Ryan Day: Ohio State has a 'different' offense when Emeka Egbuka is on the field

Ohio State‘s offense changed when wide receiver Emeka Egbuka suffered an ankle injury in the fourth quarter of the Buckeyes Week 6 win over Maryland. But now as he’s working his way back to full strength, so it the team’s offense.

Saturday marked Egbuka’s second game back from injury as the Buckeyes dominated Michigan State in a 38-3 win. And as the team now shifts their focus toward hosting Minnesota on Senior Day, head coach Ryan Day spoke about the progression of Egbuka.

“He’s getting stronger and stronger each week,” Day said. “We decided to hold him in the second half to continue that progress, but he’s getting closer every week to being a hundred [percent] and the feedback I got this week was that he feels better this week than he did last week, and that’s the goal.”

Egbuka missed three games following his injury, returning for the Buckeyes’ matchup against Rutgers where he hauled in four catches for 29 yards and rushed the ball once for Ohio State on a four-yard run. He only recorded one catch in his first half performance versus Michigan State, but the added rest could have the potential to propel Egbuka back to full health as the team approaches the crucial home stretch of the season.

“Looked more explosive on film this past game, so we’ll keep bringing him along. Everything our folks say here is just keep pushing him, keep getting that thing stronger, keep working and he is. He’s getting stronger every single week. So hopefully we take another step this week and we’re as close as we can be to 100%,” Day added.

Egbuka had a breakout season last year for Ohio State, ending the year with 74 catches, 1,151 yards, and 12 total touchdowns on the season. This year his numbers haven’t been as impressive due to his injury, but Day still believes that his impact alongside weapons like Marvin Harrison Jr. and TreVeyon Henderson have a major impact on the Buckeyes’ offense.

“I think Emeka is one of the best receivers in the entire country, and his production proves it,” Day said. “So yeah, we are a different offense when he’s in the game.”

Harrison has had to shoulder the majority of Ohio State’s workload over the last six weeks after suffering from an ankle injury of his own against Notre Dame. And if both of the Buckeyes’ top wideouts are feeling fully healthy for the final two games of the regular season, there’s no question that defenses will have their hands full.