The Buckeyes showed they can control a game against an elite opponent in Austin. A 24–23 loss to Texas showed just as clearly that control means little if it disappears in the fourth quarter.
For three quarters Saturday night, Ohio State looked ready to answer the biggest questions about its season. The Buckeyes took an early lead in a hostile stadium, held Texas to three points and carried a 23–3 advantage into the fourth quarter. Jeremiah Smith was making plays, the defense was making Arch Manning work, and a road win over a top-five opponent seemed within reach.
Then Texas drove 91 yards for a touchdown. And 72 yards for another. And 73 yards for the winner with 25 seconds remaining. Ohio State left Austin with a 24–23 loss that will sting because the Buckeyes had done so much right before failing to finish. Ohio State’s official box score tells the story of the swing: Texas scored all 21 of its second-half points in the fourth quarter; Ohio State scored none.
Here are five Monday Musings as the Buckeyes turn toward Kent State.
1. The First Three Quarters Still Count—but They Cannot Be the Consolation Prize
It would be easy to look at the final score and treat the entire night as a failure. That would overlook some meaningful evidence about this team. Ohio State did not stumble into a 20-point lead through a series of fluky plays. The Buckeyes moved the ball, made Texas settle for a first-half field goal and responded to a demanding road environment with composure early in the game.
There was even a glimpse of the complementary football this team needs. Ja’Kobi Jackson finished an 81-yard drive with an eight-yard touchdown run, and Julian Sayin found Jeremiah Smith for a 19-yard score just before halftime. Ohio State went into the locker room ahead 20–3, then extended the lead with a 48-yard Connor Hawkins field goal in the third quarter.
Those moments matter when evaluating what Ohio State can become. But they cannot become an excuse for what followed. Great teams are not judged solely by whether they can build a lead; they are judged by what happens when the opponent adjusts and starts taking it back. Texas found answers. Ohio State did not find enough counters. That is the difference between an encouraging three quarters and a defining road victory.
2. Jeremiah Smith Delivered. Who Joins Him When the Game Tightens?
Smith finished with 164 receiving yards and Ohio State’s lone passing touchdown. He remained the player Texas had to account for on every snap, and Sayin’s willingness to trust him helped produce 278 passing yards against a defense considerably more talented than Ball State’s.
The question is what happens when a defense makes every other throw harder. After an impressive debut from Devin McCuin against Ball State, Ohio State needed its supporting receivers to make Texas pay for the attention devoted to Smith. The Buckeyes found some early success, but the passing game became far less dependable as the night wore on. Sayin completed just five of 16 attempts in the second half, and his interception on the final possession ended any last chance of a comeback.
That is not all on a quarterback playing in one of the most difficult settings on Ohio State’s schedule. Protection, play design, separation and the situation on the scoreboard all affect those numbers. Still, the Buckeyes need an offense that can produce a first down when everyone in the stadium knows Smith is the primary threat. Arthur Smith and Sayin have the talent around them to find that answer. Kent State is an opportunity to begin developing it, but the answer will have to hold up against stronger opponents later in the year.
3. The Run-Blocking Concern Followed Ohio State to Austin
Last Monday, we noted that Ohio State’s 237 rushing yards against Ball State concealed an uneven first half. Two long touchdown runs helped create an impressive final total, but they did not settle whether the Buckeyes could gain tough yards against an elite defensive front.
Texas gave us a clearer test. Ohio State finished with 94 rushing yards on 31 attempts—3.0 yards per carry. Bo Jackson worked for 74 yards on 19 carries, but the Buckeyes never established the kind of consistent ground game that could protect a fourth-quarter lead.
This is about more than deciding whether Ohio State should have run or passed on any one play. When the ground game cannot reliably create manageable downs, the entire offense becomes easier to defend. A short gain keeps the clock moving, but it does not necessarily put a drive in position to continue. Texas could attack Sayin knowing the Buckeyes had not consistently moved the line of scrimmage.
The offensive line does not need to turn every carry into a highlight. It needs to give Ohio State an option when the defense knows the situation, the crowd is loud and one sustained drive could change the game. Until that happens, the run game will remain a concern regardless of what the box score looks like against a lesser opponent.
4. The Defense’s Collapse Was About Sustained Drives, Not One Busted Play
Ohio State’s defense spent most of the night frustrating Texas. Manning finished with 195 passing yards, and the Longhorns had only three points through three quarters. Matt Patricia’s group showed it had a plan capable of slowing an offense loaded with talent.
The fourth quarter exposed how difficult it was to sustain that plan. Texas’ three touchdown possessions covered 91, 72 and 73 yards. They were not the product of one broken coverage that can be fixed with a reminder in the film room. The Longhorns repeatedly stayed on schedule, converted important downs and wore through Ohio State’s resistance. Texas finished 9-of-16 on third down and converted two fourth downs; Ohio State’s defense could not get off the field when it mattered most.
The offense has to share responsibility for that finish. Its fourth-quarter possessions did not give the defense enough relief, and Hawkins’ missed 45-yard field goal with just over four minutes remaining gave Texas the ball at its own 27 with a chance to win. But the defense still had opportunities to make one stop across three long drives. It could not.
That is the hard lesson from Austin: Ohio State does not just need a defense that can shut down an opponent early. It needs one that can communicate, tackle and win a decisive down after the opponent has adjusted.
5. The Playoff Path Is Open. The Margin for Repeating This Is Not.
Ohio State fell from No. 1 to No. 6 in Sunday’s AP poll, while Texas moved to the top spot. A one-point September road loss to the new No. 1 team does not end the Buckeyes’ College Football Playoff hopes. It does change the conversation around them.
There is a useful distinction here. Ohio State did not lose because it was incapable of competing with Texas; for most of the night, it proved the opposite. It lost because the run game could not provide enough stability, the offense went quiet and the defense could not close. Those are correctable problems, but calling them correctable is only the beginning of the work.
Kent State comes to Ohio Stadium on Saturday after beating Wofford 36–15. The Buckeyes should win comfortably. The more valuable measure will be whether they play with the focus of a team that understood what happened in Austin. Can they establish the run without depending on breakaways? Can Sayin build connections beyond Smith? Can the defense finish possessions when it has a chance to get off the field?
Saturday’s final score may not answer every question Texas raised. Ohio State’s habits will tell us more.
The Bottom Line
Last week’s Monday Musings predicted a narrow Ohio State win in Austin. The matchup was every bit as close as expected, but the Buckeyes did not earn the ending. That is what makes the loss so frustrating: Ohio State was good enough to lead Texas by 20 points in the fourth quarter and still left with nothing to show for it in the standings.
The season is far from lost. The passing-game ceiling is real, the defense showed what it can do for long stretches, and there is time to address the line of scrimmage. But “we played well for three quarters” cannot become this team’s answer to Austin. The next step is turning 23–3 football into a complete four-quarter performance.
Up next: No. 6 Ohio State hosts Kent State on Saturday, Sept. 19, at noon ET on FOX.
Photo Credit: Adam Cairns/Columbus Dispatch