Recap

The national media can now quiet down, at least for a week, about the Ohio State schedule up to this point into the season, as the Buckeyes went on the road for the first time this season and played their first Power 4 opponent in Michigan State and walked out with a win. For the gamblers who bet that the Buckeyes would cover might be happy as the defense shut down the Spartans in the second half, with the only touchdown for Michigan State was a result of a bad pass by Will Howard, and gave Michigan State a short field to pass it in.

I also want to take a moment to have a grievance against the Peacock experience. I am sure that a lot of money and work went into covering these games from NBC, especially with the new television deal, but streaming experience for a game that was happening at the same time as Penn State vs Illinois, and Georgia vs Alabama was found wanting. I do like that the game felt like it did go quicker since there was not as many stoppages for television ads and especially all of the annoying political ads that are non-stop with the election happening this year.

Going back to the game, Michigan State came out to prove they were not afraid of the number 3 team in the country, and at several times we saw them get in the faces of several Buckeye players, and a few chippy moments on the sidelines and after plays. Jonathan Smith is leading a team with a lot of new faces and trying to bring Michigan State back into relevance, but the Buckeyes were only the first hurdle on a brutal 4 game stretch. Aidan Chiles for the Spartans could be a future star, and shows flashes of how good he can be with his arm and legs, but it might be a year or two to be that threat.

The first half was a a lot of errors for both teams, but the Buckeyes found a way to hold Michigan State to one touchdown the entire game and scored 5 touchdowns the entire game. Both teams gave up the ball more than they wanted, and the Buckeyes were able to control the game and force some of those turnovers.

Will Howard started off the game with a lot of short pass plays near the line of scrimmage, and finished the day with 244 yards passing with 2 touchdowns and 1 interception. He also rushed for 6 carries for 14 yards and a touchdown, including the last one to cap off the game. Howard was knocked out for a play though in the second quarter, and Devin Brown stepped in to through a touchdown pass to Jeremiah Smith to extend the lead. Brown came back in later in the game during the 4th quarter for a series, and Julian Sayin saw some playing time as well.

TreVeyon Henderson led the running back room with 7 carries for 69 yards, and Quinshon Judkins had 11 carries for 54 yards. A week after dominating on the ground, the Buckeyes looked like they were working more on their passing game in wet conditions.

Emeka Egbuka had a few drops, but still finished as the lead receiver with 7 catches for 96 yards and a touchdown. Jeremiah Smith had some nice catches in this game, and had 5 catches for 83 yards and a touchdown. Carnell Tate was involved in the first half and was third on the team with 3 catches for 52 yards.

Turning Point

The Buckeyes never really had a point where the outcome was in doubt, but it was more to do with the cushion on defense in the first half that allowed the Spartans to keep in close, but the turnovers were the key. The biggest one happened in the 3rd quarter when the Spartans got the ball back, but Denzel Burke stepped up and returned it nearly for a pick six. Two plays later, the Buckeyes scored to make it 38-7, which was held until the final seconds.

Stars of the Game

Denzel Burke. Burke had one of the best plays of the night with the interception, and was the turning point in the second half of helping make this game a blowout for the Buckeyes, and stopping any momentum the Spartans were trying to build.

TreVeyon Henderson. Henderson was good on the ground, but the play that sticks out was the pick up block to prevent the sack to allow Devin Brown to through his touchdown pass to Jeremiah Smith.

Jeremiah Smith. At this point the highlight real wont stop for the freshman phenom, but the wide out had a rushing touchdown and receiving touchdown, along with two big time catches.

Playoff Picture

Ohio State went on the road and played their first Power 4 team i Michigan State after a lot of the pundits questioned their schedule after cruising to 3-0, and the Buckeyes looked every bit of one of the top teams in the country. There is a very good chance though that Alabama will move ahead of them as they are (currently at the time of posting) beating Georgia, and Texas didnt do anything to drop below the Buckeyes. Obviously the biggest test is still going to be in 2 weeks when they travel to Oregon on October 12, but being undefeated at this time of the year is what they want to be.

Looking Ahead

Ohio State (4-0) returns home to take on Iowa (3-1) at home on CBS at 3:30pm.

Michigan State (3-2) will travel to play Oregon (3-0) on Friday at 9pm on FOX.

Photo Credit: Ohio State Football