The Ohio State football team goes into halftime with a comfortable 28-14 lead. After a very surprising opening drive by the Marshall Thundering Herd, who marched down the field and scored a touchdown, the Buckeyes’ offense exploded just like it did against the Western Michigan Broncos. When OSU scored, that was the end for Marshall and the Buicks could be on their way to victory. Let’s take a closer look at the five most striking observations from the first half.
Chip Kelly unloads the goods
Chip Kelly is an offensive genius and we’re starting to get a glimpse of what the man has in store for Ohio State’s offense. Obviously Kelly is holding something back for bigger opponents, but what we’ve seen has been extremely entertaining.
How fast can this offensive move?
Ohio State scored three touchdowns in 4 minutes and 37 seconds.
– Andrew Gillis (@Andrew_Gillis70) 21 September 2024
This and the last point go together, but the pace of this offense deserves its own evaluation. Kelly is clearly using Marshall as a test run to see how fast this offense can be and how quickly he can make a playoff.
Quinshon Judkins is elite
“He brought me to tears…Quinshon Judkins, I’ll give him EVERYTHING I’ve got.”
Gus Johnson tells the emotional story of how Judkins gave another reason why he committed to @OhioStateFB was that Gus comments on his games 🐐❤️ pic.twitter.com/E8b3sbG611
— FOX College Football (@CFBONFOX) 21 September 2024
Quinshon Judkins didn’t have the most electrifying debut at Ohio Stadium, but the man has found his rhythm and is a real threat. Judkins is currently the leading runner for Ohio State with four carries for 114 yards and a touchdown.
Special teams are tough
Three straight kickoffs out of bounds for Jayden Fielding. Not a great day for Ohio State’s special teams.
— Dan Hope (@Dan_Hope) 21 September 2024
The above tweet sums up the day Ohio State had with its special teams. Not one, not two, but three kickoffs went out of bounds. A punt was botched by Brandon Inniss but called back due to an illegal lineup by Marshall. This situation needs to be addressed.
Marshall rolls over
Marshall with a hilarious loser punt here.
– Andrew Gillis (@Andrew_Gillis70) 21 September 2024
As I write this, Marshall scored just before halftime, but it should be noted that the Thundering Herd are ready to go home. As good as Ohio State looks, this game should be taken with a grain of salt as the Buckeyes have not yet entered the dangerous part of their schedule.
This article originally appeared on Buckeyes Wire: Ohio State Football vs. Marshall: 5 Halftime Observations