Michigan Wolverines Football: Opponent Preview: Ohio State Lost A Lot, But Has The Talent To Reload

Note: A version of this Michigan Wolverines opponent preview appears in The Wolverine's Michigan Football Preview magazine, which can be purchased by clicking HERE.

Ohio State Buckeyes Quick Facts

All-Time Series: Michigan leads 58-51-6

First Meeting: U-M 34, OSU 0 (Oct. 16, 1897 at Ann Arbor)

Last Meeting: OSU 56, U-M 27 (Nov. 30, 2019 at Ann Arbor)

Head Coach: Ryan Day, 23-2 at Ohio State and overall (3rd full year)

2020 In Review: 7-1 overall, 5-0 Big Ten (1st East)

Final 2020 Ranking: No. 2 in Associated Press and coaches’ polls

Returning Starters: 11 (7 offense, 4 defense, 0 specialists)

Last Bowl Appearance: 2020 (Allstate Sugar Bowl vs. Clemson, W 49-28)

Ohio State Buckeyes Returning Leaders

Passing: None

Rushing: Master Teague III (514 yards, 8 TD)

Receiving: Chris Olave (729 yards, 7 TD)

Tackles: Marcus Williamson (27)

Sacks: Haskell Garrett (2)

Interceptions: Four tied (1)

Players To Watch

Offense: Chris Olave, Jr., WR — The 6-1, 189-pounder was named a preseason first-team All-American by Athlon Sports … Has accumulated 111 receptions for 1,775 yards and 22 touchdowns during his career.

Defense: Haskell Garrett, 5th-Sr., DT — The 6-2, 300-pounder has totaled 40 tackles, 6.5 stops for loss and two sacks during his career … Was named to Athlon Sports’ preseason All-Big Ten second team.

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Ohio State Buckeyes Preview

For a second straight season, Ohio State breezed through the Big Ten and posted an undefeated regular-season record. Indiana, which lost by seven to the Buckeyes, was the only conference team to give them a real fight in 2020.

OSU, which didn’t play arch rival Michigan for the first time since 1917 due to COVID-19 concerns within the Wolverines’ program, was able to squeak into the Big Ten Championship thanks to a rule change (teams were originally mandated to play in at least six games to qualify; the Buckeyes played five). Ohio State took on Northwestern and came away victorious. That propelled them into their second-straight College Football Playoff appearance, where they beat Clemson in the Sugar Bowl before falling to Alabama in the title game.

The top storyline of the offseason in Columbus surrounds the quarterback position. There are three signal-callers in the room — second-year freshmen C.J. Stroud and Jack Miller, and freshman Kyle McCord — who were highly ranked out of high school and have the opportunity to compete for the starting job now that former Georgia transfer Justin Fields, who threw for 5,373 yards and 63 touchdowns in 22 games over the last two years, is off to the NFL as a first-round pick to the Chicago Bears.

Stroud appears to be the favorite after taking the majority of the first-team reps in the spring, though head coach Ryan Day didn’t name a starter.

Whoever winds up being the starter will have some dangerous weapons to work with. Seven offensive starters are returning, including a pair of elite wideouts in junior Chris Olave and sophomore Garrett Wilson. Olave posted 729 yards and seven scores and Wilson accumulated 723 yards and six touchdowns in 2020. Those two were the team’s leading receivers, and the Buckeyes also return the man who checked in third — junior tight end Jeremy Ruckert (151 yards and five scores).

Junior running back Master Teague III was second on the team in rushing yards last season — behind only Trey Sermon (897 yards), who was a third-round NFL Draft pick this spring — with 540, but he was the go-to ball carrier to punch it into the end zone, leading the team with eight rushing scores. The Buckeyes ranked eighth nationally in rushing offense, averaging 256.9 yards per game.

The Buckeyes return three starters along the offensive line, headlined by junior left tackle Thayer Munford, a three-time All-Big Ten standout (first team in 2020).

While quarterback is on the list of question marks, the defense as a whole is a full-blown concern, though there’s plenty of high-end talent on the unit. Ohio State ranked first nationally in total defense in 2019, but dropped to No. 59 in the country last season.

The back end of the defense struggled mightily, giving up 304.0 yards per game, which ranked 122nd (out of 127 teams) in the land. Shoring that up will be an emphasis for Day and defensive coordinator Kerry Coombs heading into the 2021 campaign.

The secondary is highlighted by junior corner Sevyn Banks, who was inconsistent last season — allowing 39 receptions and four touchdowns on 61 targets, per Pro Football Focus — but notched seven passes broken up and one interception.

While there is concern about the corners and safeties, the Buckeye front seven should be strong, despite losing key pieces in linebackers Tuf Borland and Pete Werner — the Buckeyes’ two leading tacklers a year ago — with the strength this season likely to be at the line of scrimmage.

The defensive line will be anchored by fifth-year senior tackle Haskell Garrett, who notched 20 tackles, four stops for loss and two sacks last season. He will have two bookend edge defenders — junior Zach Harrison and junior Tyreke Smith — outside of him. Harrison made 4.5 tackles for loss and two sacks last season, while Smith posted one of each.

Michigan vs. Ohio State (Nov. 27) — The Wolverine's Take

• Ohio State will be the toughest game on the schedule of any team that has the Buckeyes on their regular-season schedule, including Michigan. The Scarlet and Gray are once again the Big Ten title favorites and a national championship contender. Right now, it doesn't look realistic to think the Wolverines have a good chance to knock off the rival, though that's all on paper and we haven't seen either team play a game yet.

• While this game is at home, that hasn't meant a ton for Michigan over the last several years. And coming off a 2-4 season and with much to prove in 2021, the Wolverines are going to have to prove a lot in the first 11 games to convince many that this will be a competitive contest, especially considering the way the last two have gone.

• The Wolverines haven't kept it within single digits against Ohio State since 2017, and they lost by a combined 52 points in the last two meetings, but they're only 13.5-point home underdogs against the Buckeyes Nov. 27. OSU has plenty to replace, including first-round draft pick quarterback Justin Fields, but they have enough talent to reload. That is reflected by the fact that they're over/under win total is set at 11.

• Still, though, question marks remain — and winning the Big Ten (again) will be no layup this year. OSU's pass defense was brutal last season, and teams will be able to once again exploit that weakness if it isn't fixed. There's no guarantee that Stroud, who appears to be the favorite to win the quarterback job, will play at a high level in his first year taking meaningful snaps. For the first time under Day, OSU has a lot to prove heading into the season, even coming off a national championship game appearance.