The two questions were answered for one week as the Buckeyes stopped Ohio State stopped Penn State four times inside the Ohio State three-yard line and then never gave Penn State another chance to touch the football as Ohio State defeated Penn State 20-13.
Will Howard threw two touchdown passes and Quinshon Judkins rushed for ninety-five yards to lead Ohio State, who improved to 7-1 overall and 4-1 in the Big Ten after the victory.
Ohio State will host Purdue next Saturday in Columbus.
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1) You cannot talk about this game without mentioning the fourth-quarter goal line stand that stopped Penn State from the tying score.
Three runs from Penn State's big back Kaytron Allen were turned away before knocking down a fourth down pass with just under six minutes to play.
2) Coming on the heels of a similar stand against Nebraska, the Buckeye defense is playing well and living up to preseason expectations.
If they are going to be looked at as vulnerable because Oregon's athletes ran by them at times, other defenses have to be just as vulnerable as the Buckeyes run by them.
Give defensive coordinator Jim Knowles credit for an excellent game plan.
3) Caleb Downs is such a standout that he might be one of the rarities in the NFL draft when he comes out - a top-ten safety.
There is nothing he can't do and against Penn State, Downs was making one-handed tackles, blitzing Drew Allar, running like the wind, and on those rare occasions that a passer dares to float the ball in hs area, a ball hawk on the elite level.
4) BUT the play of the game came late in the first half with Penn State at the Buckeye three with eleven seconds remaining in the half and a touchdown would give Penn State the lead. Drew Allar lofts a pass that Gus Johnson screams touchdown but after replay, it's clear that Davidson Igbinosun grabbed the pass away and kept a foot in bounds for an interception to end the half.
That play didn't mean the game as PSU would have likely kicked a field goal that wouldn't have been enough in the big picture but it did douse the fans going into the half.
5) Will Howard wasn't outstanding in his personal revenge against his childhood team that wasn't interested in recruiting him but he did enough to win.
Howard threw a pick-six to Penn State's Zion Tracy on his first pass but he didn't make any other backbreaking mistakes that could have given Penn State cheap points.
6) Howard did fumble through the end zone for a turnover rather than a touchdown that would have almost clinched the game in the first half but it was Howard's scramble that put him in the position to score and it was a fluky bounce of the ball that sent the ball through the end zone.
An inch either way and the ball goes out of bounds at the Penn State one, so it's hard for me to fault Howard too much on that play.
7) And the running game returned to expectations with Quinshon Judkins and TreVeyon Henderson rushing for just under one hundred fifty yards.
The two combined to average six yards per carry and gave the offense the balance that it lacked against Nebraska.
8) The running game is what allowed Ohio State to essentially end the game after the goal line stand in the fourth quarter.
Taking over at their own one-yard line and just over five minutes remaining, Ohio State pushed Penn State back with eleven runs (counting the final kneel-down) without a pass and moved the ball from the OSU one to the Penn State forty.
Penn State needed a stop and couldn't get it, so much for the running game having problems.
9) The offensive line had been a target of the fans and pundits since their struggles at Nebraska but they stepped up in this game.
Carson Hinzman, who started last season at center, had been supplanted by Alabama transfer Seth McLaughlin and dropped to the backup spot but for this game, Hinzman was installed at guard and the line looked much improved.
Hinzman moved to the guard spot vacated by Donovan Jackson after Jackson was moved to left tackle due to the injury to Zen Michalski against Nebraska after Michalski replaced Josh Simmons after his season-ending injury that Simmons suffered in the loss to Oregon.
10) Donovan Jackson had never played a game at left tackle in high school or college and had to deal with Penn State All-American Abdul Carter off the edge in his initial game.
Carter finished with two sacks but wasn't constantly harassing Will Howard in the pocket and overall I would rate Jackson as doing as well as could be hoped against a pass rusher like Abdul Carter.
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