NEXT GAME
Western Michigan at Ohio State, 3:30 p.m. Saturday, ABC, 1410
Defensive end Sam Hubbard wore a necklace with one silver bullet hanging on the chain Monday at the Woody Hayes Athletic Center. He’ll soon have three. Ohio State’s defense, known as the Silver Bullets when it’s playing well, earns actual silver bullets every time it lives up to the nickname.
Hubbard, a redshirt freshman from Cincinnati Moeller, hopes to have 15 silver bullets by the end of the season. If that happens, a national championship ring would come with the necklace.
Through three games, No. 1 Ohio State ranks fifth in the nation in total defense (225 yards per game) and passing defense (119 yards per game). Ohio State also ranks fourth in the nation in sacks (12) and is one of only four teams to have not allowed a rush of more than 20 yards.
“I think we have a lot of confidence,” said Hubbard, who had 1½ sacks Saturday in a 20-13 victory against Northern Illinois at Ohio Stadium. “We’re not getting cocky or complacent. We know we still have to work. Confidence is a great thing when you’re playing defense. You want to have some attitude and swagger about you. That’s one thing we have, that Silver Bullet swagger.”
An offensive performance Saturday that coach Urban Meyer described as the worst executed in his tenure put pressure on the defense, and it delivered. Linebacker Darron Lee’s 41-yard interception return for a touchdown in the third quarter gave the Buckeyes a 20-10 lead.
The defense made the lead stand even as the offense continued to sputter.
“We go out there with the intention of stopping them and not giving them anything no matter what,” Hubbard said. “When it’s a stalemate, we put it on ourselves to get turnovers and put points on the board. Someone was screaming, ‘We’ve got to get the ball back,’ three plays before Darron got that pick six. I guess he heard it.”
The Buckeyes have produced defensive touchdowns in two straight games. Safety Vonn Bell returned a fumble for a score against Hawaii. That’s a trend they hope continues at 3:30 p.m. Saturday against Western Michigan.
“We want to go on the field and challenge everything,” said co-defensive coordinator Chris Ash, “and we’re doing that right now at the corner position, safety position, linebacker position. We’re challenging throws. We want to produce takeaways, and we’re doing that. In the first three games we’ve been able to do that as a defense, not just in the secondary, but as a defense.”
Meyer said Ohio State had one of the worst pass defenses in the nation two years ago. Now he’d take his over any other.
“They’re playing at a high, high level,” Meyer said. “That’s obviously correlated with the pressure we get to put on the quarterback.”
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