Ohio's defense obviously got lit up in non-conference play. But in the MAC, Ohio gave up just 20.9 points (second in the MAC) and 340.4 yards (third in the MAC) per game. Didn't surrender more than 30 points in a MAC game.

The struggles did show up on a couple of occasions in MAC play, including in the first half against Miami and the second half against Akron, and Ohio's pass defense in MAC play only was middle of the league. Teams definitely seemed to have the most success when they basically stopped trying to run the ball and went all-in passing. Nonetheless, the defense was very good for the majority of MAC play, which I don't think anyone expected after the non-conference games.