58 | 73 | 57 | 60 | 841 |
| OL | LUKE MONTGOMERY | 59 | 32 | 63 | 64 | 49 | 65 | 70 | 54 | 75 | 59 | 57 | 73 | 57 | 60 | 837 |
| OL | AUSTIN SIEREVELD | 59 | 32 | 63 | 64 | 49 | 65 | 70 | 57 | 75 | 59 | 58 | 73 | 57 | 29 | 810 |
| OL | PHILLIP DANIELS | 59 | 32 | 62 | 64 | 48 | 65 | 70 | 57 | 0 | 57 | 58 | 72 | 57 | 60 | 761 |
| OL | TEGRA TSHABOLA | 44 | 26 | 49 | 64 | 40 | 51 | 44 | 49 | 65 | 26 | 48 | 73 | 28 | 0 | 607 |
| OL | GABE VANSICKLE | 0 | 20 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 13 | 44 | 16 | 0 | 29 | 18 | 154 |
| OL | IAN MOORE | 0 | 20 | 1 | 0 | 11 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 66 | 13 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 31 | 150 |
| OL | JOSHUA PADILLA | 0 | 20 | 0 | 0 | 19 | 14 | 26 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 42 | 128 |
| OL | ETHAN ONIANWA | 15 | 26 | 14 | 0 | 10 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 12 | 11 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 96 |
| OL | JUSTIN TERRY | 0 | 20 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 11 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 57 |
| OL | ISAIAH KEMA | 0 | 11 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 11 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 31 |
| OL | CARTER LOWE | 0 | 15 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 18 |
| OL | JAKE COOK | 0 | 15 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 17 |
| OL | DEONTAE ARMSTRONG | 0 | 15 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 15 |
| OL | JAYVON McFADDEN | 0 | 15 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 15 |
| OL | SIMON LORENTZ | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
Defensive Ends
Kenyatta Jackson Jr.: 63
Caden Curry: 60
Zion Grady: 3
Jackson played the highest snap of his Ohio State career as he was on the field for all 63 of the Buckeyes’ defensive plays against Miami. He recorded one tackle.
Curry tied his career-high snap count from the Illinois game earlier in the season as he was on the field for all but three of Ohio State’s defensive plays. He recorded six tackles with two quarterback hits in the Cotton Bowl, and finished the season as Ohio State’s leader in playing time among defensive linemen (608 snaps).
Grady was the only backup defensive end to see playing time against Miami as Beau Atkinson played zero snaps for the second time in three games to end the season.
Defensive Tackles
Kayden McDonald: 55
Eddrick Houston: 50
Tywone Malone Jr.: 12
Will Smith Jr.: 8
Jason Moore: 1
McDonald and Houston also played career-high snap counts against Miami. McDonald was on the field for all but eight of Ohio State’s defensive plays and recorded eight tackles with a tackle for loss and a pass breakup. Houston, who was Ohio State’s second-string 3-technique behind Malone for most of the season, played all but 13 snaps against Miami and recorded five tackles with 1.5 sacks.
Malone played his lowest snap count of the season (excluding the Purdue game, which he missed with an injury) and recorded just one tackle in the Cotton Bowl. Smith played a single-digit snap count as Ohio State’s No. 2 nose tackle for a third straight game to end the season and recorded two tackles in eight plays. Moore rotated in for one snap for his seventh game appearance of the season.
Linebackers
Arvell Reese: 63
Sonny Styles: 63
Payton Pierce: 10
Reese and Styles were both on the field for all 63 of Ohio State’s defensive snaps in the Cotton Bowl. Reese recorded seven tackles with one quarterback hit while Styles made two tackles with 1.5 tackles for loss.
Pierce, who played double-digit snaps off the bench in all but two games this season, joined them on the field for 10 plays as a third linebacker. He turned one of those snaps into a takeaway, as he forced and recovered a fumble by Miami running back Mark Fletcher on one of his two tackles.
Cornerbacks
Davison Igbinosun: 62
Jermaine Mathews Jr.: 61
Devin Sanchez: 43
Igbinosun played all but one of Ohio State’s defensive snaps against Miami, recording a team-high 10 tackles. Mathews, who played the second-most snaps (693) among all Ohio State defenders this season, played all but two snaps against the Hurricanes and made six tackles.
Mathews played most of the game at nickel, with Sanchez taking his place at cornerback in five-DB lineups, after starting nickelback Lorenzo Styles Jr. left the game in the first quarter after aggravating a shoulder injury that he had been battling all season. Sanchez played his second-highest snap count of the season as a result, recording two tackles and a pass breakup.
Safeties
Caleb Downs: 63
Jaylen McClain: 63
Lorenzo Styles Jr.: 8
Leroy Roker III: 4
McClain and Downs both played every defensive snap of the game for Ohio State as the Buckeyes’ two primary safeties. Downs recorded eight total tackles and became the first player in College Football Playoff history to force two fumbles in a game, though both were recovered by Miami wide receiver Malachi Toney. McClain, the only Ohio State defender to top 700 total snaps this season, made three tackles in the Buckeyes’ season finale.
Styles did not return to the game after suffering his injury on Miami’s second drive of the night. With Styles sidelined and Sanchez taking his place as Ohio State’s fifth defensive back, Roker saw his first defensive action in three games as he entered the lineup in dime packages for four snaps as a sixth defensive back.
| Pos | Player | TEXAS | GSU | OHIO | WASH | MINN | ILL | WIS | PSU | PUR | UCLA | RUT | UM | IU | MIA | TOTAL |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| DE | CADEN CURRY | 59 | 25 | 30 | 47 | 38 | 60 | 35 | 53 | 34 | 26 | 42 | 44 | 55 | 60 | 608 |
| DE | KENYATTA JACKSON JR. | 34 | 26 | 32 | 44 | 13 | 51 | 33 | 56 | 32 | 24 | 40 | 44 | 55 | 63 | 549 |
| DE | BEAU ATKINSON | 35 | 11 | 22 | 18 | 28 | 24 | 19 | 14 | 9 | 17 | 12 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 214 |
| DE | ZION GRADY | 0 | 9 | 6 | 0 | 10 | 13 | 9 | 2 | 15 | 18 | 16 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 104 |
| DE | C.J. HICKS | 19 | 8 | 18 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 50 |
| DE | JOSHUA MICKENS | 0 | 17 | 3 | 0 | 6 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 44 |
| DE | LOGAN GEORGE | 0 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 8 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 19 |
| DE | EPI SITANILEI | 0 | 9 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 17 |
| DE | DOMINIC KIRKS | 0 | 11 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 17 |
| DT | KAYDEN McDONALD | 38 | 18 | 18 | 33 | 24 | 39 | 25 | 42 | 22 | 22 | 30 | 29 | 51 | 55 | 446 |
| DT | EDDRICK HOUSTON | 39 | 10 | 18 | 12 | 17 | 0 | 25 | 20 | 27 | 19 | 34 | 21 | 31 | 50 | 323 |
| DT | TYWONE MALONE JR. | 14 | 13 | 18 | 30 | 19 | 46 | 19 | 35 | 0 | 21 | 22 | 22 | 27 | 12 | 298 |
| DT | WILL SMITH JR. | 16 | 18 | 22 | 9 | 22 | 31 | 5 | 17 | 15 | 20 | 27 | 8 | 5 | 8 | 223 |
| DT | JARQUEZ CARTER | 3 | 19 | 9 | 0 | 7 | 5 | 4 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 51 |
| DT | JASON MOORE | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 13 | 3 | 1 | 10 | 6 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 43 |
| DT | ERIC MENSAH | 0 | 12 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 12 |
| DT | TRAJEN ODOM | 0 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 |
| LB | SONNY STYLES | 57 | 20 | 48 | 52 | 45 | 69 | 36 | 61 | 35 | 28 | 44 | 44 | 59 | 63 | 661 |
| LB | ARVELL REESE | 64 | 22 | 41 | 52 | 41 | 64 | 32 | 61 | 32 | 30 | 44 | 44 | 59 | 63 | 649 |
| LB | PAYTON PIERCE | 15 | 25 | 20 | 7 | 24 | 22 | 34 | 22 | 23 | 20 | 22 | 12 | 6 | 10 | 262 |
| LB | RILEY PETTIJOHN | 0 | 15 | 13 | 0 | 5 | 2 | 9 | 0 | 11 | 13 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 76 |
| LB | TJ ALFORD | 0 | 13 | 6 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 5 | 5 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 50 |
| LB | GARRETT STOVER | 0 | 17 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 22 |
| LB | ELI LEE | 0 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 |
| LB | JOEY VELAZQUEZ | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| CB | JERMAINE MATHEWS JR. | 67 | 32 | 43 | 52 | 46 | 67 | 38 | 60 | 37 | 33 | 54 | 44 | 59 | 61 | 693 |
| CB | DAVISON IGBINOSUN | 67 | 32 | 43 | 52 | 46 | 53 | 38 | 51 | 36 | 27 | 44 | 44 | 59 | 62 | 654 |
| CB | DEVIN SANCHEZ | 11 | 23 | 27 | 10 | 15 | 66 | 27 | 16 | 16 | 29 | 25 | 8 | 5 | 43 | 321 |
| CB | AARON SCOTT JR. | 0 | 23 | 13 | 0 | 5 | 19 | 10 | 0 | 10 | 20 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 106 |
| CB | BRYCE WEST | 0 | 17 | 7 | 0 | 4 | 5 | 9 | 0 | 7 | 14 | 27 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 90 |
| CB | MILES LOCKHART | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| S | JAYLEN McCLAIN | 67 | 32 | 48 | 52 | 46 | 72 | 38 | 60 | 37 | 33 | 54 | 44 | 59 | 63 | 705 |
| S | CALEB DOWNS | 67 | 31 | 46 | 52 | 46 | 72 | 38 | 61 | 37 | 20 | 44 | 44 | 59 | 63 | 680 |
| S | LORENZO STYLES JR. | 65 | 28 | 24 | 45 | 27 | 0 | 0 | 39 | 37 | 29 | 18 | 32 | 52 | 8 | 404 |
| S | FAHEEM DELANE | 0 | 23 | 8 | 0 | 5 | 2 | 9 | 0 | 10 | 18 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 81 |
| S | LEROY ROKER III | 0 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 9 | 11 | 0 | 10 | 15 | 19 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 81 |
| S | MALIK HARTFORD | 0 | 22 | 16 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 38 |
Field Goals/Extra Points
Jayden Fielding (kicker): 3
Joe McGuire (holder): 3
John Ferlmann (long snapper): 3
Jake Cook: 3
Will Kacmarek: 3
Ian Moore: 3
Ethan Onianwa: 3
Joshua Padilla: 3
Justin Terry: 3
Jelani Thurman: 3
Gabe VanSickle: 3
Cook was a new addition to the field-goal kicking team against Miami, replacing Tegra Tshabola. Fielding missed his lone field goal attempt of the game, a 49-yard kick, wide left.
Kickoffs
Jayden Fielding (kicker): 3
TJ Alford: 3
Faheem Delane: 3
Brenten “Inky” Jones: 3
Jermaine Mathews Jr.: 3
Riley Pettijohn: 3
Payton Pierce: 3
Leroy Roker III: 3
Aaron Scott Jr.: 3
Garrett Stover: 3
Joey Velazquez: 3
All three of Fielding’s kickoffs in his final game as a Buckeye went for touchbacks with no return from Miami.
Kickoff Returns
Brandon Inniss (returner): 5
James Peoples (returner): 5
David Adolph: 5
TJ Alford: 5
Riley Pettijohn: 5
Payton Pierce: 5
Nate Roberts: 5
Leroy Roker III: 5
Ryan Rudzinski: 5
Jelani Thurman: 5
Joey Velazquez: 5
Peoples replaced Lorenzo Styles Jr. as one of Ohio State’s kickoff returners against Miami. On the Buckeyes’ only kickoff return of the night, Peoples was stopped at the 18-yard line on a return out of the end zone.
| Rank | Pos | Player | Snaps |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | LB | PAYTON PIERCE | 212 |
| 2 | S | LEROY ROKER III | 173 |
| 3 | K | JAYDEN FIELDING | 162 |
| 4 | LB | RILEY PETTIJOHN | 157 |
| 5 | TE | JELANI THURMAN | 132 |
| 6 | LB | JOEY VELAZQUEZ | 129 |
| 7 | CB | BRYCE WEST | 114 |
| 8 | P | JOE MCGUIRE | 110 |
| 9 | S | JAYLEN McCLAIN | 108 |
| 10 | LS | JOHN FERLMANN | 106 |
| 10 | WR | BRANDON INNISS | 106 |
Punts
Joe McGuire (punter): 6
John Ferlmann (long snapper): 6
Bennett Christian: 6
Caden Curry: 6
Payton Pierce: 6
Arvell Reese: 6
Sonny Styles: 6
Jaylen McClain: 5
Bryce West: 5
Devin Sanchez: 4
Caleb Downs: 3
Leroy Roker III: 3
Aaron Scott Jr.: 2
C.J. Hicks: 1
Lorenzo Styles Jr.: 1
McGuire officially had five punts against Miami, as he was forced to rekick his last punt of the night due to an illegal formation penalty against Ohio State. He averaged 44.2 yards per punt with two punts downed inside the 20-yard line.
Punt Returns
Brandon Inniss (returner): 4
Caleb Downs: 3
Jaylen McClain: 3
Devin Sanchez: 3
TJ Alford: 2
Caden Curry: 2
C.J. Hicks: 2
Eddrick Houston: 2
Kenyatta Jackson Jr.: 2
Brenten “Inky” Jones: 2
Jermaine Mathews Jr.: 2
Kayden McDonald: 2
Riley Pettijohn: 2
Payton Pierce: 2
Arvell Reese: 2
Nate Roberts: 2
Leroy Roker III: 2
Sonny Styles: 2
Aaron Scott Jr.: 1
Lorenzo Styles Jr.: 1
Bryce West: 1
Inniss returned just one of Miami’s four punts in the Cotton Bowl, gaining three yards on his return.
Field Goal/Extra Point Block
Caden Curry: 4
Caleb Downs: 4
Eddrick Houston: 4
Kenyatta Jackson Jr.: 4
Jermaine Mathews Jr.: 4
Jaylen McClain: 4
Kayden McDonald: 4
Payton Pierce: 4
Arvell Reese: 4
Sonny Styles: 4
Davison Igbinosun: 3
Devin Sanchez: 1
Miami’s Carter Davis converted all four of his kick attempts in the Cotton Bowl, a 49-yard field goal as well as three extra points.
