Analyzing Buckeyes' Julian Sayin's 4 Touchdown Performance Against Marlyand

The Ohio State Buckeyes had a very specific approach on Saturday against the Maryland Terrapins. They were intentionally trying not to force-feed Jeremiah Smith and to prove that they could win with some of the other players on their roster.

It took Ohio State 10 plays and almost seven full minutes until Smith had his first target of the game. Of course, that target went for 33 yards for a touchdown to start the scoring for the Buckeyes. 

Then, his second touch of the game wasn't until midway through the second quarter, when Smith caught a bubble screen and took it 40 yards to the house; that really was a laughable play. It was a play that just showed how he is totally on a different level than anyone else on the football field. 

I respected the approach that the Buckeyes took, and I also do believe that a little bit of credit needs to go to Maryland. I think that down the field, they did a decent job containing Smith, but when he got the ball in his hands, he was just so good.

So, that leaves a ton of other plays that Julian Sayin was being challenged to operate and manage the offense, and I think he was solid, at best.

The two things that stand out to me are the fumble and the interception. I am firmly in the camp that the interception returned for a touchdown was not a Julian Sayin problem; that was a clear protection issue, and they caught an unfortunate bounce.

Now the fumble is a different story. Julian has been challenged this year to start to use his feet more and extend plays with his legs. To his credit, he is doing that; now this is the next level in that progression.

When he is bouncing around the pocket the way that he was, there has to be a sixth sense of what his floating behind him. It's an opportunity to learn and improve while running the football.

One major issue that is very evident is that Sayin does not have good rapport with any of the other receivers not named Jeremiah Smith. On Saturday, there were only three catches made by non-Smith wide receivers for 68 yards. Chris Henry Jr. got on the board with a 46-yard catch, but even that one, the two were on different pages on the throw. 

Sayin's connection with Devin McCuin has steadily improved over the year, but it is still a work in progress. 

The big play of the game was the 68-yard touchdown connection to tight end Nate Roberts. This was more of a really great scheme than it was anything else. Sayin executed the play action perfectly and delivered a great ball over the middle that Roberts took to the house.

It was a solid day from Sayin, but I would get very concerned if there was ever a time that Jeremiah Smith wasn't on the field. As long as No. 4 is out there, the Buckeyes' offense is going to be elite, and the quarterback will look like he belongs in those conversations.