Ohio State Buckeyes' starting right guard, Tegra Tshabola, is listed as doubtful for the team's upcoming matchup against the Miami Hurricanes.
As the Ohio State Buckeyes and head coach Ryan Day begin to prepare for the program’s upcoming College Football Playoffs Quarterfinal matchup against the Miami Hurricanes, the offense may be without one of the key contributors up front on Wednesday night.
On Sunday night, the initial injury report for the Buckeyes was released, with star offensive linemen Tegra Tshabola being listed as “doubtful” for the team’s Cotton Bowl Classic matchup against the Hurricanes.
Tshabola, who has been a key starting right guard for the program over the last two seasons, suffered a right leg injury during the Big Ten Conference Championship Game against the Indiana Hoosiers. This forced him to play only 28 snaps in the contest, while leaving a hole on the offensive line before the Buckeyes’ 2025 College Football Playoff run.
While there have been multiple occasions of him struggling this season, Tshabola still managed to be a viable offensive guard for Ohio State this season.
Through his 13 games played this season, the senior guard allowed 12 quarterback pressures and one sack, which occurred in the Conference Championship game, right before he sustained an injury.
With Tshabola listed as doubtful to play in Ohio State’s upcoming matchup against Miami, redshirt freshman Gabe VanSickle will likely take over for the injured offensive linemen on Wednesday night. The former three-star offensive lineman replaced Tshabola against the Hoosiers and did not allow a sack or pressure on 17 pass plays.
VanSickle will be battle-tested in the quarterfinals matchup, as the contest will be his first-career start at the college level. The 6-foot-5, 316 lbs. offensive guard has played in six games this season for a total of 136 snaps.
Looking at the Hurricanes’ defense, head coach Mario Cristobal’s front four is riddled with talented playmakers. This includes a dynamic pass-rush duo of Rueben Bain Jr. and Akheem Mesidor, who are both widely considered to be selected in the 2026 NFL Draft.
Both Bain and Mesidor have been nothing short of impressive this season, combining for 93 tackles, 16 sacks, and five forced fumbles.
To make matters worse, the lethal duo is coming off their best game of the season against the Texas A&M Aggies, with Bain tallying three sacks and Mesidor adding 1.5 sacks.