It may have taken eight weeks, but No. 1 Ohio State is finally starting to look like the dominant team and College Football Playoff favorite that everyone expected to see during the preseason.
The Buckeyes, fresh off a 49-7 rout of Rutgers on Saturday, enter their bye week with few questions to answer.
Head coach Urban Meyer has featured J.T. Barrett in the offense over the last three weeks, and the results have been convincing. The redshirt sophomore scored 12 total touchdowns against Maryland, Penn State and Rutgers—games that Ohio State won by an average of 30.3 points.
With the Buckeyes clicking at their highest level of the season, what do they still need to fix as they approach the home stretch of the conference slate?
The Run Defense
Ohio State has been solid defensively this season, ranking 13th nationally in total defense and ninth in scoring defense. But the Buckeyes have been ordinary against the run, allowing 151.9 yards per game on the ground—a mark that ranks 54th in the country.
Leading up the Rutgers game on Saturday, Ohio State's front seven was coming off a pair of horrendous outings.
Two weeks prior, Maryland quarterback Perry Hills gashed the Buckeyes, running for an incredible 170 yards and two touchdowns, fueling a 253-yard outing on the ground for the Terrapins. A week later, Penn State freshman running back Saquon Barkley ran wild for 194 yards on 26 carries.
The Buckeyes only have one team left on its schedule that boasts a top-50 run offense—Michigan checks in at No. 49—but if Meyer expects his team to make a deep postseason run, they'll need to tighten things up in the front seven.
Getting defensive tackle Tommy Schutt healthy has to be the top priority. The senior broke his wrist against Penn State and was expected to miss "a few weeks," according to Eric Seger of Eleven Warriors.
The Early Struggles
The Buckeyes got off to a fast start to open the season, scoring touchdowns on their first two drives in the prime-time showdown against Virginia Tech on Labor Day.
But in the last seven weeks, Ohio State has only scored once on its opening drive—a three-play, 65-yard march against Western Michigan. The other six games have started with two turnovers, three three-and-outs and botched field-goal attempt.
If Ohio State had played stiffer competition, these slow starts could have produced a loss, but it was able to bounce back effectively each week. With Michigan State and Michigan on the horizon, though, the Buckeyes have to find a way to come out of the gates swinging.
The Offensive Balance
Ohio State is frequently lauded for its array of offensive firepower, but with the struggles at quarterback during the first half of the season, Meyer and the coaching staff have struggled to find balance offensively.
Early in the season, the Buckeyes seemed to be forcing the issue with Cardale Jones at quarterback, which led to a mistrust from the staff to put the ball in the air in crunch-time situations. That was on full display on the road against Indiana, when Ohio State force-fed Ezekiel Elliott despite facing a defense that was loading the box and daring Jones to throw.
With the quarterback switch, the running game is producing explosive plays despite defenses gearing up to stop it. That's a credit to Barrett's mobility and ability to effectively run the zone read.
But for Ohio State's offense to hit the next level, it will have to get more from the passing game.
Saturday's performance against Rutgers was a huge step in the right direction. Barrett completed 77.8 percent of his passes for 223 yards, three touchdowns and no interceptions while establishing a solid rhythm with leading wideout Michael Thomas.
However, the Buckeyes only attempted seven passes in the first half and 21 attempts in the whole game against 49 total rushes.
Ohio State has the weapons and skill set to be a dominant offense—it just needs to continue to diversify the passing attack.
David Regimbal is the Ohio State football Lead Writer for Bleacher Report. Follow him on Twitter @davidreg412.
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