Welcome to Femme Football, the Ohio State football coverage for Her Campus. Here, you’ll find an overview of this week’s game with in-depth explanation to build your understanding week by week, as well as position highlights that will teach the responsibilities of different players.
Ohio State obliterated Rutgers Saturday night in a shut-out 56-0. The Buckeyes seem to have finally found their groove with a nice mix of running and passing with J.T. Barrett at the helm.
J.T. Barrett passed for 275 yards, utilizing his receivers at last and making him Ohio State’s all-time passing leader. Johnnie Dixon had a 70 yard catch for a touchdown in addition to another touchdown, Binjimen Victor caught one touchdown pass, and Demario McCall caught one and rushed one. In the running game, running back Mike Weber ran for 44 yards and two touchdowns. The Buckeyes have begun to increase their tempo (1) as well, but only when they get comfortable enough with the score.
The defense finally stepped up this game, led by defensive ends (see position highlight) Sam Hubbard and Nick Bosa. Dante Booker and Damon Webb snagged interceptions for the Buckeyes as well, illustrating an active and alert defense. Ohio State led Rutgers 35-0 at the half.
The Buckeyes continue their streak of unnecessary penalties, but against Rutgers, none of the penalties occurred at key points in the game. Holding calls returned, as well as an offside (2), a false start (3), and a face mask (4). However, Rutgers had their fair share of pass interferences (5) and even a delay of game (6).
Terry McLaurin was nearly called for one of the most controversial penalties in college football: targeting (6). In this instance, officials said that McLaurin blindside tackled a Rutgers player, targeting the player’s head and neck area with his helmet. After further review, the call was changed to unnecessary roughness (7) and unsportsmanlike conduct (8). In the fourth quarter, Jahsen Wint was called for targeting and disqualified.
The position highlight this week goes to the Buckeyes’ defense, specifically the defensive ends. The defensive ends are found at the end of the defensive line, and their responsibility is to put pressure on the offensive quarterback, stop any runs on his end, or to sack (9) the quarterback. In the Rutgers game, Sam Hubbard was seen all over the field; covering running backs as well as making his way to the quarterback. Nick Bosa was also efficiently putting pressure on the quarterback as well. Finally, the Buckeyes defense seems to have arrived.
1 Tempo: The speed of the offense; how quickly the offense gets lined up to snap the ball again. Fast tempo does not give the defense enough time to read and adjust.
2 Offside: A foul that occurs at the same time as the snap of the ball. This happens when a defensive player crosses the line of scrimmage too early.
3 False start: The opposite of an offside. Offensive players must be in a set position before the ball is snapped, so if there is movement before the snap, it is a false start.
4 Face mask: A penalty that occurs when player grabs another player’s face mask.
5 Pass interference: A penalty that occurs when a player interferes with a receiver’s ability to make a fair catch.
6 Targeting: A personal foul designed to limit dangerous hits. It is very complicated, but is generally defined as helmet-to-helmet contact, a player blocking by leading with his helmet, or a player blocking at another player’s head and neck area.
7 Unnecessary roughness: A penalty that includes hitting a player out of bounds, dog-piling an already down player, or unnecessary violent contact.
8 Unsportsmanlike conduct: A penalty for bad sportsmanship.
9 Sack: When a defender tackles the quarterback while he is still in possession of the ball for a loss of yards.