COLUMBUS, Ohio — Ohio State’s offensive line problem went from bad to worse on Saturday afternoon.
Late in the fourth quarter, the Buckeyes lost left tackle Zen Michalski to what appeared to be a lower-body injury. He had to be helped off the field.
Michalski was already the team’s second option at tackle, with left tackle Josh Simmons lost for the season. Simmons hurt his knee against Oregon on Oct. 12.
Coach Ryan Day was succinct in his analysis of the offensive line against Nebraska, stating, “It’s not good enough. We’ve got to be able to run the football. And we didn’t do that today.”
Day did not comment on the status of Michalski, though the injury occurred in the game’s final minutes.
In place of Michalski, the Buckeyes moved left guard Donovan Jackson to left tackle and subbed in Luke Montgomery.
Day added that the team knew that Jackson was their next option on deck at tackle, and that was the plan moving forward into this game. He did note that that was the plan to get them out of the game, should Michalski leave, but now they’ll have to “Go back and figure out what’s next.”
It wasn’t a banner day for the front five anyways, but the Buckeyes now have even more questions to answer up front. Running backs Quinshon Judkins and TreVeyon Henderson averaged just 2.9 and 2.5 yards per carry, respectively. The team totaled 64 yards on 31 carries.