2018 Ohio State Buckeyes football team


The 2018 Ohio State Buckeyes football team represented Ohio State University during the 2018 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Buckeyes played their home games at Ohio Stadium in Columbus, Ohio. This was the Buckeyes' 129th overall season and 106th as a member of the Big Ten Conference. They were led by head coach Urban Meyer in his seventh and final season at Ohio State.
Shortly before the season, head coach Urban Meyer was placed on administrative leave due to allegations that he was aware of domestic violence incidents involving former wide receivers coach Zach Smith. Ryan Day was named acting head coach. After a lengthy investigation, Meyer was suspended for three games for poor handling of the situation. Day acted as the head coach during Meyer's suspension.
The Buckeyes won each of their three games under Ryan Day to open the season, including a victory over then-No. 15 [2018 2018 TCU Horned Frogs football team|TCU Horned Frogs football team|TCU] in AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas. After Urban Meyer's return, Ohio State won their following four games, including a close win on the road over then-No. 9 [2018 2018 Penn State Nittany Lions football team|Penn State Nittany Lions football team|Penn State]. Ohio State rose to second in the AP Poll, but suffered a devastating loss on the road to [2018 2018 Purdue Boilermakers football team|Purdue Boilermakers football team|Purdue], 49–20. The Buckeyes won their remaining regular season games, however, and secured a spot in the 2018 Big Ten Football Championship Game after defeating rival No. 4 [2018 2018 Michigan Wolverines football team|Michigan Wolverines football team|Michigan] 62–39. Ohio State defeated West Division champion Northwestern in that game convincingly, 45–24, but in the final College Football Playoff rankings of the year, the Buckeyes were ranked sixth, leaving them just outside the playoff for the second consecutive year. The team was invited to the Rose Bowl to play Pac-12 Conference champion [2018 2018 Washington Huskies football team|Washington Huskies football team|Washington]. In the weeks before the game, Urban Meyer announced that he would retire at the end of the season, and the Rose Bowl would be his final game as head coach. The Buckeyes won the game to finish the year at 13–1, and were ranked third in the final polls.
The team was led offensively by quarterback Dwayne Haskins, who led FBS with 4,831 passing yards and 50 passing touchdowns, both of which set school records by wide margins. Haskins was named Big Ten Offensive Player of the Year and was a finalist for the Heisman Trophy, finishing in third. On the ground, running backs J. K. Dobbins and Mike Weber combined for over 2,000 yards rushing. Wide receiver Parris Campbell led the team with 1,063 receiving yards and a Big Ten-leading 12 receiving touchdowns. Defensive star and pre-season All-American lineman Nick Bosa suffered a groin injury during the game against TCU. He underwent surgery and elected not to return to the team, instead focusing on recovering for the 2019 NFL draft.

Recruiting

Recruiting class

The Buckeyes signed a total of 26 recruits. The class was rated as the second best in the country behind Georgia by the 247Sports Composite, and the best class in the Big Ten Conference. Headlining the class were consensus five star recruits Nicholas Petit-Frere, Taron Vincent, and Tyreke Johnson.

Schedule

Source

Depth chart

Starters and backups.

Coaching changes

  • Wide receiver coach Zach Smith was fired in July 2018 after domestic violence allegations came to light. Brian Hartline was named interim WR coach.
  • Head coach Urban Meyer was placed on administrative leave after reports surfaced claiming he knew about Smith's incidents of domestic violence. Ryan Day was named acting head coach.

Game summaries

Oregon State

Game Statistics
StatisticOH St.OR St.
Total yards721392
Passing yards346196
Rushing yards375196
Penalties6-505-49
Turnovers22
Time of possession31:1628:44

Game Leaders
StatisticOhio StateOregon State
PassingDwayne Haskins Conor Blount
RushingMike Weber Artavis Pierce
ReceivingTerry McLaurin Trevon Bradford

Rutgers

Game Statistics
StatisticOSURU
Total yards579134
Passing yards35465
Rushing yards22569
Penalties11-1207-72
Turnovers02
Time of possession31:3728:23

Game Leaders
StatisticOhio StateRutgers
PassingDwayne Haskins Artur Sitkowski
RushingTate Martell Raheem Blackshear
ReceivingJohnnie Dixon Travis Vokolek

Tulane

Game Statistics
StatisticOSUTU
Total yards570256
Passing yards419156
Rushing yards151100
Penalties10-896-55
Turnovers00
Time of possession29:0031:00

Game Leaders
StatisticOhio StateTulane
PassingDwayne Haskins Jonathan Banks
RushingJ. K. Dobbins Corey Dauphine
ReceivingParris Campbell Darnell Mooney

Indiana

Game Statistics
StatisticOSUIU
Total yards609406
Passing yards455322
Rushing yards15484
Penalties9-823-35
Turnovers32
Time of possession36:4223:18

Game Leaders
StatisticOhio StateIndiana
PassingDwayne Haskins Peyton Ramsey
RushingJ. K. Dobbins Stevie Scott
ReceivingParris Campbell Nick Westbrook-Ikhine

Minnesota

Game Statistics
StatisticOSUMINN
Total yards504396
Passing yards412218
Rushing yards92178
Penalties5-364-60
Turnovers03
Time of possession31:4528:15

Game Leaders
StatisticOhio StateMinnesota
PassingDwayne Haskins Zack Annexstad
RushingMike Weber Mohamed Ibrahim
ReceivingK. J. Hill Tyler Johnson

Nebraska

Game Statistics
StatisticOSUNEB
Total yards481450
Passing yards252266
Rushing yards229184
Penalties6-465-44
Turnovers31
Time of possession26:2733:33

Game Leaders
StatisticOhio StateNebraska
PassingDwayne Haskins Adrian Martinez
RushingJ. K. Dobbins Devine Ozigbo
ReceivingJohnnie Dixon Stanley Morgan Jr.

At Michigan State

Game Statistics
StatisticOSUMSU
Total yards347274
Passing yards227220
Rushing yards12054
Penalties4-307-46
Turnovers13
Time of possession37:2922:30

Game Leaders
StatisticOhio StateMichigan State
PassingDwayne Haskins Brian Lewerke
RushingMike Weber Rocky Lombardi
ReceivingTerry McLaurin Cody White

Big Ten Championship Game

Game Statistics
StatisticOSUNW
Total yards607418
Passing yards499267
Rushing yards108151
Penalties9-903-15
Turnovers23
Time of possession35:5224:08

Game Leaders
StatisticOhio StateNorthwestern
PassingDwayne Haskins Clayton Thorson
RushingJ. K. Dobbins John Moten
ReceivingJohnnie Dixon Kyric McGowan

Awards and honors

Dwayne HaskinsBig Ten Offensive Player of the WeekSeptember 3, 2018
Nick BosaBednarik Award Player of the WeekSeptember 5, 2018
Tate MartellBig Ten Co-Freshman of the WeekSeptember 10, 2018
Dre'Mont JonesBig Ten Defensive Player of the WeekSeptember 17, 2018
Dwayne HaskinsBig Ten Co-offensive Player of the WeekSeptember 24, 2018
Drue ChrismanRay Guy Award Punter of the WeekSeptember 30, 2018
Dwayne HaskinsBig Ten Offensive Player of the WeekOctober 1, 2018
Chase YoungBig Ten Co-defensive Player of the WeekOctober 1, 2018
Chase YoungBednarik Award Player of the WeekOctober 2, 2018
Dwayne HaskinsBig Ten Offensive Player of the WeekOctober 8, 2018
Dwayne HaskinsBig Ten Offensive Player of the WeekNovember 19, 2018
Dwayne HaskinsBig Ten Offensive Player of the WeekNovember 26, 2018
Chris Olave247Sports True Freshman of the WeekNovember 26, 2018

Dwayne HaskinsGraham-George Offensive Player of the YearNovember 28, 2018
Dwayne HaskinsGriese-Brees Quarterback of the YearNovember 28, 2018
Dwayne HaskinsChicago Tribune Silver FootballNovember 30, 2018
Dwayne HaskinsAP Big Ten Offensive Player of the YearDecember 5, 2018
Dwayne HaskinsSammy Baugh Top Passer AwardDecember 2018
Dwayne HaskinsChic Harley Player of the Year AwardDecember 2018
Dwayne HaskinsKellen Moore Quarterback of the Year AwardDecember 2018
Johnnie DixonBig Ten Sportsmanship AwardNovember 27, 2018

Dwayne HaskinsQB3rd Team
Michael JordanC3rd Team2nd Team

  • The NCAA and Ohio State only recognize the AP, AFCA, FWAA, Sporting News and WCFF All-American teams to determine if a player is a Consensus or Unanimous All-American. To be named a Consensus All-American, a player must be named first team in three polls and to be Unanimous, they must be named first team in all five.
Michael JordanC1st TeamHM1st Team
Dre'Mont JonesDT1st Team
Dwayne HaskinsQBHM
Isaiah PrinceOGHM

Players drafted into the NFL

12Nick BosaDESan Francisco 49ers
115Dwayne HaskinsQBWashington Redskins
259Parris CampbellWRIndianapolis Colts
371Dre'Mont JonesDTDenver Broncos
376Terry McLaurinWRWashington Redskins
4111Kendall SheffieldCBAtlanta Falcons
4136Michael JordanCCincinnati Bengals
6202Isaiah PrinceOTMiami Dolphins
7218Mike WeberRBDallas Cowboys