Ohio State football star needs massive bounce-back game against the Penn State Nittany Lions
It has been an up-and-down career for Ohio State cornerback Denzel Burke to say the least. During the 2021 season, Burke came in and made his impact known quickly. That campaign concluded with a Freshman All-American honor, although there were some signs of inconsistency. We saw every part of those inconsistencies in 2022, where Burke […]
It has been an up-and-down career for Ohio State cornerback Denzel Burke to say the least. During the 2021 season, Burke came in and made his impact known quickly. That campaign concluded with a Freshman All-American honor, although there were some signs of inconsistency. We saw every part of those inconsistencies in 2022, where Burke put together just a train wreck of a sophomore season.
People in Columbus, and around college football, had their major doubts about Burke heading into last season. The Arizona native made all of those doubters look very silly, putting together his best season so far for the Buckeyes. It was so good that Burke contemplated entering the 2024 NFL Draft, but ultimately opted to return.
With the return of Burke this season, it was assumed he would be one of the finest cornerbacks in all of college football. There were several NFL Draft analysts, including myself, obsessing over his 2023 film this past offseason. Burke was tremendous.
After a solid start this season, Burke has hit a big rough patch. He had arguably his worst game of his career against Oregon, having no answers for wide receiver Evan Stewart in that contest. Burke also had a poor game against the Nebraska Cornhuskers last week, although not quite the extreme level against the Ducks.
That leads to this week against the Penn State Nittany Lions, in a matchup of top five schools on the round. Burke needs a massive bounceback game, not only for his team, but for his draft stock moving forward. He is still viewed as one of the more physical cornerbacks in the 2025 NFL Draft, but some of the luster has definitely worn off.
Burke will be opposed by just an average crop of Penn State pass catchers, which gives a tremendous opportunity to get his confidence back. That Nittany Lions passing attack runs through All-American tight end candidate Tyler Warren, who has hauled in 47 receptions for 559 yards and four touchdowns on the season. Obviously, Burke won’t be matched up against Warren much, if at all.
The top wide receiver for the Nittany Lions is Harrison Wallace III, who is having a nice 2024 campaign so far with 350 yards and two touchdowns. That is a solid matchup for Burke, but one he should be able to handle well.
Perhaps the bigger test will be when Burke has to go against Omari Evans. He is a low volume pass charger, but he has made a lot of big plays this season, averaging 21.5 yards per catch on his 11 receptions so far. Speed has been the thing that has given Burke the most trouble over recent weeks.
If Burke and the rest of the Ohio State secondary does have a strong week, that is probably a good indicator that things went really well for the Buckeyes. With Penn State quarterback Drew Allar also banged up, they have no excuses but to have a strong performance.
