Ohio State Injury Report: Phillip Daniels, Zion Grady and Bennett Christian Among Nine Buckeyes Out vs. Illinois
Ohio State starting right tackle Phillip Daniels and defensive end Zion Grady will be sidelined for another week.
Daniels and Grady are among nine players listed as out for the Buckeyes’ Big Ten opener against Illinois.
After both were listed as questionable on Ohio State’s first two Big Ten availability reports of the week on Wednesday and Thursday, Daniels and Grady were downgraded to doubtful on Friday. They’ll now miss their second straight game after suffering lower-body injuries during Ohio State’s loss at Texas two weeks ago.
Seven other players are also out: Tight end Bennett Christian, running back Anthony “Turbo” Rogers, linebacker Braxton Rembert, reserve offensive linemen Ian Gecse, Jaxon Powell and Vasean Washington and walk-on wide reeciver Amari Valerio-Hudson.
LSU transfer wide receiver Kyle Parker, who missed the first three games due to injury, is available to play after he was upgraded from questionable to probable on Friday.
| SATURDAY AVAILABILITY REPORT – OHIO STATE VS. ILLINOIS |
|---|
| Out |
|
RT Phillip Daniels DE Zion Grady RB Anthony “Turbo” Rogers TE Bennett Christian LB Braxton Rembert OL Ian Gecse OL Jaxon Powell OL Vasean Washington WR Amari Valerio-Hudson |
Ohio State defensive tackle James Smith and running back Legend Bey are also available to play after leaving last week’s game against Kent State with injuries.
Daniels and Grady were both during Ohio State’s loss at Texas two weeks ago. Both of them were sidelined from practices last week and were not in uniform for the Kent State game, though Ryan Day said Tuesday that Daniels would practice in some capacity this week.
It’s unclear when Christian’s injury occurred, as he played 20 snaps – the second-most among tight ends behind only Nate Roberts – against Kent State.
How the Buckeyes could replace injured players
RT Phillip Daniels
If Daniels is unable to play, Austin Siereveld will move from right guard to right tackle for the second straight week, while Gabe VanSickle will make his second consecutive start at RG.
DE Zion Grady
Qua Russaw started in place of Grady last week with Beau Atkinson and Epi Sitanilei seeing increased playing time off the bench. All three of them are likely to see action opposite Kenyatta Jackson Jr. if Grady is out. Freshman Khary Wilder is another candidate for increased playing time, though Ryan Day indicated last week that most of Wilder’s playing time as Big Ten play begins will likely remain in the Rushmen package.
TE Bennett Christian
Christian has played primarily in multi-tight end packages through Ohio State’s first three games, pairing with either Mason Williams or Nate Roberts in those lineups. With Christian out, Roberts and Williams will likely play most of the snaps at tight end, though it could open up an opportunity for Hunter Welcing or Max LeBlanc to also see some playing time – or lead to Ohio State using more of the “Bison” package with Jake Cook as a sixth offensive lineman rather than traditional multi-tight end lineups.