Ohio State returned to practice Tuesday at the Woody Hayes Athletic Center to prepare for Purdue without junior defensive end Nick Bosa, whose career with the Buckeyes ended over the weekend after he decided to shut things down during his recovery from Sept. 20 core muscle surgery and focus on the 2019 NFL draft.
Without its best player as Big Ten play picks back up with Saturday’s 7:30 p.m. ET kickoff on ABC at the Boilermakers (3-3, 2-1), how does No. 2 OSU (7-0, 4-0) adapt to life after Bosa? Sophomore quarterback Dwayne Haskins, junior safety Jordan Fuller and junior H-back K.J. Hill turn the page to the upcoming matchup.
Dwayne Haskins
On going up against Purdue’s defense knowing how explosive the Boilermakers’ offense is…
“You go out there on offense and you just score because you know you might be in a shootout playing against those guys. Looking forward to playing them.”
On going into another game considering the rushing attack’s lack of production in recent weeks…
“I don’t think it’s a problem. We’ll get it figured out. One day at a time. We had a really good practice today, so I think we’ll figure it out.”
On deciding in favor of Ohio State when considering NFL production and getting to the next level…
“Definitely, it’s a big part. But when you go to college, you expect to have really great coaches. In high school, I didn’t think (offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach Ryan) Day was going to be here at Ohio State and I didn’t think (former offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach Tim) Beck was going to be here at Ohio State. I was recruited by (former offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach Tom) Herman. But you just trust the brand, trust the program. When you do go to college here, you know that you get prepared for the next level.”
Jordan Fuller
On facing Purdue’s offense considering its weapons and passing attack…
“They definitely have two tight ends that can catch the ball, too. All of their receivers are good. Their quarterback (David Blough) is a (fifth-year) senior, a guy that’s got some experience. And their offense is just putting up like 500 yards per game or something like that.”
On entering another prime-time matchup away from home at Purdue…
“We know it’s a big challenge. Night game, prime time against a team that’s putting up a lot of points. So it’s a big challenge.”
On trying to stop Purdue’s Rondale Moore…
“He’s a good player. His change of direction’s really good. His top-end speed’s really good, too, so yeah. We’ve definitely got to keep him in our sights at all times. Just trust your techniques and trust the defenses that we’re in and the coaches’ call, so yeah.”
K.J. Hill
On getting back to running the ball effectively in the offense…
“I feel like it was just little things, little miscommunications that we have. But in practice, we’re getting it fixed. So we’ve been putting a big emphasis on it this week, so we can be able to take off in the run game this week.”
On having balance in the offense between passing and rushing…
“Definitely, you have to, to win big games, especially on the road. Coaches always say you’ve got to be able to run the ball to stop the run.”
On building off a career-best game vs. Minnesota with a one-handed touchdown catch…
“You just do it in practice every day, so you get a feel for it. In practice, you can try different things, too. So when you’re getting a feel for it, confidence is out the roof, so it’ll be good.”
