LovingBuckeye

Downs is a safety, so I would never expect him to do anything other than helping over the top, or covering RB's and TE's. Denzel Burke was burned by Steward, but luckily Burke has graduated and Jermaine Matthews Jr & Davison Igbinosun are the top two cornerbacks.

Yeah, those are excuses too. Michigan has won four years in a row because they were tougher and more physical than Ohio State. Just because it's coming from Ohio State fans doesn't make it any less than a BS excuse.

Simmons was a non-factor. That doesn't mean he will be on 8/30, and that's what really matters. The Cotton Bowl was in the past.

Running backs without a good OL are nothing. Everything starts up front. Like I said, Will Howard had plenty of time in the pocket, and the backs had clear gaps to run through. Those were the entire games against Indiana, Tennessee, Oregon, and Notre Dame. Will Howard had plenty of time to throw against Texas as well.

Caleb Downs is the same way. High IQ, a coach in the field, but he's also athletic enough to be a top 10 NFL draft pick. Taafe is good, but 99.9% of non Texas CFB fans are taking Caleb Downs for a reason. 100% of NFL GM's are taking Caleb Downs for a reason.

Yes, his athleticism is a huge difference between him and Taafe.

More than anything, Downs' strength is his football IQ and how quickly he reacts. He is also one of the surest tacklers I have every seen come through Columbus. He just doesn't miss tackles.

All I know is, the moment you bring up excuses, you have already lost.

Taffe's an All-American, of course he's good. Caleb Downs is a top 10 NFL draft pick playing in college football.

No, Ohio State's offensive line dominated their defensive lines. Ohio State could have scored 70 against Tennessee if they wanted, ran right through Oregon and Notre Dame, due to the clean pockets the OL created, and the running lanes they created for Judkins and Henderson.

I'll be honestly, I didn't even know the name of Klare until he committed to Ohio State. And Ohio State even played Purdue last season. But everybody keeps telling me he is an elite TE so I'm excited to see it lol

That is certainly a homer comment, and an opinion that nobody outside of maybe you and a few others in the UT fan base would hold if they actually had a chance to pick one of the two safeties, but I've made plenty of homer comments, so I don't judge you.

I get it, but you need to know (you in general, not you literally) which practice reports you throw out and which ones to listen to. Pay attention to how the players react when certain names are brought up, or is there one consistent player a certain coach, or all of the coaches keep bringing up all off season, especially when unprompted. Also pay attention to position battles and how quickly they are won or lost. As far as Siereveld goes, Ohio State gives out what they call the "Iron Buckeye" aware for winter and spring lifting and general weight room competitions. Seireveld was an Iron Buckeye in the winder, and again in the spring and then won the starting LT position very quickly over Ethan Onianwa. On top of multiple coaches saying Siereveld has been playing very well.

Julian Sayin is the #1 question mark I am most excited about learning about on Saturday, #2 is what a Matt Patricia D looks like. I'm expecting a lot of exotic blitzes and simulated pressures against that new look OL.

Caleb Downs will be around the scrimmage, playing a similar role to the Cotton Bowl. It'll be a lot of the nickel back moving to deep safety (like Jordan Hancock last year), except this year it would be Lorenzo Styles Jr who is the starting nickel back, or Aaron Scott Jr, Bryce West, or Devin Sanchez.

Sure, if you are only looking at snaps. But LG Luke Montgomery, C Carson Hinzman, and RG Tegra Tshabola just dominated Indiana, Tennessee, Oregon, and Notre Dame, and played well enough for OSU to win against Texas. We know we can win a national championship with that interior OL because we just did it. As for Austin Siereveld, yes he was always the #1 backup at either guard position. I don't expect other fan bases to just take an Ohio State's word for it, but it seems like the coaches know exactly what they are going to get from Siereveld, and it seems like they expect it to be a very high level.

As I posted in a previous thread, when only comparing the players who will actually be playing this game, Texas has the slight talent advantage over Ohio State.

Ohio State's RT (Josh Fryar) was the weak link on the OL last season. Whether it is Phillip Daniels (the favorite at this point) or Ethan Onianwa, the RT position will be better for Ohio State.

I know what you are saying, but this is also based on practice reports from the spring all the way through fall camp. By all reports, Kenyatta Jackson Jr is looking and playing like a 1st or 2nd round pick. Although I will grant you that not much has been said one way or the other about Caden Curry/Beau Atkinson on the other side. As for linebacker - Cody Simon was a leader and very experienced, but Arvel Reese has a much higher ceiling and is much faster and more athletic than Simon was, plus Sonny Styles was always a safety, last season was his first at linebacker, so we are expecting another jump for the former 5* #12 overall prospect. As for DB's. Denzel Burke was experienced, but never a lockdown cornerback. We are expecting an upgrade with Jermaine Matthews Jr taking his snaps. Matthews Jr is an actual NFL prospect, where I don't even think Burke made an NFL roster. Losing Jordan Hancock doesn't worry us just because of the insane recruiting at the CB position. Lathan Ransom could be the biggest loss of the secondary and one that may hurt Ohio State the most. That will be Jaylen McClain and Malik Hartford competing to replace him. As for defensive tackles, there was never a concern about the starters (Eddrick Houston & Kayden McDonald), the concerns have been about 3-5. I am personally still concerned about the depth, but Ryan Day seems confident that they developed good depth over the off season, so hopefully that isn't an issue either.

I know I'm biased, but I think Ohio State might not have the #1 TE in the country, but has the #1 TE room in the country. They legitimately go 4 deep with guys who could playing meaningful snaps against Texas. I think Klare is going to be one of the top TE's in CFB, but maybe not #1 or #2.

It’s because many of these players have been in the program for 3-4 years already, and we know what we are getting from them. It doesn’t mean Texas won’t win, or there won’t be hiccups though

With it be Ohio State that is surprised, or Texas? I can just as easily see Texas being surprised that there is no drop off in Ohio State’s D (if that happens).

BCarp is a real one. I can’t wait to listen to this

We wanted him in prison for treason. He did go 4/4 in the playoffs so we are hoping (praying) that momentum carries over into the regular season

I think it’s because in their minds Ohio State has the best secondary in CFB, and if Texas has the #1 LB room, then Ohio State has the #2 LB room. That combined with two new WRs, and 4 new OL and a new TE they aren’t expecting Texas to be able to move the ball consistently unless it’s coming from Arch’s legs