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Urban Meyer likes to say that Ohio State is an “offensive line-driven program,” but in the Buckeyes’ 24-7 Cotton Bowl win over USC, it was the defensive line that carried the team, and ultimately drove USC into the ground.
Ohio State’s Rushmen accounted for seven of the defense’s eight sacks, 11 of 14 tackles for loss, and god knows how many quarterback hurries and blown up plays. It got to the point where they were nearly making a huge play on every other USC snap:
Ohio State's defense created a havoc play on roughly 1/3 of USC's plays. Which is good.
— Chad Peltier (@CGPeltier) December 30, 2017
On this episode of the Hangout in the Holy Land, Colton Denning and Patrick Mayhorn recap Ohio State’s Cotton Bowl win, praise the Rushmen for one of the most incredible single-game performances you’ll ever see, and break down everything else from the game, including:
- What they thought about Denzel Ward’s decision to sit out, and why it was good to see Kendall Sheffield and Jeffrey Okudah get meaningful reps at CB.
- Sam Hubbard and Tyquan Lewis closing out their Ohio State careers with massive games, plus Nick Bosa’s dominance.
- How the defense’s performance lead to a peak-Tresselball gameplan on offense from the coaching staff.
- The surprising ineffectiveness of the run game, Drue Chrisman A-plus punting game, and more!
The guys also read off your tweets about some of the best moments from the season, and talk about why they think 2017 was a successful year for Ohio State.