There were warning signs last year in the Week 2 game between Ohio State and Penn State. These weren’t that the Buckeye pass defense wasn’t as good as expected, although those were there too, but rather there were signs that Nittany Lion wide receiver Jahan Dotson was going to be a problem in the Big Ten.
In his two seasons prior, Dotson had been good, catching a combined 40 passes for 691 yards, but was yet to make a statement about his play. He did that in the 2020 game against the Scarlet and Gray, setting career highs in catches (8), receiving yards (144) and touchdowns (3) in a game on his way to an All-Big Ten season.
“That was probably one of the best games of my career, a game I’ll never forget,” Dotson reflected on the 38-25 loss at Beaver Stadium.
On Saturday night, Dotson will see Ohio State yet again, this time at Ohio Stadium.
“It’s a great opportunity,” the receiver said of the matchup this week. “One of the best teams in the country, like they are every year. And it’s a great opportunity for our team to go up against some guys that are very talented, just as good as us. It’s honestly the opportunity that you live for.”
Once thought to be a matchup of two of the top teams in the country, some of the excitement of the annual meeting between the Buckeyes and the Nittany Lions wore off after Penn State lost its last two games. But the Scarlet and Gray secondary know this is still a potent passing offense they face and Dotson is one major reason why.
“I think Dotson is one of the better wide receivers in the country and we’ve got to know where he is at all times,” head coach Ryan Day said of the Nittany Lion wideout on Tuesday. “They’re going to try and find ways to get him the ball for sure and so however we go about doing that, that’s part of the schematic stuff that we’ll work on this week. But we have to know exactly where he is.”
Last season, it was fourth-year junior and preseason All-American Shaun Wade who was mostly tasked with dealing with Dotson. That challenge will likely go to a new face on Ohio State’s roster this time around.
Freshman cornerback Denzel Burke has been a revelation for the Buckeyes in his first season of college football. He opened the year as the Scarlet and Gray’s No. 1 corner, something that doesn’t happen often in Columbus for a first-year player, and has been one of the Big Ten’s top defensive backs ever since.
Despite the presence of veterans Sevyn Banks and Cameron Brown in the corner room, Burke has often covered the opponent’s best receiver throughout Ohio State’s first seven games. He leads the Buckeyes in passes defended and has one of the team’s four interceptions returned for a touchdown.
After opposing quarterbacks targeted the freshman early in the season, passing attacks have stayed away from Burke, who hasn’t had to break up a pass in the past three games.
“I guess teams are starting to respect me a little more,” Burke said this week. “At the same time, I really do want them to test me.”
Assuming health, Penn State quarterback Sean Clifford is likely to test Burke on Saturday, especially if he, as expected, covers Dotson frequently.
Challenges such as this one are part of the reason Burke came to Ohio State.
“That’s something I’m looking forward to,” he said when asked about going against a talented and experienced receiver like Dotson. “I just want to go out there with my team, get the dub and just ball out.
“He’s a pretty good receiver. Nothing I can’t handle though.”
While Burke may come off sounding arrogant, this has more to do with the confidence he’s developed over his first 10 months with the Buckeyes. The freshman credits going against the likes of Chris Olave and Garrett Wilson, two of college football’s best receivers, every day in practice as a reason he’s had such quick success.
While Dotson brings his unique set of skills to this matchup, Burke sees elite receivers every day and believes he will be ready for the test.
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“Honestly, there’s really not that much adjustment,” the freshman said. “You’ve just got to go out there and trust your technique, trust what you’ve been playing and, again, I guard the best in the nation, so, honestly, just apply what I do with them, just apply with him and their receiving corps and just do my thing.”
Dotson said he spent more than three hours this week watching film to be ready for the Ohio State game, so it’s likely that he is now familiar with Burke. On Saturday night, the two will undoubtedly go head-to-head often and get to know each other a little better.
And while Dotson would love a repeat of his individual performance last year against the Buckeyes, what matters most to him in this contest is the same thing that matters to Burke: the scoreboard at the end of the game.
“The biggest thing for me is coming out with a W,” Dotson said. “I haven’t beat Ohio State since I’ve been here, so that's really the biggest thing for me.”
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