Ohio State's offensive line hasn't been a spot of strength for the Buckeyes all year, but they may be getting the reinforcement that they have been waiting on all year long.
The right side of the Ohio State offensive line has been a disappointment for the Buckeyes in the most important games. Unfortunately, in his second year starting, Tegra Tshabola has struggled mightily all year long, and it cost the Buckeyes in their biggest game against the Indiana Hoosiers.
Tshabola has been listed as doubtful for Ohio State's Cotton Bowl Classic Game against the Miami Hurricanes. The injury is undisclosed at this point, but the reality is that he is out, and the Buckeyes are going to have to look to their backups to find a solution.
In normal situations, this would spell disaster. But, for the Buckeyes, they are plugging in a potential upgrade at the position.
The guy who will fill Tshabola's shoes is second-year Buckeye Gabe VanSickle.
VanSickle is a mammoth of a man, standing at 6'5 weighing in at 316 pounds, with elite athletic ability. He has appeared in a handful of games this year including Grambling State, Ohio, Washington, Minnesota, Illinois and Indiana.
His first couple of appearances, he was coming in for late mop up duty in big wins. Against Indiana, however, there was no mop-up duty. He came in after Tshabola struggled in the first half and more than held his own.
Offensive linemen are sometimes tough to see and evaluate with the naked eye. The position is so nuanced, and there are so many variables at play that often times, it is very hard to determine who is playing well and who is playing poorly.
The link below is a video that very clearly and concisely details exactly what VanSickle does well and how he can be a complete upgrade for the Buckeyes. It comes from Landon Tengwall who was a former lineman for Penn State, who is quickly on the rise to being the source when it comes to offensive line play in college football.
The breakdown is well worth the watch and should get Buckeye fans everywhere fired up for the prospect of VanSickle being plugged in to the starting line for the Cotton Bowl and hopefully a playoff run at large.
For the Buckeyes, the attention needs to be on controlling the line of scrimmage. Ohio State is better everywhere else on the football field, and it might be a stalemate up front.
When Ohio State has lost in the past couple of seasons it's been a direct result of losing the battle up front. They have an incredible challenge ahead of them on Wednesday Night and they will need everyone up front to step up and bring their best.