LGHL Asks: How will Ohio State’s season go? Which position group is going to improve the most?

Every day for the entirety of the Ohio State football season, we will be asking and answering questions about the team, college football, and anything else on our collective minds of varying degrees of importance. If you have a question that you would like to ask, you can tweet us @LandGrant33 or if you need more than 280 characters, send an email HERE.

The college football season starts tomorrow with a modest slate of Week 0 games. While our Ohio State Buckeyes aren’t playing, just knowing that there will be at least one college football game on TV all day long is enough to get my blood pumping.

For today’s Ask LGHL column will be the final preseason entry of our fan surveys as next week, we will ask questions specifically focused on Notre Dame.

Question 1: How do you think OSU’s season will go?

Expectations are always high for the Buckeyes, but with the bulk of last season’s best offense returning and a nearly completely new defensive coaching staff in place, a lot of people (myself included) think that this could be a truly special year for Ohio State.

But, to be fair, I think that just about every year. So, do you agree with me that the Buckeyes are natty-bound, or are your visions of what this season will be a bit more tempered? You can let us know in the survey below, but let me make my quick and dirty argument.

The best quarterback in college football. The best wide receiving corps in the country. One of the most dynamic running backs in the country. Potentially the best offensive line in the country. A defensive coordinator who oversaw one of the best defenses in the country last year. A defensive line made up of highly talented players ready to break out. Extremely athletic linebacking and secondary units that are finally being put into positions to succeed.

The offense is the odds-on favorite to be the unit in the country, and if Jim Knowles can improve the defensive performance, I don’t know that there is any team in the country who can match OSU score for score.

Question 2: Which position group will have the biggest improvement?

Despite my optimism for the season, I don’t anticipate every issue from last season being immediately remedied. It would be nice, but that’s just not how these things work. Fortunately, I don’t think that the Buckeyes need to be perfect at every position all season long to achieve all of their goals.

But, if they are going to get there, they are going to need to see marked improvements at multiple position groups. So, who do you think will show the most progress?

For me, I’m going to eliminate both the offensive and defensive lines. While they were far from perfect last year, they were not the cause of most of OSU’s problems in 2021, despite the big game failings in the running game on both sides of the ball.

So, if the defense improves as a whole — as I think it will — I imagine that the linebackers or secondary will see the most progress. I don’t know if I can pinpoint which group will take the biggest steps forward, but I feel confident that it will be in the middle and back of the defense.

Vote in this week’s Ask LGHL SBN Reacts Survey:

Welcome to SB Nation Reacts, a survey of fans across the NCAA. Throughout the year we ask questions of the most plugged-in Ohio State Buckeyes fans and fans across the country.