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Ross Fulton Analysis: How Ohio State's Defense Dominated Penn State · Buckeyes TomOrrow Morning

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  Welcome to buck Eyes Tomorrow Morning for Friday, October twenty seventh. I'm your
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  host, Tom Moore. The Wisconsin game is tomorrow, the game against Michigan
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  in twenty nine days. Today's episode presented by Jeff Ruby Steakhouse, the award
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  winning Upscale steakhouse in downtown Columbus, named one of the top fifty steakhouses in
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  the nation by Food Network. You can go to Jeffruby dot com to get
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  a look at the menu and make a reservation today. Jeff Ruby sponsors all
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  of our shows where we feature Ross Fulton, the ex's and o's guru from
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  Buckeye Huddle dot com. Yesterday we talked about the Ohio State offensive performance against
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  Penn State and it was mostly good news. Today, Ross, we're talking
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  about the twenty twenty twenty three Ohio State defense, which means it is pretty
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  much all good news. Today. Buckeyes held Penn State to just one first
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  down conversion zero for fifteen in the first fifty nine minutes of the game.
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  That is pretty durn good against a top ten opponent. Let's start with Let's
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  start with just how did they This started a little rough for Ohio State.
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  Penn State hit a couple big runs off the start of the game. But
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  boy it it didn't that you know, the bad news didn't last very long.
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  Yeah, I think Jim Knowles made a comment after the game. Someone
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  asked about, like these a couple early runs of Penn States, and what
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  went wrong is like I made bad play calls and I stopped doing it,
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  which you know, it was obviously funny, but like he did, in
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  fact stop doing what he was doing early. So Ohio State came out and
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  played, especially those first two series, a lot of the split safety concepts
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  that we've been talking about the past couple of weeks. Like you know,
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  like early you saw some quarter quarter half, you saw some like three safety
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  too high, and this first run plays cover four, and they had some
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  problems fitting the run from them, like with the seven wide spacing, and
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  you know, these are some of the issues that we've discussed previously. So
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  like this one's cover four, Penn State runs a CT counter so the center
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  and tackle polling. JT. Twomloo flies upfield, leaving this big hole and
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  then like you know, between Tommy Eickenberg and Lathan Ranson like coming down as
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  the cover for safety, they have to fill it and they kind of fill
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  the same gap. It's it's not clear to me whether that's like on JT
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  he should have been crashing down and flies to Forup's field or it was designed
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  that way and those guys need to fill correctly. But in any case,
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  they largely stopped after these couple of series playing their split safety coverages except on
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  passing downs. Like I saw a couple quarter quarter half occasionally to get the
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  corner in the fit, but like it became much more of throwback to last
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  year single high eight. Everything gapped out, you know a lot of cover
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  one and they had the defensive ends pinched down hard on this kind of action.
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  So like Penn State tried to run this centered tackle counter a couple more
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  times, and it was never successful because whether it's JT or another defensive end,
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  like they'd wrong arm it, dent it hard, spilled the football outside
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  and there'd be you know, several guys waiting. It was funny what a
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  week or two ago, Jim Knowles was talking about how, you know,
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  he's asked about how he's not blitzing as much. It's like, yeah,
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  well, you know, I mean, it's it's in there. You may
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  see more of that in the coming weeks. Next play we're talking about.
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  Yes, in fact, the blitz is back ross It's is, and you
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  know it has been pretty effective when they've gone to it. This one was
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  a very big play by Jordan Hancock, who had a pretty darn good game
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  against Penn State. Yeah, I mean he really did. And like,
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  you know, they blitzed more against Purdue. Like I think it's just the
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  repertoire. It keeps expanding, right, so they have more things that they
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  can do without blitzing, and they have more blitz options as well, and
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  so like you saw a lot of Cover one in this game. But like
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  you know, Jordan Hancock, I mean it's really impressive because like even against
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  you know, Penn State did try to take a page from Notre Dame's playbook
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  and use like some two back stuff or twenty one personnel and they tried to
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  catch a high a State in their nickel package. But like I mean,
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  both Jordan Hancock and David enigmin Nosen are really stout against the run. Like
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  you know, there were times where Hancock would be lined up as a sam
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  linebacker over the tight end and basically playing the D gap and so here.
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  Yeah, they use you know, they bring him on a run blitz like
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  a see he takes a C gap, Tommy Ackenberg takes the B gap and
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  obviously comes through untouched. But like again you're starting to see, like you
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  know, we talked about in previous weeks, like oh, is the is
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  the run defense the concern you know, shortyard are concerned. I'm like,
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  well, they you see them when they want to be aggressive against it,
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  It's not a concern, right, And it just it was again to me,
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  it was always largely a matter of like they were playing things somewhat conservatively,
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  and like now as they're amping it up, they are really starting to
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  to stuff those third shorts. But like you know, I just think it's
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  just like across the board even beyond like the scheme, Like the tackling's really
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  good, like you're these are the best tackling, the best tackling Ohio States
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  had from its corners a year. Like the execution's good, Like you know,
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  Penn State did try like they tried the one like reverse fleef throwback fleef
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  flicker pass. They tried the one you know, throw out wide to the
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  wide receiver with a backward lateral and then he throws deep like Ohio State like
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  was on top of those. I think they caught him Ohio State one time
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  where Lathan Ransom peaked in the backfield and they hit a tight end throwback.
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  Like other than that, like they stuffed pretty much everything else. So like
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  they're just playing with like a high level of execution and like soundness as well.
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  Yeah, that double pass to the wide receiver, I believe that was
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  the first snap right after that punt hit. The hit the coverage guy for
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  Ohio State. Like that is the classic take a shot kind of play,
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  sudden change situation. The reason that's a classic take a shot situation is because
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  it's a sudden change. You're not expecting to be out there, and all
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  of a sudden boom, you're back out there. And they were. They
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  were right on it. Those guys talking about being on their p's and q's,
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  they were on their p's and q's on that one. Uh. Another
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  thing that's been a little different. Yes, the tackling has been better.
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  Cover zero no longer makes Ohio State fans wins. This is the next one
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  is a cover zero play and it was good news for Ohio State. You
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  know, more pressure you talk. We talked about Jordan Hancock bringing the pressure
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  this last time. This time it's Tommy Eigenberg and Josh Procter. It is
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  coming from kind of all different directions here. Yeah, and again, so
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  like I mean, I think Joel Klatt's like a little overstated, like during
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  the game and he's talking about like, oh, I see it hasn't done
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  cover zero at all this year, like they do it, but like they
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  first, He's definitely been more more risk averse in general, but like they
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  continue to solely sort of turn it back up right, and so like we
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  saw this earlier. We talked about sort of a similar cover zero on the
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  goal line against Purdue last week, and so like again like one of the
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  benefits and I think we talked about this, Like one of the reasons I
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  think that he's he's tended to be more conservative is because like Ohio States safeties
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  are can be linebackers if they want to be, Like Josh Proctor is a
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  very good stam linebacker as you see here, and so like you know,
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  you again you get cover zero. You have my call first of all,
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  resetting the line of scrimmage, and like I'd be remiss if I didn't like
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  say, like the defensive line controlled the game like Ohio says, defensive tackles
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  like repeatedly, particularly controlled Penn State center and just like reset him into the
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  backfield and like time it again they were they were in whether a two dollars
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  face or like stopping the run place. So you have, you know,
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  my call here resetting it and then you have an ac gap pressure from Eikenberg
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  and Proctor and like again it's just it's a great form tackle in the whole
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  as well, like it's a safety. You know, he's getting down a
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  pretty talented running back and so again you just have stop play. Like obviously,
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  now the question becomes going forward, like you know, if you're going
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  to be more aggressive, like you got to tackle while and they and they
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  did do that on Saturday, like when the when the ball dig it out,
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  you know, like Jermaine Matthews had a nice tackle in space and so
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  you know, so it's it's always going to be a give and take,
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  but you're you're certainly seeing them get off the field with easier and third down
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  obviously with like one to fifteen on Saturday. But part of that is because
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  they're they're amping up you know what they're doing, and they have been amping
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  up what they're doing upfront. I mean, this is this was this next
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  one is playing a little playing some games up front, getting some pressure,
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  and then getting a really nice play out of a true freshman corner, which
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  is not something you can necessarily always rely on. Boy. I mean I
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  said earlier that Jordan Hancock had a pretty good game, Jermaine Matthews had a
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  pretty good game, and you think you kind of have to grade him on
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  the he's a true freshman curve. But even without that, he had a
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  pretty solid game on Saturday, Yeah, for sure. And talking on the
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  latter point first, like going into the game, I sort of assume that,
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  you know, without Denzel Burke, like obviously that was a big concern,
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  and you kind of assad, well, at a minimum, it's Penn
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  State. They play a lot of twelve person channel, so you're probably only
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  you know, you have Jordan Hancock, you bumped him outside, You're probably
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  not gonna need Jermaine Matthews a ton. But it actually ended up viewing the
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  snap count like two thirds of the snaps or a nickel with Hancock inside and
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  Jermaine Mathews on the field, and yeah, he played really well. So
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  yes, you get a you get a nice play from him, and like
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  pen Sate did try to test him a couple of times, and you know,
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  he performed very well. Like you know, he looks the part.
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  But you know, as Michael pettit's talked about on bucket Huddle like every week
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  Noles kind of keeps introducing like new pressure packages, and this seemed to be
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  a new one this week. So like you saw a lot of ted pressures,
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  which is like you know, a tackle and stunt where the tackle is
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  going first, so the tackle is taking an outside path and basically trying to
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  pick off the offensive tackle and letting the defensive end loop inside. And so
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  you know, in particular with JT. Twomloa, they were doing a lot
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  of that to try to get him free coming in external internal pressure and so
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  on this one, you actually it's a cover one and you have Kenyata Jackson
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  is the other defensive end dropping and sort of as a robber from and from
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  that gives them an overload pressure. Again, so you're you're just seeing these
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  different different packages from Jim Knowles, whether they're you know, Cover one pressures
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  or he you know, you saw there's a little bit of fire zone with
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  some three deep three unders in this game, a couple of hot pressures again
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  three deep two unders, so like he's he's continuing to expand the package.
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  And the last one here, we've got to talk a little j T two
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  Moloow. He did not have statistically the game he had against Penn State,
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  but it just feels like fourth quarter game on the line. You can tell
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  it it's a big snap for Ohio State because it's like, oh, there's
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  j T. Twomlow make an enormous play for the Ohio State defense. This
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  was an enormous play for the Ohio State defense. Yeah, I mean I
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  think it's Ohio States defense has been like has been statistically good all season,
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  but like as the as thee's and progresses, you really start to see guys
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  that are sort of like really taking steps forward, Like you know, whether
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  JT. Tyler Williams, like they're that are really kind of becoming standouts or
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  teams have to account for them, particularly upfront. And I mean he you
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  know, Ali Chante is going to be like a and I probably have said
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  that incorrectly, but like he's going to be a top ten NFL Draft pick
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  right, and he puts some put him on roller skates a few times,
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  Like did not expect that to happen. You know, he had the earlier
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  play where they tried to block back and split block him with the tight end
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  and he just like blew right by that that guy and so like he is,
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  you know, he's great against the run, like he's always going to
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  be really going to geinst the run, but he's really starting to become a
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  more disruptive UH player against the pass as well, And so he's just going
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  to be someone that opposing offenses are going to have to increasingly scheme around,
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  which obviously provides other opportunities. You know, I think like you're seeing more
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  and more steps coming along from from Jackson and from Kaden Curry, who,
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  like you know, has a really good motor. He made one really nice
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  play on a similar tackle and stunt that we talked about earlier Katy and Drew
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  Otter's face. So I just think you're continuing to like you know, the
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  people that have been there, like they didn't play many guys against Enter Dame,
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  Like those guys are still like playing playing well, if not improving,
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  but like your are also seeing them sort of bring along some additional guys that
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  are making an impact. Yeah, it does feel like Ohio State's defense has
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  been playing well all season but keeps getting better. Which we are not that
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  far from November, so that is when you really need to be playing at
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  your best. So they will need to be at their best this weekend in
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  Madison, and then as we had turned the corner into November, boy,
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  we're just about a month away from the Michigan game. That is, I
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  am not emotionally prepared for the regular season to already be over. This college
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