Skull Session: Ohio State's Defense Suffocated Iowa, Zach Harrison is Built Different and C.J. Stroud's Resilience Was Off the Charts on Saturday

By Chase Brown on October 24, 2022 at 5:00 am
Zach Harrison
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Welcome to Penn State week, Skull Session readers.

Friendly reminder that Ohio State only has one rival – Michigan.

If any fan of the Nittany Lions claims Penn State also holds that distinction, laugh and walk away. There's only room for one team to be a bitter enemy in Buckeye Nation, and that team wears maize and blue. Remember that this week.

Let's have a good Monday, shall we?

 PROVING A POINT. Soooooooo... that Iowa offense was (and is) bad, huh?

There's this picture that circles the internet occasionally where a sign says, "Our expectations for you were low but HOLY F---." That's all I could think about when I watched Iowa quarterback Spencer Petras throw a football directly at Tanner McCalister on the opening play of the game and later do the same thing when he threw a pick-six to Tommy Eichenberg near the end of the second quarter.

I can't explain what Petras saw when he threw the ball on these plays – I'm not even sure he knows what he saw, to be honest – but Ohio State benefited tremendously from his mistakes, and that's all that matters.

The Buckeyes would end up with six forced turnovers on Saturday. Zach Harrison (more on him later) forced a fumble, McCalister added another interception and both Lathan Ransom and Kye Stokes knocked balls loose. The Silver Bullets also sacked Petras and backup Alex Padilla five times. According to the Big Ten Network, the six takeaways and five quarterback takedowns combined to create a special performance for Ohio State.

It was that kind of day for the Ohio State defense. Yes, it was against Iowa, whose offense ranks as one of the worst in college football. Still, the performance proved a point to me.

The Buckeyes knew their opponent couldn't pass or run the ball, but Jim Knowles didn't take his foot off the gas. His players didn't take plays off, and there were no penalties that kept Iowa alive. It was a "We know you can't beat us, and we won't beat ourselves" kind of mentality that resulted in only three offensive points for the Hawkeyes.

It's time to replicate that effort against Penn State this weekend.

 ZACH HARRISON, EVERYONE. Oh me, oh my. When Zach Harrison is at the top of his game, he is fun to watch. It's safe to say he played to that level against the Hawkeyes on Saturday.

Harrison was one of the main reasons Ohio State was so dominant defensively when facing the Iowa offense. A one-man wrecking crew, the fourth-year defensive lineman used his 6-foot-6, 272-pound frame to collect a sack, two tackles for loss, a forced fumble and a deflected pass, all the while making the traditionally vaunted Hawkeye offensive line look helpless.

When discussing his performance this week with family, friends, co-workers, etc., there are a couple of easy ways to describe Harrison:

  1.  “He is him.”
  2.  “He's just built different.”
  3.  “He has that dawg in him.”

Harrison, who was named our defensive player of the game for his efforts on Saturday, has flashed a few times this season. The Rutgers game three weeks ago, where he collected two tackles, forced a fumble and deflected a pass that was intercepted, is an outing that immediately comes to mind.

If he can capture the energy of those performances in a bottle and feed off them for the rest of the season, then look out. The Buckeyes' dangerous defense could become even more disruptive moving forward.

 JUST THE FACTS, MA’AM. C.J. Stroud didn't play his best football against Iowa, yet he ended the game 20-of-30 passing for 286 yards and four touchdowns. Yes, that's right. The kind of stats an average college quarterback would kill for is an off day for Ohio State's quarterback. 

The performance speaks to Stroud's resiliency, something I have become fond of during his tenure with the Buckeyes. The kid battles.

Over the weekend, I saw a few comments on social media – mostly from accounts without profile pictures and made-up usernames – that questioned Stroud's toughness, resolve and willingness to win because he made a few bad throws and didn't tuck and run from time to time. I asked myself, "Are we watching the same player?"

Does he want some of those throws back? Of course. Should he run the ball more often? Probably. But I firmly believe that nobody holds C.J. Stroud to a higher standard than C.J. Stroud. He is a perfectionist who has worked for everything in his life. Nothing has been given, everything has been earned. Stroud is that kind of person and leader.

Those qualities don't change because he misses an open receiver or doesn't run for 8 yards on a scramble. Despite those things, he's everything you could want out of an Ohio State quarterback. Don't you think Iowa fans wish they had someone like Stroud operating their offense? Oh, how spoiled we are to watch Stroud do that for the Buckeyes.

When it's all said and done, Stroud could be a Heisman Trophy winner, a Maxwell Award recipient and Davey O'Brien Award honoree, rewarding him for being the best player in college football. Still, none of that would matter for Stroud unless he wins the Buckeyes a national championship. That's his only agenda this season.

So before you question Stroud's toughness, effort or ability, keep in mind that he could (and probably will) go down as one of the greatest players to ever play the quarterback position at Ohio State. He's that good. Remember to appreciate him while he still wears the scarlet and gray. You never know what you have until it's gone.

 THANK YOU, HARRY. Since he retired from football in the spring, Harry Miller has become a beacon of hope for athletes and non-athletes that struggle with mental health. FOX reporter Tom Rinaldi was the latest to share Miller's story in a feature shown live on Big Noon Kickoff before the Ohio State game on Saturday.

Every time Miller tells his story, regardless of the audience, he has a chance to save a life as he helps those with mental illness discover their voice, allowing them a platform to be heard and share their sufferings.

Thank you, Harry. For your courage, your heart, your strength.

If you or someone you know is having thoughts of suicide or is in emotional distress, contact the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 988 – formerly 1-800-273-TALK(8255) – or at suicidepreventionlifeline.org.

 SONG OF THE DAY. “Viva La Vida“ by Coldplay.

 CUT TO THE CHASE. “Well, the Phillies won.” Harper’s HR powers Phillies past Padres, into World Series... The fastest-ever laundry-folding robot is here. And it's likely still slower than you... ‘Swift-footed lizard‘ is named the Massachusetts state dinosaur... What is a pawpaw? Meet the tropical, North American fruit called the ‘Michigan banana’.

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