PLAYERS TO WATCH
–QB Dwayne Haskins, a redshirt sophomore, essentially saved the season by leading Ohio State past Maryland last Saturday. Haskins accounted for 464 yards of total offense and six touchdowns in the 52-51 overtime victory. He performed not only with his arm (28-of-38, 405 yards, three touchdowns) but also for a change with his feet (15 carries, 59 yards, three TDs). For his efforts, he was selected Monday as the Big Ten Co-Offensive Player of the Week for a record-tying fifth time in a season, equaling the mark set by Heisman Trophy-winning Ohio State quarterback Troy Smith in 2006. Haskins has set school season records for passing yards, passing touchdowns, pass attempts, completions, completion percentage and passing yards per game.
–RB J.K. Dobbins, a sophomore, was forced to carry the load in the running game against Maryland because of an injury to cohort Mike Weber. Dobbins responded in a big way with a career-best 203 rushing yards and one touchdown. He should be helped this week by having Weber available to play against Michigan. Dobbins now leads the Buckeyes in rushing with 915 yards on 194 carries and eight touchdowns. He’s closing in on his second straight 1,000-yard season, but yards could be tough to come by Saturday against Michigan’s stout rushing defense.
–WR Terry McLaurin led Ohio State in receiving yards with 118 on four receptions last Saturday at Maryland. One of his catches was a 68-yard touchdown in the second quarter after the Buckeyes had fallen behind 17-3 after one quarter. McLaurin also makes valuable contributions as a blocker and on specials teams. The senior captain is a reliable receiver for QB Dwayne Haskins and he could be a go-to guy this week against Michigan depending on coverages and how the Wolverines defend Ohio State’s plethora of receivers.
–LB Tuf Borland helped the pass rush came to life last week vs. Maryland. Borland had one of the four sacks and a game-high four of Ohio State’s 11 tackles for loss as he found his way behind the line of scrimmage to make plays. He finished with eight total tackles. Ohio State’s linebackers have been underwhelming for much of the season, but another big game from Borland bodes well for the defense this week as it tries to bottle up Michigan’s ground game.
SERIES HISTORY: Michigan leads Ohio State 58-49-6 but the Buckeyes have won the last six in a row. Ohio State’s last loss to the Wolverines came in 2011 when Luke Fickell was the interim coach. Urban Meyer is 6-0 against Michigan as Ohio State’s coach.
QUOTE TO NOTE: “You have to lead. Everybody’s got their own Drew Brees to Peyton Manning and Tom Brady how they lead. And Dwayne really took a step, really took a step (Saturday against Maryland).” — Ohio State coach Urban Meyer on QB Dwayne Haskins
