A look at what Michigan’s biggest rival has been up to this offseason.
The Ohio State Buckeyes . You know ‘em, you love ‘em (no you don’t), and they’re likely to be the stiffest test on Michigan’s schedule once again. They call it “The Game” for a reason, and it can make or break the whole season for either side.
With the new conference alignment and playoff format, it’s possible that the regular season rendition of “The Game” has lower stakes than years past, but the hatred between the two schools remains the same. As long as these two play each other, it’s simply a must-win.
Today, we’ll be taking a closer look at what’s been going on behind enemy lines and breaking down Ohio State’s offseason and what its expectations are for the 2024 season.
The Basics:
Game info: November 30, 12:00 PM (Ohio Stadium, FOX)
2023 record: 11-2
2024 projected wins: 10.5 (per FanDuel)
Roster Moves:
Key draft losses: WR Marvin Harrison Jr., DT Michael Hall, TE Cade Stover, LB Tommy Eichenberg, LB Steele Chambers (UDFA), S Josh Proctor (UDFA)
Key portal losses: RB Dallan Hayden, RB Chip Trayanum, WR Julian Fleming, S Cameron Martinez, QB Kyle McCord, P Jesse Mirco, WR Noah Rogers
Key portal additions: S Caleb Downs, RB Quinshon Judkins, IOL Seth McLaughlin, QB Will Howard, QB Julian Sayin
For more on Ohio State’s portal endeavors, click here
State of the Program:
Ohio State finds itself in a similar situation that Michigan was in after the 2019 season. The Wolverines have won “The Game” three years in a row, and Buckeye fans are starting to grow impatient with Ryan Day and the current way things are trending in the rivalry. However, for Ohio State, defeating Michigan is only one of its goals heading into 2024.
As has been the custom for years now, the Buckeyes are entering the season as title contenders and are considered one of the nation’s elite teams due its collection of talent.
Regardless of how it has performed against Michigan in recent years, Ohio State still recruits at an elite level and always has one of the nation’s most best rosters. It’s no exception heading into 2024, as the Buckeyes just landed the nation’s No. 5 class according to the 247Sports composite after assembling the nation’s No. 4 overall class in 2023 .
This was supplemented with some big portal additions too, namely safety Caleb Downs (Alabama) quarterback Will Howard (Kansas State), and running back Quinshon Judkins (Ole Miss).
Additionally, the Buckeyes are returning several seniors who likely would have been picked early in the NFL Draft if they had declared this season. This list includes guys like TreVeyon Henderson, Emeka Egbuka, Denzel Burke, Jack Sawyer, and J.T. Tuimoloau.
On the coaching side, Ryan Day is back for his sixth year as head coach, while Jim Knowles is back as defensive coordinator for a third season. Not everything is staying the same on this front though, as Chip Kelly takes over as offensive coordinator.
Kelly comes over to Ohio State after a lackluster stint as the head coach at UCLA . Before that though, Kelly coached the Eagles and 49ers in the NFL and was one of the best coaches in all of college football at Oregon from 2009 to 2012. In that time, he assembled one of the nation’s best offenses and oversaw the start of Marcus Mariota’s college career.
Ohio State’s offense noticeably didn’t have the same explosiveness we’ve seen in recent years. The Buckeyes averaged 44.2 points per game in 2022 but regressed to 30.5 in 2023. The hope is that Kelly’s guidance and the additions of Quinshon Judkins and Will Howard can return the spark.
That’ll be tough considering Ohio State will have to replace Marvin Harrison Jr., but five-star receivers have flocked to Columbus recently, and guys like Carnell Tate and Jeremiah Smith should complement Emeka Egbuka nicely.
There are fewer questions on defense. Ohio State’s unit appears to be rock-solid on paper and is led by Denzel Burke, Tyleik Williams, Caleb Downs, and J.T. Tuimoloau, but “The Game” should once again come down to Jim Knowles’ ability to stop Michigan’s smash mouth attack. Can they do it? We’ll wait and see.