J.K Dobbins ripped through the Nittany Lions run defense for 157 yards and two touchdowns while Justin Fields threw for two touchdowns, including the 28-yard strike to a leaping Chris Olave that put the victory away for a Buckeye team that held Penn State to only 227 yards of total offense.
Chase Young finished with three more sacks to set the Ohio State record for sacks in a single season after his two-game absence from his NCAA suspension.
The victory clinched the Big Ten East division title as the Buckeyes improved to 11-0 (8-0 Big Ten) and stamped their ticket to Indianapolis in two weeks for the Big Ten championship against the winner of next Saturday's Wisconsin-Minnesota game in Minneapolis.
Ohio State will travel to Ann Arbor next Saturday for The Game against the resurgent Wolverines with a perfect regular season on the line.
Olentangy Offerings
1) While I'm happy for the success that former Buckeye Joe Burrow is having for the LSU Tigers and I think that Burrow is likely going to win the Heisman Trophy.
None of that changes the fact- Chase Young is the best football player in this country.
Young finished with three sacks, nine tackles with four of those for losses, against a top ten team and is the type of disruptive presence that can swing games against even the best teams.
I hope the suspension doesn't cost Young votes, Young wouldn't have played more than a half against either Rutgers or Maryland and it shouldn't cost him consideration.
2) Give Penn State plenty of credit for making this game close.
Penn State hit hard and when Ohio State scored quickly to start the second half at 21-0, Penn State could have folded their tent but instead drove for a touchdown in their only long drive of the day.
I wasn't seriously concerned even when Penn State closed to within four points in the third quarter, but James Franklin's bunch made a game out of what easily could have been a blowout.
3) Take all of that into consideration, but this game was close because of what the Buckeyes didn't do rather than what Penn State did to control the Ohio State offense.
What they didn't do was hold onto the football and turning the football over kept Penn State in the game.
Justin Fields first-quarter fumble just before he crossed the goal line cost seven points right there and while J.K. Dobbins' fumble in the third could have been credited to the second half rain and the third-quarter fumble by Justin Fields might not have been (Fields knee looked to be down, but I understood why the call wasn't overturned, it was close and calls that close usually stay with the original whistle)
a fumble, Ohio State gave Penn State two possessions on a short field and ten points.
That's on them and as the games gain in importance, the ball security will need to improve.
4) It was clear that Penn State's one offensive skill player that could have made a difference wasn't near full speed.
K.J. Hamler was a game-time decision to play at all and the Buckeyes were able to keep the hampered Hamler under control with only four catches for forty-five yards.
Hamler's targets were shorter than usual and his injury might have caused him to be more cautious in the return game as he might have gambled on a kickoff return in better health rather than down the ball in the end zone.
5) Another play that swung things for Penn State was the third quarter hit that drove Penn State's starting quarterback Sean Clifford from the game.
George Allen once said that one of the worst things that can happen to a team defensively is knocking a quarterback out of the game because your preparation isn't for the backup quarterback.
In this game, Allen's idiom came true as redshirt freshman Will Levis entered the game and completed the first scoring drive of the day for Penn State, would take advantage of turnovers for two more scoring drives and Levis finished the game as Penn State's more effective quarterback.
6) What Will Levis did well was blast up the middle for chunks of yardage in what could best be described as a Tim Tebowesque offense.
Levis may have finished with only thirty-four yards rushing, but that number is because in college football sack yardage is taken off the rushing total of the quarterback.
Ohio State did make some adjustments to stop Levis and the final few drives controlled the Levis running plays, but one thing is for sure the Michigan Wolverines will notice that success and Ohio State will need to be prepared for Michigan to try some similar calls next Saturday.
7) Justin Fields did fumble on two runs, but without losses (as noted above with Levis) would have finished with 103 yards rushing (actual final number 68).
I still hold my breath with each run with the lack of depth at quarterback, but it's the time of year that you do what you need to win.
8) Considering that, I'm not sure why Justin Fields was taking a hit on a fourth down late in the game that saw Fields checked out after the play.
I understood with an eleven-point lead why Ryan Day didn't want to risk a blocked punt, but considering the depth issue at quarterback, Ohio State might have run the ball instead of passing as Fields was sacked on the play) and risking injury.
9) The Buckeye linebackers played well in not allowing the Penn State short passing game to gain yards after the catch.
Pete Warner finished with eight solo tackles and knocked down two passes and Baron Browning finished with four solo tackles, two and a half of those for loss and a sack and a half.
Penn State's longest completion of the day was the twenty-two yarder to K.J. Hamler and even though tight end Pat Freiermuth caught six passes as the dependable checkdown outlet, Friermuth finished with only forty yards.
10) Another linebacker was the feel-good story when linebacker Justin Hilliard intercepted a Will Levis throw at the Buckeye 20 to snuff out what looked to be the Penn State answer to the Chris Olave touchdown catch.
Hilliard has been plagued with injuries during his career in Columbus, so much so that he has applied for the sixth year of eligibility as a medical redshirt and it was good to see the former five star recruit make a big play.
11) Loved Chris Olave leaping over a Nittany Lion for the fourth-quarter touchdown that gave Ohio State some insurance.
Olave had dropped what looked to be a catchable long ball that would have been a touchdown on a drive that would not produce points near the end of the first half.
Olave has been the main deep threat this season and making a key catch such as that one should keep the confidence high.
12) Now the season gets interesting.
The home schedule, senior day and the division title are completed and the game against Michigan is here.
Before the season, the media selected Michigan as the winners of the Big Ten East with the Buckeyes second with many stating that with a freshman quarterback and first-year head coach that Ohio State was ripe for the picking.
That turned out to be false for the division title, but Michigan has played well in their last three games and appears to have their offense running as well as it has under Jim Harbaugh.
Michigan can ruin this season, put themselves back on the map in the rivalry, and jeopardize Ohio State's national title hopes with one visit to Ann Arbor.
That said, there is pressure on Michigan too as a loss means a third loss this year, potential frustration with Jim Harbaugh and would be their eighth loss in a row to Ohio State.
If you take away the Luke Fickell year ( a 2011 40-34 win over a 6-6 OSU team), Ohio State hasn't lost to Michigan since 2003, so Michigan has the weight of past failures as well.
The Junior Varsity "rivals" have been dispatched per usual (Penn State has one non-Fickell win over OSU since 2009 and Michigan State has two non-Fickell wins, but what wins they were! since 2000) and with Michigan, the Big 10 title against Wisconsin or Minnesota and then with some luck, the playoffs.
In many ways, the season starts Saturday in Ann Arbor and as Jim Ross used to scream in Mid-South Wrestling- Business is about to pick up.
I'll be back later with Browns-Dolphins or the Wilder-Ortiz battle with the other going up tomorrow.
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