It has only been four practices, but I am really concerned about the D Line. Bobby was our only real known production. All the reports I have heard/read, our O Line is dominating them. Now, I believe we have a great O Line, especially the tackles. But damn if we cant get production from that group, we are screwed.
I certainly understand your concern, I have the concern as well. And I would make a few points.
1. Our offensive tackles are NFL-caliber. Imagine what our Dline would look like if roundtree were at both ends. Instead, move that to the OL. A bowl-eligible team will not necessarily need ends that can beat two NFL caliber OTs. Instead they will need great interior linemen, to stuff the run and fast CBs that can make stops. I think we have both of those.
2. Our interior line is taking time off to prevent injury and allow recovery. Take Oliver and Milan out of the rotation and add in some NFL-caliber OL and the expectation should be low. Lovie knows what he sees and we have to assume he has a game plan. He did move Oladipo to interior, which doesn't make sense unless he has a plan. The players are playing to earn a bowl game. Love is working to qualify for a bowl game.
3. Betiku is raw and is going to experience a steep learning curve. Given who he is practicing against, I think we will see him learn fast because he doesn't look like to type that likes to get beat up. I bet he will be ready for the early conference games and will have some phenomenal games early in the season against lesser competition. Hopefully that continues into the big ten season.
4. The defense is trying to get to the point where they are "qualify for a bowl game" good. The offense is preparing for an award winning season for the offense. Especially the line and RBs. Calibrate expectations accordingly.
Honestly, I think we are all worried about the defense this year, who wouldn't be. At this point, we all just gotta stay the course. These are simple business decisions. If we flop this year with 2-3 wins, we look for a new head coach. Things get more questionable at 4-5 wins (the whole picture, including future outlook, must be taken into account). 6+ and everyone's happy. We get nothing by worrying.