Tennessee football struggled to move the ball all night long against Ohio State. The Buckeyes' defense seemed to know everything Tennessee was doing and everything the Vols were about to do, and it turns out that's exactly what happened.
Ohio State safety Lathan Ransom confirmed that they knew what Tennessee would likely run based on the looks the Buckeyes defense would give the Vols, which was a direct factor in Tennessee's 42-17 loss in the first round of the College Football Playoff.
Ransom went on The Bobby Carpenter Show to discuss how the Buckeyes defense had a telling advantage over Tennessee.
"We had three weeks to prepare," said Ransom. "Hats off to the coaches. It's easy to play fast when you've been shown so many looks, you've been shown what's expected from them. And that's why we were able to play fast and react fast because we had seen it three weeks in a row. Our coaches came up with a great game plan. Our scouts did a great job for the last three weeks showing us the looks, the exact thing that we thought Tennessee was going to do."
There were times throughout the game when it seemed like Ohio State's defense knew exactly what Tennessee was about to do — and they did. Tennessee had shown its hand based on defensive looks throughout the year and didn't change any tendencies, which opened the door for the Buckeyes to shut down virtually everything the Vols tried.
At one point in the third quarter, Tennessee ran a speed option, and Ohio State sniffed it out immediately. Ransom shared that they learned Tennessee had a tendency to check to that play based on certain defensive looks.
"If we showed a certain look, we had an idea that they were going to check to speed option," Ransom continued. "And if it was to the field, it was going to be Caleb that was going to take the pitch, and if it was to the boundary, it was gonna be me. And we got that exact look on third down, we knew they were going to do it."
It is devastating to hear that, for the second time in three years, a defense knew exactly what was coming from Tennessee. The first instance in 2022 from South Carolina was malicious, but this is entirely the coaching staff's fault.
Self-scouting is vital during the long season, especially if you want to run at a championship. Heupel's offense is becoming more popular at the high school and college levels, which means he will have to become more innovative when designing and scripting plays to ensure it isn't predictable.
The offense hasn't been the same since the 2022 season, when offensive coordinator Alex Golesh left for USF. It could look a little different next year as well, as outgoing transfers leave the program and new faces enter the offense.