Ohio State Buckeyes: Will Howard looking to prove his worth to home-state team

As usual, there is no shortage of storylines. Here are five to know before Saturday’s noon kickoff:

1. Will Howard has something to prove.

Ohio State’s quarterback did not speak to reporters this week, but he said all he needed to after the Buckeyes beat Nebraska last Saturday.

“Stoked,” Howard said after throwing three touchdown passes in a 21-17 win over the Cornhuskers. “I’m stoked. Cannot wait. It’s going to be a homecoming for me. I grew up a Penn State fan. I wanted to go there my whole life. They didn’t think I was good enough. I guess we’ll see next week if I was.”

A three-star prospect, Howard was Pennsylvania’s No. 7 overall prospect as a senior at Downington West in the class of 2020. He was the No. 33 pro-style quarterback in 247Sports Composite rankings but had a dozen Division I offers, including Cincinnati, Maryland, Minnesota and Rutgers.

He became a second-team All-Big 12 quarterback at Kansas State and led the Wildcats to a conference title before entering the transfer portal last winter with an extra year of eligibility as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Hoping to improve his NFL Draft stock and lead the Buckeyes back to the top of the Big Ten heap, Howard is second in the nation in passing efficiency (183.9), third in completion percentage (74.0) and tied for 14th in TD passes (17) this season.

2. Penn State has uncertainty at quarterback.

Ironically Penn State could counter with a quarterback who grew up in Ohio.

Drew Allar is a second-year starter for the Nittany Lions, but the junior from Medina sat out the second half of Penn State’s win at Wisconsin last week after getting his legs twisted up on a tackle late in the second quarter.

PSU coach James Franklin said early this week Allar would be a game-time decision, but the offense appears to be in capable hands if Beau Pribula has to take the reins again.

He led the Nittany Lions to a come-from-behind win in Madison and presents more of a run threat.

3. The Ohio State defense has a lot to worry about.

After getting beaten every which way at Oregon on Oct. 12, defensive coordinator Jim Knowles’ unit gets a chance to redeem itself Saturday against a multifaceted offense that features two capable running backs, a solid offensive line and one of the best tight ends in the country, Tyler Warren, no matter who is playing quarterback.

The 6-foot-6, 261-pound Warren has proven to be the ultimate chess piece so far for new offensive coordinator Andy Kotelnicki, who lines him up all over the formation (including quarterback) to keep defenses guessing and utilize his unique skill set.

“You never know where he’s going to be and the things he’s going to do, so you just always have to be aware of where he’s at,” Knowles said.

“I think when you’re away and it’s loud, you have to really go back to your basics and you have to be able to line up fast and adjust to a thousand different formations,” Knowles said. “And you can’t get too cute, you know? You really just have to go back to your fundamentals and your basics when you’re in those situations.”

Credit: AP

Credit: AP

4. Ohio State wants to run the ball better.

The Buckeyes averaged 222 yards rushing in their first five games this season, but they have only 305 yards on the ground in their last two outings.

That includes a feeble 64 yards on 31 carries (including sacks) against the Cornhuskers.

“We can’t live with the way we ran the ball last week, and so that’s part of what we have to do heading into this game because you’re going to have to win the rushing battle to win games in the Big Ten,” offensive coordinator Chip Kelly said. “So we certainly understand that.”

While Ohio State is continuing to deal with injuries at left tackle, the Nittany Lions are eighth in the nation in rushing yards allowed per game (93) and No. 1 in the nation in stuff rate, which measures how often they stop a run for no gain or a loss.

5. Each coach really could use a top-five win.

Day has been the subject of criticism for leading the Buckeyes to only two wins in nine games against top five teams (but a 10-8 mark against top 10 teams) since he became head coach of the Buckeyes in 2019.

However, Day is undefeated in five matchups against Franklin, whose record is 1-12 against top five teams and 3-17 against the top 10 so the Nittany Lions’ mentor faces as many questions at home as Day does.

“We don’t need to change anything,” Franklin said when asked about his team’s struggles against Ohio State. “We don’t need to do anything more than what we’ve done each week. Just get better and refine our process. Yeah, that’s the plan is be prepared for a really good team.

“It’s one of the most talented teams in the country year in, year out.

“We’re fortunate to play them. We’re excited about the opportunity. That’s what we’re focused on — the Ohio State team from this year and the Penn State team for this year, and what we have to do to find a way to get a win.”

SATURDAY’S GAME

Ohio State at Penn State, Noon, FOX, 1410