Ohio State vs. Hawaii: Complete Game Preview
Urban Meyer and No. 1 Ohio State (1-0) kicked off their title defense with a 42-24 victory over Virginia Tech in Lane Stadium, avenging the only loss it suffered during its championship run in 2015. With the Buckeyes getting their revenge, they're set to return to Columbus, Ohio, for their home opener against Hawaii.
With just five days to prepare, Ohio State will have a short week to prepare for a Rainbow Warriors team that's coming off a 28-20 upset victory over Colorado.
Will the Buckeyes be ready for Hawaii, or are they bound for a letdown after an emotional outing against Virginia Tech?
Date: Saturday, Sept. 12
Time: 3:30 p.m. ET
Place: Ohio Stadium in Columbus, Ohio
TV: Big Ten Network
Spread: Ohio State State (-40), via Odds Shark
Ohio State Keys to Victory
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Establish the Ground Game Early
Hawaii doesn't have much depth along its defensive line, so the Buckeyes should look to set the tone with their strong offensive line and Ezekiel Elliott right out of the gate.
Elliott's 2015 campaign got off to a good start against Virginia Tech last Monday, when he ran for 122 yards and a touchdown on just 11 carries. He'll probably get more work against the Warriors because they won't execute the "Bear" front that Virginia Tech ran for much of the game last Monday. That defense forced Ohio State to get the ball on the perimeter, which largely marginalized Elliott's impact.
That should change this Saturday.
Limit the Pass
The Buckeyes secondary didn't get off to a great start against the Hokies, as Michael Brewer connected on 11 of 16 passes for 156 yards and two touchdowns before breaking his collarbone early in the third quarter. But they had much more success against Brewer's backup—Brenden Motley—limiting him to just 4-of-9 passing for 36 yards and a (garbage time) touchdown and an interception.
Ohio State will need to carry that momentum back to Columbus because the Warriors feature a multifaceted passing attack and a number of receivers capable of breaking a big play.
Hawaii Keys to Victory
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Find Some Kind of a Running Game
Hawaii's rushing attack ranked near the bottom of the country in 2014, as it averaged just 149.5 yards a game and 3.7 yards per carry. Hoping for a turnaround this season, the Warriors made a concerted effort to get going against Colorado in the season opener, but the lanes just weren't there for the running backs.
Hawaii totaled just 100 yards on 34 carries, averaging 2.9 yards per attempt, and no ball-carrier had a gain of more than 20 yards. This was against a Buffaloes defense that ranked 122th nationally in surrendering gains of 20 yards or more in 2014, according to cfbstats.com.
Running back Paul Harris will have to get going, which is a tall order against Ohio State, which limited Virginia Tech to 128 rushing yards and fewer than three yards per carry in its season opener.
Force at Least 3 Turnovers
To spring an upset against a team as heavily favored as Ohio State, Hawaii will have to get the Buckeyes' worst performance of the year. And to do that, the Warriors will have to force at least three turnovers to create opportunities for their offense and take away scoring chances for the Buckeyes.
That's exactly what they did to Colorado in the opener, recovering two fumbles and forcing an interception on quarterback Sefo Liufau. If they can turn the Buckeyes over that consistently, their chances of keeping this game competitive will spike dramatically.
Ohio State Players to Watch
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Joey Bosa
After sitting out against Virginia Tech in Week 1 due to suspension, Ohio State's consensus first-team All-American will be making his 2015 debut against Hawaii this Saturday. And needless to say, the Buckeyes will be expecting a huge boost to their defense with him in the lineup.
Joey Bosa was one of country's most disruptive defenders in 2014, ranking fifth nationally in total sacks and tackles for loss. His return will anchor a defensive line that already features a pair of standout defensive tackles in Adolphus Washington and Tommy Schutt and a weak-side defensive end in Tyquan Lewis, who registered 1.5 sacks last week against Virginia Tech.
Hawaii did a good job protecting quarterback Max Wittek against Colorado, surrendering just one sack, but the Warriors will have their hands full with Bosa.
No one was certain how smooth Braxton Miller's transition to wide receiver would be after spending his entire high school and collegiate career at quarterback.
After just one game on the perimeter, though, those uncertainties seem foolish.
Miller absolutely stole the show during Ohio State's nationally televised game against Virginia Tech last Monday, piling up 140 all-purpose yards and two touchdowns. But it was a 53-yard touchdown run in the third quarter, which featured a video game-like spin move, that reminded everyone how electric he is with the ball in his hands.
Playing in his first game in Ohio Stadium since a 42-14 win over Indiana in 2013, it's safe to bet that Miller will want to put on a show.
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Hawaii Players to Watch
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Max Wittek
When a team is as outmatched as Hawaii, the underdog almost always needs a Herculean performance from its quarterback.
The Warriors have a good one in Max Wittek—the former USC quarterback who transferred to Hawaii last year. Wittek was clutch against the Buffalo last week, throwing for 202 yards and three touchdowns in the upset victory.
"You see he's got a terrific arm, and I just told him to just take what they could give us," Norm Chow said, according to the AP (h/t CBS Denver). "He wanted to make a big play, but it was his leadership and skills that kept us in it."
Luke Shawley
Hawaii doesn't have a lot of impact defenders, and coming into the season, Luke Shawley wasn't expected to be one of them. But in the opener against Colorado, Shawley was very disruptive, registering a team-high 14 tackles, which included 1.5 sacks.
The Warriors have a deep linebacker unit that can thrive with an active defensive front that occupies blockers. If Shawley can play that consistently alongside Kennedy Tulimasealii, the Hawaii defense will be much tougher to handle.
What They're Saying
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Ohio State's historic quarterback battle between Cardale Jones and J.T. Barrett was expected to reach its conclusion against Virginia Tech, but Urban Meyer said that nothing has been set in stone yet, according to Ralph Russo of the Associated Press.
"We're going to ride my opinion in that moment. In that situation to drive the ball down the field to score, who should be in the game? J.T. has to stay warm. If J.T.'s in the game, Cardale has to stay warm. Is that the right thing to do? At this point it is. Will that change and adapt throughout the year? I don't know. Remains to be seen.
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Hawaii got an extra two days to prepare for Ohio State, but head coach Norm Chow isn't sure that was enough time. According to a video posted to Hawaii's official YouTube account, he said, "We probably could have taken two months, I don't know if we'd ever be prepared for those guys. But it helps, obviously, and it gives us another day and a half to put a game plan together."
Prediction
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Ohio State will heavily feature Ezekiel Elliot early, and the junior running back will reward that decision with two long touchdown runs in the first quarter to give his team an early 14-0 lead.
Hawaii will answer with a six-play, 75-yard touchdown drive to open the second quarter, but the Buckeyes will put the game out of reach with three touchdowns to close out the half. Two of those scores will come from Braxton Miller (one rush, one receiving), and he'll go on to finish the game with 150 all-purpose yards.
J.T. Barrett will play the entire second half and throw three touchdown passes before giving way to Stephen Collier late in the fourth. The Buckeyes will easily cover the 40-point spread as they cruise to their second victory of the year.
Ohio State 63, Hawaii 10
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