COLUMBUS, Ohio — Ohio State remains undefeated and No. 1 in the polls, but the Buckeyes aren’t steamrolling opponents in a manner that many fans and analysts expected after returning most of last season’s national championship team. Last week, Indiana took Ohio State to the wire before the Buckeyes escaped with a 34-27 victory when the Hoosiers failed to connect on a potential game-tying pass in the end zone on fourth down in the final seconds. As Ohio State (5-0, 1-0) prepares for Saturday’s Big Ten home opener against Maryland (2-3, 0-1) in Ohio Stadium (noon ET, Big Ten Network), is there cause for concern among the faithful and the national pundits despite an 18-game winning streak? “When you start getting effort and attitude (issues) — that’s where red flags start showing up and I don’t feel that at all,” coach Urban Meyer said. “And I’ve watched for that like a hawk because I’ve seen that infiltrate a team before. And we see it across the country all the time. And we’ve seen it happen here.” The biggest issues so far stem from the offense. Turnovers and penalties and producing in the red zone, which were strengths last year, have slowed the Buckeyes in 2015. Against Indiana, Ohio State failed to score a touchdown on its trips into the red zone and finished the game with three turnovers and eight penalties for 109 yards. In the first five games, the Buckeyes have 13 turnovers (six fumbles, seven interceptions) for a minus-4 margin that ranks 101st of 128 FBS teams…
Continue Reading: Ohio State football: Buckeyes face Maryland in Big Ten home opener
