With Sean Clifford’s health in question, five other Penn State players Ohio State football fans should worry

COLUMBUS, Ohio — Watching Penn State and Illinois repeatedly fail to score from the 3-yard line last Saturday in a nine-overtime … thriller?

The truly painful experience, though, came from watching Nittany Lions quarterback Sean Clifford play in obvious pain. The senior, playing through injuries sustained two weeks early in a loss at Iowa, did not look comfortable either throwing or running the ball.

That second part, Clifford’s mobility, is where he could truly put some pressure on Ohio State’s defense on Saturday night. A one-dimensional Clifford plus a lackluster run game does not seem like an equation that scores enough to stop OSU’s ascent. James Franklin, though, also has nowhere else to turn. Last year’s backup, Will Levis, is leading a resurgent season at Kentucky.

With one notable exception, the list of Penn State players who could hurt the Buckeyes the most play on the defensive side of the ball.

Jaquan Brisker, safety

No many in the Big Ten do this job better than Brisker. He has two interceptions and four pass breakups to go along with 25 tackles.

Fellow senior and former junior college teammate Ji’Ayir Brown also has three interceptions and four pass breakups. That combination in the back end of the defense can potentially help limit the explosive plays OSU has used to clobber everyone over the past five weeks.

Jahan Dotson, receiver

Clifford’s compromised performance also deprives Penn State of its other most important offensive threat. Ohio State knows Dotson well. Last season he put up 144 yards and three touchdowns on only eight receptions.

Dotson’s 49 receptions lead the conference, his six touchdowns are tied for second and his 563 yards rank third. Will this be the biggest challenge of Denzel Burke’s young career, or will a more veteran option like Sevyn Banks or Cameron Brown draw the assignment?

Arnold Ebiketie, defensive end

Before OSU can be beaten right now, C.J. Stroud must be interrupted. Ebiketie does not yet have the name recognition of Purdue’s George Karlaftis or Michigan’s Aiadan Hutchinson. The Temple transfer is, however, the Nittany Lions’ top-graded defensive player per Pro Football Focus and their best chance to make Stroud uncomfortable.

Ebiketie’s 29 pressures include 5.5 sacks (second in the Big Ten) and nine other QB hits. Last season, Penn State’s talented defensive ends were supposed to cause problems. Thayer Munford and Nicholas Petit-Frere made them largely irrelevant. The responsibility falls on Ebiketie to break through, especially with defensive tackle PJ Mustipher out for the season.

Joey Porter Jr., cornerback

The son of the four-time Pro Bowl linebacker is emerging as one of the best cornerbacks in the conference. His 32 tackles lead the secondary, and he has also defended five passes with one interception. Last season against the Buckeyes he posted five tackles and a pass breakup.

It will be interesting to see which Ohio State receiver draws the bulk of Porter’s attention. Daequan Hardy and Tariq Castro-Fields are solid as well. This entire secondary should make it more difficult for the Buckeyes’ receiving corps to thrive unchallenged as they have throughout the past month.

Brandon Smith, linebacker

The third-year player and former five-star prospect is coming off of perhaps his best game of the season. He collected seven tackles, a sack, another quarterback hit and a forced fumble.

Statistically, Penn State is a middle-of-the-pack run defense among Big Ten teams. (So was Indiana before TreVeyon Henderson came to town.) Smith is yet another example where the talent in this matchup begins to equate.

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