it's time for our annual tradition Ohio State beats Western Michigan 56 to nothing to improve to 2 and 0 they did it a lot easier than some teams around the country able to do it this weekend but will Howard grading will Howard 18 of 26 292 yards a touchdown plus a six-yard rushing touchdown it's the first time Ohio State starting quarterback and I mean starting because de High won last year the first time since 2020 against Michigan State that Ohio State starting quarterback has had a rushing touchdown Andrew what great a I think it has to be an a like I I understand the opponent we were joking in the press conference room like we're kind of tired of adding the caveat like comma against a group of five team but this is how it should look against a group of five team I know will Howard did not account for all of this and he was not even the quarterback for all of this but they almost had 700 yards of total offense I thought will looked really really sharp throwing the ball I joked with these guys up in the Press Box Ryan Day Chip Kelly Buckeye talk list cuz I said exactly this after the postgame pod last week I said like look I think I'd be moving him around I'd be running rpos I'd be getting the ball out of his hands quickly move him around the pocket and that's what they did today they had that play where you know was like a play action fake he rolls out to the left there's a tight end in the flat and they did that a handful of times I thought this was the perfect game plan for will Howard I think this needs to be their game plan moving forward I thought he was PR like precise with his passing the throw right looking at where we're standing to a Mecca was awesome right over the shoulder of a Defender safety was coming over the top put it right in the bucket great throw all over the place he had a rushing touchdown just I I thought he looked really sharp so I understand the whole caveat of you know oh it's a group of five team and a group of five team that went four and eight last year at that will looked really good today and that is what you are supposed to do against the Mac team that might not be all that good and they blew them out of the water and will Howard looked really really good doing it has to be an a I thought will Howard was very very good Andrew says has to be an a Stefan do you have to agree agree with that I have to give it an A plus I'll take it one step further I thought he played about as good of a game as you could play I think you just saw him and he even talked about this post game just more comfortable right like going through the routine of playing a game at Ohio stadium being in in a in a crowd of this magnitude like the touchdown the rushan touchdown he had like the way he celebrated with the with the crowd like you could tell like he was pumped about it and um you know he he's really comfortable with where is now maybe more so than he was in week one um and and on top of that I I agree with with what Andrew said like I'd also give Chip Kelly an a man like the game plan that's what a will Howard run offense should look like and I think that they executed it to a te I thought the play calls were great I thought the running backs definitely helped with with you know with even making will Howard look better just because of how good they were running the ball it makes it just opens up so much for this offense so will will look great he looked like the guy that you know we all thought could be a Heisman finalist this year performances like that are what kind of puts guys over the top and as long as he carries that into Big 10 play Ohio State's going to go far this year A+ yep a a A++ all right this dude gets it he gets it his numbers are not actually blowing things out of the water and it's because I watched CJ stra play football for two years that it's kind of skewed for me but he gets it how he ends his press conference with the go Bucks all the time how he handles us as you were talking about the way he's celebrating with the crowd after the he just gets it and he's a veteran and he's a fifth year we were talking about this in the press conference his throwaways Andrew some of them are the type of plays where if he's a first year starter seconde quarterback he's still trying to force something and it's probably an interception we did it last week right here he threw remember he was rolling out to his right and he tried to make a play he got so frantic that he like threw it backwards and it was a terrible play and like Ryan in the post game press conference or maybe it was afterwards was just like do not do that like will cannot do that and Will was like I cannot do that you didn't have that today and corrected it immediately it's not a thing multiple weeks in a row the way it's expected with young quarterbacks and it's fine because they're growing he's been through this before so what does he do in those situations Stefan he imidates the situation surveys nothing I'm gone balls out let's live to see another day it's again it's this offense is so 2019 Justin Fields CED I I promise you it's Justin Fields CED the numbers are not crazy right now but it's because this defense is also so good that it's putting this offens in positions to do things but he just gets it as Ohio State starting quarterback for a guy who's been here for nine months and I know that's secondary that's culture thing but you guys already covered the football stuff he looked awesome today he wasn't perfect he underthrew Jeremiah Smith on a play he under threw another guy but for the most part he was pretty on point he started out 10 for 10 and was in the Rhythm but I do think it matters that this guy gets it and I'm giving everybody an a today because even Ryan Day going forward on fourth down and he's saying a lot of that is cuz they wanted to get more plays but that's also tone right before the two-minute drill it's tone set a tone Andrew they did not set a tone to win against Michigan last year when they kicked the field goal in this exact location in ant Arbor it feels like they're setting a tone and everybody gets it and so after the game guys are singing We don't give a you know what about the whole St all that stuff and I know we're running Along on this video but it's just like this team gets it and it starts with their quarterback that's why you get an A that's why you get an A+ that's why you get an A++ 56 to nothing Ohio State first shut out since the Cincinnati game in 2019 get the text 614 350 3315 we'll continue to talk about this on Buckeye talk that's Andrew that's Stefan I'm Stephen see you