Ohio State coach on hot seat after Michigan loss
Saturday’s rendition of The Game between Michigan and Ohio State featured a physical Wolverines team and a snowstorm, a combination that proved lethal for the Buckeyes and offensive line coach Greg Studrawa.
Ohio State entered the game heavily favored against Michigan, but what ensued was a dominant performance by the Wolverines, and a 42-27 upset — Michigan’s first victory in the rivalry-week encounter in eight years, and Jim Harbaugh’s first at the helm of the program. In the process, Ohio State was seemingly unable to protect quarterback CJ Stroud, and Studrawa’s unit struggled to win in the trenches.
Michigan’s performance was dominant not just in the final score but in the box score, which begs questions surrounding Ohio State’s coaching staff. Ohio State allowed eight tackles for a loss, including four sacks, while the Wolverines also tacked on four quarterback hurries. Michigan defensive end Aidan Hutchinson had a signature performance, totaling seven tackles (five solo stops) and three sacks — on top of the box-score stats, Hutchinson excelled in advanced stats, too. According to Pro Football Focus, Hutchinson had 15 quarterback pressures against Ohio State, a stat unique to the site, which is the most in a single game since PFF started tracking college stats in 2014. Suffice to say, it wasn’t a great day for Studrawa, and change could be on the horizon.
According to Letterman Row’s Austin Ward, Studrawa’s seat may be heating up heading into the offseason.
“The overall body of work is largely solid for Greg Studrawa, particularly when it comes to developing offensive linemen for the next level. So, while there’s some risk in focusing on a small sample size like The Game, what happened in the trenches against Michigan can’t be ignored — and pairing that with suspect work on the recruiting trail is a troubling combination,” Ward wrote. “Studrawa seemed unlikely to survive the transition from Urban Meyer to Ryan Day a few years ago, but he mostly validated the decision to keep him around with units that could protect the passer and move bodies in short-yardage situations. The former unraveled against the Wolverines, but the latter was a problem in three different games down the stretch. There is a growing expectation that Ohio State will be making a move on the offensive line now this offseason.”
The loss will certainly drop Ohio State out of the College Football Playoff picture, and the two-loss Buckeyes basically have no shot of making their way back in, given that the loss also lost their spot in the Big Ten Championship game. Given the disappointing end to a once-promising 2021 campaign, perhaps a move like Studrawa’s could prepare Ohio State to play a more physical, aggressive style of offense next season.