National Championship Preview: Ohio State's running game

The first College Football Playoff National Championship Game is finally upon us and Dr. Saturday has your pregame prep covered. Every day leading up to the game, we’ll breakdown a piece of each team and preview its role in the upcoming title game. Previous previews: Ohio State's front 7, Oregon's front 7, Ohio State's secondary, Oregon's secondary, Oregon's O-line, Ohio State's O-line, Oregon's running game.

Season highlight: Ohio State’s win against Michigan State was one of its most impressive wins of the season, but it was even more impressive because the Buckeyes were able to rush 41 times for 268 yards and four touchdowns against the nation’s top-ranked rushing defense. Most of the effort came from running back Ezekiel Elliott and now-injured quarterback J.T. Barrett, who had 154 and 86 rushing yards respectively and two touchdowns apiece.

Player to Watch: Elliott, a sophomore, was an unknown coming into this season after spending his freshman year behind Carlos Hyde, but he has emerged as one of the best running backs in the country with 237 carries for 1,632 yards and 14 touchdowns. He’s rushed for 100 or more yards eight times this season and has had his only 200-yard games in each of the past two contests, including a career-high 230 against Alabama in the College Football Playoff Semifinal.

Strengths: Elliott has shown several times this season a fearlessness when it comes to running between the tackles and a confidence to shoot through a hole when it presents itself. Elliott’s 85-yard touchdown against Alabama came because of his vision, speed and ability to outrace the Alabama defenders. He had a similar 81-yard run against Wisconsin. If a hole opens up in the middle of the line, Oregon is going to be chasing.

Weaknesses: Ohio State has a tendency to give up a lot of tackles for loss and most of them occur with the running game goes horizontal. Elliott and quarterback Cardale Jones are not the type of players that will hurt you a lot on the outside. They like to go between the tackles, so forcing them out of their comfort zone will be the key to success for Oregon's defense.

Overview: It’s unbelievable to think Elliott has played the entire season with a broken left wrist.

He suffered the break during fall camp, had surgery and a screw inserted to stabilize the bone, but never missed a game and has been playing with a pad and a brace to avoid further damage. He’ll probably have to have surgery when the season concludes, but the injury has done nothing to affect his game.

In the back half of the season, Elliott has found his stride. He’s rushed for at least 100 yards in five of the past six games, a record 220 yards in the Big Ten title game against Wisconsin and a Sugar Bowl record 230 yards against Alabama.

It’s helped that the Ohio State offensive line also gelled in the second half of the season and has become one of the strengths of the team rather than a liability.

Elliott, who struggled early in the season while trying to gain confidence, has been leaned on a bit this season because of the changes at quarterback. He took a lot of pressure off the Jones’ shoulders in both the Big Ten Championship and the semifinal. The Buckeyes will count on him again against an Oregon defensive front that has struggled to stop the run all season.

Oregon allows 156.1 rushing yards a game, but it usually doesn’t face a lot of runs in the second half because its offense get the team a lead and forces opponents to pass more to catch up. In fact, none of Oregon’s last eight opponents got to 200 yards rushing and only two rushed for more than 150 yards. Oregon’s biggest rushing struggle came against UCLA when the Bruins ran for 328 yards and two touchdowns. Still, Oregon was able to weather the onslaught and come away with a 42-30 win.

Jones might be the X-factor in the running game. Jones unexpectedly rushed for 43 yards against Alabama’s stout rush defense and most of it was between the tackles. Jones is 6-foot-5, 250 pounds, so he’s quite the load when he gets a head of speed. He’ll definitely try to prey on what has often been labeled as a “soft” Oregon defensive front.

While Ohio State will probably be able to rack up a bunch of yards against the Ducks, scoring will be key. The Ducks don’t allow many points per game and they are good when it comes to limiting touchdowns in the red zone. Ohio State got away from its running game during its early opportunities in the red zone against Alabama and came away with field goals instead of touchdowns.

With the passing game still a bit of an unknown because of the limited sample size, the running game will be the key to the Buckeyes’ success. Ohio State is going to have to keep with its running game no matter what’s happening on the scoreboard because it is its greatest offensive weapon. While Jones played well against Wisconsin, he struggled with his passing against Alabama, completing 51.4 percent. He did make some key throws late, but the overall consistency wasn't there like it was against Wisconsin. This game against Oregon is just his third start and starts don’t get any bigger than this.

For more Ohio State news, visit BuckeyeGrove.com.

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Graham Watson is the editor of Dr. Saturday on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email her at dr.saturday@ymail.com or follow her on Twitter! Follow @YahooDrSaturday

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