Bring on Penn State: OSU report card

Offensive line

All eyes were on Michael Jordan and his snaps. They looked fine. Against TCU, quarterback Dwayne Haskins looked like he was taking infield practice, he fielded so many ground balls. As former OSU All-America lineman Jim Lachey said on the air Saturday, every second Haskins spends looking down for the ball is wasted time that could have been spent with eyes forward on the defense. Jordan gets a semi-pass because he transitioned this year to center from guard, just like predecessors Pat Elflein and Billy Price, who both won the Rimington Award as the nation's best center in their only year at that position. Jordan was able to move because Malcolm Pridgeon stepped up and has played well at left guard. The Buckeyes had over 400 yards total offense by halftime, so no complaints about this crew.

Grade: A

Running game

It started out like the Buckeyes were going to try and establish a running game, but sticking with an aerial assault proved too enticing. J.K. Dobbins and Mike Weber again alternated series, with Dobbins rushing for 55 yards on 11 carries, including an 8-yard TD. Weber was limited to 18 yards on 6 attempts before suffering what was described as a minor foot strain in the second quarter.

Grade: B

Passing game

There's a chance Dwayne Haskins begins the week leading the nation in touchdown pass with 16 after throwing five in his one half of play Saturday. He spread it around again, throwing a pair to Parris Campbell and the others to Terry McLaurin, Binjamen Victor and Austin Mack. He owed Victor after overthrowing him on what should have been a TD bomb against TCU. Campbell the forgotten man at times, had himself a great "game" in the first quarter. By that point he already had 5 catches for 111 yards and two TDs, one a 37-yarder. At one point, Dwayne Haskins completed 15 straight passes dating back to the TCU game. He finished 21 of 24 for 305 yards and now has a TD-to-INT ratio of 16 to 1.

Grade: A

Defensive line

The Buckeyes need everyone else on this deep crew to step up now that All-American Nick Bosa is out indefinitely after surgery for a core injury. They also were missing starting tackle Robert Landers. So how about this: on Tulane's first play from scrimmage, end Chase Young blew up an option play, tackling QB Jonathan Banks for a 5-yard loss.

There was some thought that OSU might move around Dre'Mont Jones — the Big Ten Player of the Week off his TCU game — in Bosa's absence to keep the defense guessing, but the Buckeyes might be saving that tactic for Penn State.

Grade: A

Linebackers

This crew has not played up to OSU standards, so maybe Dante Booker, a former starter and only senior on the defensive two-deep, may have succeeded in his bid for more playing time, post-injury, with four tackles, including three for losses and a sack. The 'backers accounted for 6.5 of the Buckeyes' 14 tackles for loss. It was a step in the right direction, although they won't be seeing a triple option attack again next week.

Grade: B

Defensive backs

With Nick Bosa out, does that make safety Jordan Fuller the defensive MVP? His absence (hamstring) certainly showed in the opener against Oregon State. He brings stability to a young secondary. We saw some of that inexperience Saturday as Tulane's only touchdown came on a short run after corner Jeff Okudah got beat on a 38-yard pass. I wish I had a dollar for every time over the years a Buckeye DB has been burned on a deep ball because he didn't react to the ball. That's what happened on this play because Okudah was running step for step with the receiver. Okudah did make the best catch of the day with a diving interception of a long pass, but it was waved off because of holding.

Grade: B

Special teams

It was pointed out in the press box Saturday that punter Drue Chrisman played on back-to-back state title teams at Cincinnati LaSalle, so he's used to inactivity. That's certainly been his plight this year. He's been mostly effective when he has punted, but had only 11 attempts coming in and only two Saturday. The Buckeyes had two players flagged for holding on the opening kickoff, but that didn't stop them from mounting a 91-yard TD drive. Tight end Rashod Berry also got caught holding on not one, but two PAT kicks. Sean Nuernberger bailed him out by converting both of the longer kicks. Jonathan Cooper blocked a PAT.

Grade: C

Coaching

Urban Meyer's first game of the season after serving his three-game suspension was also the Buckeyes' final dress rehearsal for next week's showdown at Penn State. Not to over-sell it, but it might be the biggest Big Ten game the Buckeyes play in the regular season. (OK, next to Michigan). Did Meyer see what he needed to? There were too many penalties (10 times for 89 yards), including two for unsportsmanlike conduct. It hopefully won't factor into next week's outcome, but the Tate Martell-led offense didn't produce any points until the final minute of the game. Meyer didn't elaborate early in the week when he said his role would be that of "game manager" but if part of that meant letting co-offensive coordinators Ryan Day and Kevin Wilson run the offense while staying away from his pet designed quarterback runs and read options with Haskins, then, yes, he "managed" quite well. 

Grade: A minus

— Jon Spencer