The Ohio State Buckeyes blanked Ball State 56-3 to open the 2026 season, a game that went about how everyone expected with the Buckeyes looking like the far superior team. Ohio State is set to pay Ball State $1.9 million to play the game, so dominance was the baseline expectation. The win served as a nice warm-up for what comes next week when Ohio State travels to Austin to play the Texas Longhorns. 

Coming out of the victory, there were plenty of positives, but one glaring concern stood out and could become a real problem against Texas: the right tackle position.

Phillip Daniels struggled against Ball State

Quarterback Julian Sayin was sacked a couple of times by Ball State on Saturday, and a couple of pressures came from the right side where tackle Phillip Daniels was working. Daniels, a former Minnesota transfer, started every game for the Buckeyes last year at right tackle. Ohio State returns the majority of its offensive line, and the unit is expected to be a strong suit in 2026. 

The opener, however, gave a little bit of worry about whether the Buckeyes have a vulnerability on the right side.

Daniels simply didn’t play well against Ball State. For a couple of drives, Ohio State opted to move Austin Siereveld from right guard to right tackle and then inserted Gabe VanSickle at right guard. That offensive line combination produced better results than when Daniels was on the field, at least from the eye test. The viewing window was slim with VanSickle only getting a couple of drives, but it didn’t look bad. That could be the direction Ohio State has to go.

Ryan Day hints the offensive line competition is far from over

After the game, Ohio State head coach Ryan Day all but confirmed the competition along the offensive line will continue. 

“I think that is the flexibility that we have [playing depth OL], and the competition continues, and they’re pushing each other,” Day stated.

Those few words tell you Ohio State is not 100% settled on what its offensive line will look like in 2026. The Buckeyes have options, and Day appears willing to use them if they need to go that route

One thing is certain: Ohio State better figure it out quickly. Colin Simmons and the Texas Longhorns will be ready for them next week in Austin, and the Buckeyes can’t afford to have Sayin under pressure often in that kind of road environment. Whether Daniels holds his spot or Saturday’s shuffle becomes more, we’ll see. 

A rotation in Austin doesn’t sound ideal, so the Buckeyes could just pull the plug all together there if they need to.