Ohio State has a defensive-driven team for the first time in Ryan Day’s tenure.

Five games into the 2023 season, it’s become increasingly clear that the Buckeyes’ defense is their strength this year. The Buckeyes currently rank in the top 10 nationally in points allowed per game (3rd), yards allowed per play (4th) and yards allowed per game (8th), but their offense – which has perennially ranked among the nation’s best since Day became Ohio State’s head coach in 2019 – ranks just 20th in yards per play, 29th in points per game and 37th in yards per game.

The good news: Ohio State’s defense appears to be good enough to give the Buckeyes a chance to win any game they play. The bad news: It’s uncertain whether the offense, more specifically the offensive line, is good enough for the Buckeyes to take advantage of their defensive improvement and achieve their major goals.

On this week’s episode of Real Pod Wednesdays, we discuss why we’re comfortable calling Ohio State’s defense elite based on what we’ve seen in the first five games of the year but why we’re uncomfortable with what we’ve seen – and heard from Day on Tuesday – regarding the Buckeyes’ blockers.

We also highlight some of the standout performers from Ohio State’s 37-17 win over Maryland, namely Josh Proctor and JT Tuimoloau among others, and predict how this week’s game will play out as the Buckeyes seek revenge in their first road trip to Purdue since their 2018 loss in West Lafayette.

The rundown for this week’s show:

• 0:21: Ohio State covered against Maryland, but it certainly didn’t come as easily as we expected
• 2:21: The offensive line took a step back vs. Maryland, and time is running out to get things right
• 7:58: Ohio State seems even more concerned about its offensive line depth than its starting five
• 13:12: Slow starts a recurring trend that will catch up with Ohio State’s offense if they continue
• 16:16: There’s now enough evidence to say Ohio State is a defensive-driven team this year
• 22:04: Ohio State’s secondary, its best since at least 2019, is leading the defensive effort
• 25:20: Josh Proctor’s growth from a flash player to someone OSU can continue rely on
• 30:24: Tyleik Williams playing 70 snaps vs Maryland speaks to just how much he’s improved
• 31:24: JT Tuimoloau had the kind of game we’ve been waiting to see from him all season
• 34:14: We still think adjusting Sonny Styles’ role would allow him to play to his strengths more
• 40:23: Redshirting Dallan Hayden is a smart move with his current standing on the depth chart
• 47:31: History shows Ohio State can’t overlook Purdue, that could be good for the team’s focus
• 49:46: Improvement in the run game will be No. 1 area of focus for Ohio State this week
• 52:40: Marvin Harrison Jr. showed us once again how special he is with his game vs. Maryland
• 54:14: Kyle McCord started slow vs. Maryland but had his best half of the year in the second half
• 57:22: Xavier Johnson will be a player to watch if Emeka Egbuka doesn’t play at Purdue
• 58:18: Ohio State should beat Purdue this time, but only one of us is picking a cover this week