Ohio State Buckeyes 56, Rutgers Scarlet Knights 17

Ohio State Buckeyes defensive lineman Joey Bosa (97) looks to tackle Rutgers Scarlet Knights quarterback Gary Nova (10) in the first quarter on Saturday.

(Marvin Fong, The Plain Dealer)

COLUMBUS, Ohio — Even the most novice of football fans could take one look at Penn State, one look at Ohio State and realize where the Buckeyes have a distinct advantage.

Urban Meyer, being the football expert that he is, knows where his team can butter its bread this weekend.

"Regardless of who you're playing, (defensive line) is where everything starts," Meyer said Tuesday on the Big Ten coaches teleconference. "The D-line doing their job and also being productive is the essence of good defense."

Then on the flip side, shouldn't protecting a quarterback and controlling the line of scrimmage with a strong offensive line be the essence of good offense? Penn State hasn't been able to do either this season.

With a depleted offensive front, the Nittany Lions have sunk to the depths when it comes to total offense, currently sitting at 92nd with no signs of coming up for air.

Ohio State has a defensive line pegged by some as the best in the country. Though it hasn't played up to that level, there's NFL talent across the board. Penn State has an offensive line that has one scholarship tackle in the sophomore, junior and senior classes.

"It's a tremendous challenge, they're playing at a high level," Penn State coach James Franklin said. "You look at the production they're having, not just a guy like (Joey) Bosa, but across the board. If you focus on one guy, there's gonna be a another guy that you're gonna have to be aware of who's gonna factor in."

Only 15 teams have allowed more sacks than the 20 the Nittany Lions have allowed this year.

Bosa is 19th in the nation with 5.5 sacks, but Ohio State as a whole is in the middle of the pack when it comes to bringing down opposing quarterbacks. This could be the week that Bosa and the Buckeyes pad those stats a bit.

Here's more from Meyer's time on the Big Ten call:

• Meyer said Bosa had his best game of the season against Rutgers. Not for his stats, but because he limited his mistakes.

"He's had a tendency, because he's so aggressive, on run plays he gets too far upfield, he doesn't hit the gaps sometimes because he's so aggressive," Meyer said.

• Meyer said H-back Jalin Marshall has come a long way from last season when he wasn't a good practice player, and was "lazy" with his football and school obligations.

Now he's one of the more explosive playmakers the Buckeyes have.

"Here's a kid that's one of our better practice players, doing well in school," Meyer said. "He's a gentleman who represents Ohio State the right way."

• Meyer talked about the "State of the Union" speech he gave his team during the bye week regarding where the Buckeyes stand in the national picture. He said Tuesday that it's something he started when he was Utah.

"The whole BCS busting started and it was just chaos around Salt Lake City," Meyer said. "I called a team meeting then to address it. We've always done that since."