Gabe VanSickle gets his chance to live up to his Sicko Mode nickname under the bright College Football Playoff lights on Wednesday.
With starting right guard Tegra Tshabola sidelined by injury, VanSickle will start at right guard for the Buckeyes against Miami in the CFP quarterfinals at the Cotton Bowl. VanSickle was announced in the AT&T Stadium press box as a starter and warmed up with Ohio State's first team pregame.
VanSickle, a redshirt freshman, gained great momentum late in the season with Ohio State. The Buckeyes have rolled Tshabola at the right guard position most of the season, starting with Rice transfer Ethan Onianwa as the next man in the first three games before Joshua Padilla took over the rotational spot in game four vs. Minnesota. Then, in OSU's eighth game against Penn State, he went down late with an injury.
Enter VanSickle, who saw his first meaningful extended action with 13 snaps the following week at Purdue. He then actually played more than Tshabola, 44 snaps to 26, against UCLA before the regular starter played the entire duration of the Michigan game.
When Tshabola struggled against Indiana in the Big Ten Championship Game, however, Ohio State's staff benched him and opted for VanSickle for the final three series. Per Pro Football Focus, VanSickle hasn’t allowed a sack in 59 pass-blocking snaps this season, with only two total pressures allowed.
A Northwestern commit at one time, VanSickle was only the composite No. 613 prospect in the recruiting class of 2024 when he committed to Ohio State in November 2023. He vaulted to become a four-star prospect ranked 283rd nationally by the final rankings for the class.
Padilla is expected to rotate with VanSickle, keeping both men fresh against a vaunted Miami defensive line.
