Ohio State-Oklahoma 2016 depth chart: No changes heading into first away game

It wasn’t pretty offensively, but Ohio State eventually slopped through the terrible weather conditions to stomp Tulsa to a tune of 48-3. The first half belonged to the defense, with three interceptions (two of which were returned for touchdowns). Though the offense took a whole half to get rolling, the excitement is building for the trip to Norman, Oklahoma to take on the Sooners. Here’s the breakdown of the depth chart above.

J.T. Barrett is the starting quarterback and will be for the entirety of the season, barring injury. Barrett and the offense didn’t look nearly as impressive as they did against Bowling Green, but the weather didn’t help much. Still, Barrett and co. got it together as he finished 14-of-22 passing for 149 yards. He rushed for 55 yards on 16 carries and two touchdowns coming on the ground. He’ll have to be a bit more balanced in his attack against the Sooners.

At running back, the duo of Mike Weber and Curtis Samuel still showed off their unique abilities. Weber remains the starter with OR in between he and Samuel. Weber rushed for 92 yards and his first career touchdown on 17 carries while Samuel added 78 yards on eight carries. Weber made his first trip to the endzone as a Buckeye, as mentioned a moment ago, while Samuel was kept out of the endzone this week.

The starters are the same as last week, as the receiving core continues its growth. Noah Brown OR Parris Campbell starts at X, Corey Smith OR Johnnie Dixon, and Terry McLaurin OR James Clark at Z. Austin Mack, Binjimen Victor, and K.J. Hill are the third-string options. It was a quiet day all around for the receiving core, which makes sense given the wind and rain at Ohio Stadium on Saturday. They should see an increase in production against Oklahoma.

The H-back spot remains with Curtis Samuel OR Dontre Wilson. Wilson continues his consistency as a threat, carrying the ball three times for 30 yards and a touchdown. He also caught three passes for 38 yards. Samuel also hauled in five receptions for 62 yards.

The tight end spot is firmly locked down by Marcus Baugh with A.J. Alexander listed as the backup. Baugh was pretty quiet after a strong outing against Bowling Green. He didn’t record a reception against Tulsa.

The offensive line starters are listed as Jamarco Jones, Michael Jordan, Pat Elflein, Billy Price, and Isaiah Prince (from left to right). Despite a promising start to the season against Bowling Green, the offensive line was a bit shaky against Tulsa but will need to be at their best when facing the Sooners.

On the defensive side of the ball, Sam Hubbard OR Jayln Holmes and Tyquan Lewis remain listed as the defensive end starters. Hubbard got his first sack of the season against Tulsa and seemed to make more of an impact than he did in week one. The backups at defensive end are Nick Bosa OR Jonathon Cooper. Bosa forced a fumble later on in the game against Tulsa. In the middle, Michael Hill anchors the defensive line alongside Dre’Mont Jones who replaced Tracy Sprinkle and Davon Hamilton is listed as the co-starter with Jones.

The linebacking core continued its success against Tulsa. Raekwon McMillan is still slotted in at middle linebacker. Surrounding him are outside linebackers Chris Worley and Dante Booker OR Joe Burger. Booker suffered a slight MCL sprain early on against Bowling Green and Joe Burger stepped in very well in his place. Rashod Berry, Jerome Baker, and Craig Fada, and Justin Hilliard are your backups.

At cornerback, Gareon Conley is the starter on one end and Marshon Lattimore OR Denzel Ward on the other for the second corner spot. For safeties, Damon Webb slides over this season with Malik Hooker getting the other safety spot. Erick Smith is listed as the backup to Hooker, while Jordan Fuller is the backup to Webb. It was a defensive back’s dream on Saturday as Lattimore picked two passes off, taking one to the endzone. Hooker got himself a pick six as well, while Conley managed to intercept a pass of his own. This unit seems like a true ball-hawking secondary that could be a nightmare for Baker Mayfield.

For special teams, sophomore walk-on Tyler Durbin continues to be the starter at kicker for both kickoffs and field goals as Sean Nuernberger recovers from a groin injury that forced him to miss most of camp. Durbin hit all of six of his extra points against Tulsa and knocked in two field goals with a long of 29. Senior Cameron Johnston remains as the punter, and that’s no surprise considering he’s been a mainstay since his freshman season and has done a tremendous job. Against Tulsa he made his presence felt with a 61-yard punt, one of his five punts on Saturday.

At punt return, Dontre Wilson OR Corey Smith OR Curtis Samuel are all in play. Handling kickoff returns will be Dontre Wilson OR James Clark OR Johnnie Dixon. The long-snapping duties are given to Liam McCollough, and holding for kicks is Cameron Johnston.