HARTLINE TO USF
Ohio State offensive coordinator Brian Hartline is expected to become the next head coach at USF.
After Ohio State beat the team up north by a final score of 27-9, we share the game’s grades from Pro Football Focus, which grades every player after every game based on how they perform on a snap-to-snap basis.
We compiled the PFF grades for every Buckeye who played on either offense or defense in the 11th game of the season and highlight the three highest-graded players who played at least 10 snaps against the Wolverines. A familiar name is back in the top spot, along with two players who had not previously made the top three this year.
| ELITE | GOOD | ABOVE AVG. | AVG. | BELOW AVG. | POOR | VERY POOR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 90-100 | 80-89 | 70-79 | 60-69 | 50-59 | 40-49 | Below 40 |
1. QB Julian Sayin (82.0)
How dominant has Julian Sayin been this season? He has been Ohio State's highest-rated player for half of the season's 12 games. That happens when you are the best graded quarterback in overall offense (93.4) and passing (93.2) in the nation for the season.
Another category Sayin has been super in is completing passes. Not only is his completion percentage of 78.9 the best of any quarterback this season, it's the highest for any quarterback for a season ... ever.
Julian Sayin to Carnell Tate. The best downfield passing duo in the countrypic.twitter.com/00OVxZhXEz
— PFF College (@PFF_College) November 29, 2025
2. DT Tywone Malone Jr. (80.0)
With an overall defensive grade of 80, Tywone Malone Jr. was the conference's highest-rated defensive tackle in the final week of the regular season. He also graded well in rush defense, with an 80.1 run rating that ranked second in the Big Ten.
Malone is not alone when it comes to defensive tackles making Ohio State's top three this year. He's the fourth DT to make the list, joining Kayden McDonald, Will Smith Jr. and Eddrick Houston to have an outstanding performance in a game this season.
3. S Caleb Downs (78.4)
For the first time this season, Caleb Downs finally grades out as one of Ohio State's top three players for a game. His defensive grade of 78.4 was the fourth-best among Big Ten safeties in Week 14.
For the season, Downs has a coverage grade of 89.4 and an overall grade of 87.2. Both grades put Downs behind USC's Bishop Fitzgerald and Oregon's Dillon Thieneman for third in the conference at his position.
1. Caleb Downs, Ohio State
— PFF College (@PFF_College) November 29, 2025
26. Xavier Nwankpa, Iowa
2026 NFL Draft Safety Rankingshttps://t.co/UpXeEYvSM0
Extra Points
- Kayden McDonald leads the nation's defensive tackles with a grade of 92.2 for the season.
- Jelani Thurman has an overall grade of 88.4 for the season, which is the highest among all Big Ten tight ends.
- Carson Hinzman was Ohio State's best pass blocker (83.1) against Michigan.
- Caden Curry graded out with a 77.4 in rush defense, which was second best in the Big Ten among defensive ends; he's also the conference's best defensive end with an overall grade of 90.8 for the season.
- Bennett Christian (30.2) had the lowest grade of any Buckeye with at least five snaps, with Davison Igbinosun (51.7) earning the lowest defensive grade of any Ohio State player against Michigan.
- Carnell Tate is the conference's second-highest rated player in receiving (89.9), overall offense (90.1) and drops (91.4) for the season.
- Sonny Styles has the best tackling grade in the nation (92.2). His 58 tackles without a miss are the most of any player this season.
- Brandon Inniss was the Big Ten's second-best punt returner for Week 14.
- Jaylen McClain was the Buckeyes' best tackler (82.0) against the Wolverines.
- Bo Jackson had the highest receiving grade (85.9) among all Big Ten running backs with at least two catches last week. He also outgained Michigan in total yards.
Bo Jackson: 166 Total Yards vs Michigan
— PFF College (@PFF_College) December 1, 2025
Michigan as a TEAM Combined for 163 Yards pic.twitter.com/NNSgr7jG0L
PFFT
For it to take PFF 12 weeks for Caleb Downs to finally be among Ohio State's top three players for a game is hard to comprehend. It almost didn't happen again this week. A little look behind the curtain.
When we first recorded this week's grades at 4:30 on Tuesday afternoon, Downs was in fourth place behind Bo Jackson. We checked the grades again at 5:45 and PFF had updated 23 of the 37 Buckeyes who played on offense and defense. The latest grades put Downs one-tenth of a point ahead of Jackson's 78.3 for third.
There is another peculiarity to this week's rankings and it relates to Ohio State players who received grades below Michigan's Bryce Underwood. The phenomenal Wolverine freshman completed 8/18 passes for 63 yards and an interception against Ohio State and earned an overall grade of 60.8 for that stellar performance.
Underwood's score was higher than the following Buckeyes: Jeremiah Smith, Jermaine Mathews Jr., Max Klare, Luke Montgomery and Davison Igbinosun.
Pfft indeed.
| GAME | 1 | 2 | 3 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Texas |
DT Kayden McDonald (82.4) |
DT Will Smith Jr. (80.7) |
CB Jermaine Mathews Jr. (78.0) |
| Grambling |
DT Kayden McDonald (93.6) |
TE Jelani Thurman (93.0) |
QB Lincoln Kienholz (88.1) |
| Ohio | DE Caden Curry (92.5) | LB Sonny Styles (89.2) | QB Julian Sayin (85.4) |
| Washington | DE Caden Curry (80.3)* | OL Carson Hinzman (80.3)* | OL Austin Siereveld (75.8) |
| Minnesota | QB Julian Sayin (91.9) | WR Carnell Tate (86.9) | S Lorenzo Styles Jr. (84.8) |
| Illinois | QB Julian Sayin (86.0) | DT Kayden McDonald (85.5) | DE Caden Curry (79.0) |
| Wisconsin | QB Julian Sayin (91.4) | WR Carnell Tate (82.5) | LB Payton Pierce (80.8) |
| Penn State |
QB Julian Sayin (92.7) |
DT Eddrick Houston (92.2) | WR Jeremiah Smith (90.1) |
| Purdue | QB Julian Sayin (89.2) | DT Kayden McDonald (88.3) | WR Jeremiah Smith (87.2) |
| UCLA | RT Phillip Daniels (90.1) | TE Nate Roberts (87.9) | RB James Peoples (86.7) |
| Rutgers | DE Caden Curry (92.8) | CB Davison Igbinosun (90.6)# | Jelani Thurman (90.6)# |
| Michigan | QB Julian Sayin (82.0) | DT Tywone Malone Jr. (80.0) | S Caleb Downs (78.4) |
*Curry and Hinzman tied for first against Washington.
#Igbinosun and Thurman tied for second against Rutgers
Offensive Ratings By Position
Quarterback
Julian Sayin: 82.0 (73 snaps)
Running Backs
Bo Jackson: 78.3 (37 snaps)
CJ Donaldson: 65.9 (28 snaps)
Isaiah West: 59.9 (8 snaps)
James Peoples: 57.8 (4 snaps)
Wide Receivers
Carnell Tate: 75.6 (42 snaps)
Brandon Inniss: 70.7 (23 snaps)
Jeremiah Smith: 60.4 (45 snaps)
Bryson Rodgers: 59.0 (14 snaps)
Mylan Graham: 58.3 (1 snap)
David Adolph: 56.8 (13 snaps)
Tight Ends
Will Kacmarek: 71.2 (65 snaps)
Max Klare: 54.1 (31 snaps)
Nate Roberts: 54.1 (19 snaps)
Jelani Thurman: 52.0 (8 snaps)
Bennett Christian: 30.2 (26 snaps)
Offensive Line
Austin Siereveld: 73.5 (73 snaps)
Phillip Daniels: 69.0 (72 snaps)
Carson Hinzman: 61.2 (73 snaps)
Ian Moore: 60.0 (1 snap)
Luke Montgomery: 53.9 (73 snaps)
Tegra Tshabola: 50.1 (73 snaps)
| QB | RB | WR | TE | OL | DE | DT | LB | CB | S |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Julian Sayin | Bo Jackson | Carnell Tate | Will Kacmarek | Austin Siereveld | Caden Curry | Tywone Malone Jr. | Sonny Styles | Jermaine Mathews Jr. | Caleb Downs |
| 82.0 | 78.3 | 75.6 | 71.2 | 73.5 | 73.6 | 80.0 | 73.5 | 56.8 | 78.4 |
Defensive Ratings by Position
Defensive Ends
Caden Curry: 73.6 (44 snaps)
Kenyatta Jackson Jr.: 71.8 (44 snaps)
Defensive Tackles
Tywone Malone Jr.: 80.0 (22 snaps)
Kayden McDonald: 73.9 (29 snaps)
Eddrick Houston: 66.6 (21 snaps)
Will Smith Jr.: 53.5 (8 snaps)
Linebackers
Sonny Styles: 73.5 (44 snaps)
Arvell Reese: 73.2 (44 snaps)
Payton Pierce: 60.6 (12 snaps)
Cornerbacks
Devin Sanchez: 64.7 (8 snaps)
Jermaine Mathews Jr.: 56.8 (44 snaps)
Davison Igbinosun: 51.7 (44 snaps)
Safeties
Caleb Downs: 78.4 (44 snaps)
Lorenzo Styles Jr.: 68.6 (32 snaps)
Jaylen McClain: 61.3 (44 snaps)
