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    • Ohio State dominates Indiana football 38-15 in Top 5 matchup
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    Ohio State dominates Indiana football 38-15 in Top 5 matchup

    Umito Posted on

    An Ohio State-Indiana game unlike any before ended the way OSU-IU games almost do.

    But No. 2 Ohio State Victory 38-15 in front of 105,751 raucous fans at Ohio Stadium was a struggle until two punt plays proved decisive. THE Buckeyes took advantage of a botched punt late in the second quarter to take its first lead, and Caleb Downs returned a punt 79 yards for a touchdown at the start of the third trimester.

    Ohio State (10-1, 7-1 Big Ten) then drove 75 yards to increase its lead to 28-7. It was a lot of cushioning for a Buckeyes defense that was dominating after allowing a touchdown on IU’s first possession.

    It was 98th meeting between the teams and the first with the two teams ranked in the top five. No. 5 Hoosiersunder favorite Curt Cignetti, the national coach of the year, was 10-0 for the first time in school history.

    But skeptics wondered how good they really were due to their busy schedules. Ohio State is the only ranked team IU has played.

    Although the Hoosiers showed, at least half of the time, that they were no fluke, the result was familiar. Ohio State has won 29 straight games against Indiana. The Hoosiers last won in 1988.

    A win against Michigan next week would set up a rematch against Oregon in the Big Ten championship game. The Ducks beat Ohio State 32-31 in October.

    “We want to play our best football (now),” Buckeyes coach Ryan Day said. “We also know what’s at stake. If you don’t win this game, you have no chance of going to Indianapolis and playing in the Big Ten championship. We’ve had this approach for a few weeks now.”

    Jim Tressel’s theory proves correct

    Former Ohio State coach Jim Tressel was famous for saying that the punt was the most important play in football. It was Saturday.

    The game was tied at 7 with less than 2 minutes left in the first half. The Hoosiers knew they would get the ball back to start the third quarter and were milking the clock. But after a sack by linebacker Cody Simon, the Hoosiers were forced to punt.

    The snap went well, but the ball passed into the hands of punter James Evans. He recovered it but was tackled by defensive end Caden Curry at the IU 7. Three plays later, TreVeyon Henderson came in from the 4 to give Ohio State its first lead.

    The crucial second punt play came after the OSU defense forced a three-and-out to start the third quarter. Evans’ punt bounced before Downs caught it and darted upfield. He walked away from a tackle attempt by Finn Walters, then headed toward the right sideline. CJ Hicks gave him a key block, and Downs cut toward the middle of the field without threat the rest of the way.

    “There was no doubt I was going to field it,” Downs said. “There was space there, and everyone did a really good job blocking on the punt return unit. We talked about it all week and said we had a real opportunity to do it this week.”

    It was Ohio State’s first punt return for a touchdown in almost exactly 10 years. Jalin Marshall made a 54-yard field goal against the Hoosiers on November 22, 2014.

    Ohio State’s defense dominates again

    Indiana drove 70 yards for a touchdown to take a 7-0 lead on its first possession. The OSU defense’s struggles on the opponent’s first drive have become a habit.

    But so did Buckeye dominance after that. After that first drive, Indiana’s offense stalled. Ohio State didn’t allow the Hoosiers to gain more than 8 yards in any of their next six possessions, and half of them went back.

    Indiana finished with just 151 yards and, after the first score, didn’t get past Ohio State’s 40 until its final showcase touchdown with just under 2 minutes left.

    “After the first practice, we found a rhythm,” senior defensive end Jack Sawyer said. “We played tough, physical football, and that’s what we do here at Ohio State.”

    The Buckeyes sacked IU quarterback Kurtis Rourke five times and limited him to 68 passing yards. Rourke, a transfer from Ohio University, completed just 8 of 18 passes.

    Simon had 10 tackles, including 2½ sacks.

    “We just wanted to settle in and push them back in front and win first,” he said. “I think we did a good job. When we can get past the rush, a lot of good things happen.”

    Since the loss to Oregon, Ohio State’s defense has allowed four touchdowns in six games.

    The offensive line is holding up

    A major storyline entering the game was Ohio State’s offensive line. The Buckeyes lost left tackle Josh Simmons for the season with a knee injury against Oregon. On Tuesday, center Seth McLaughlin tore his left Achilles tendon, ending his season. McLaughlin, a graduate transfer from Alabama, had earned midseason All-America honors.

    The Buckeyes moved left guard Carson Hinzman to center, where he started last year, and inserted Austin Siereveld at left guard.

    The line failed to overpower Indiana’s strong defensive front. Ohio State averaged just 2.9 yards per carry. The line failed to gain the upper hand on a fourth-and-1 from Quinshon Judkins at the Indiana 2 with OSU trailing 7-0.

    But he held his own in pass protection. Howard was not sacked and completed his first 14 passes. He finished 22 of 26 for 201 yards and an interception, which slipped through the hands of tight end Jelani Thurman.

    He threw two touchdown passes. The first tied the score at 7 on a 9-yard pass to Emeka Egbuka, who was covered on the play by a defensive end.

    Howard’s other touchdown pass was a 1-yard pass to tight end Jelani Thurman.

    Howard also ran for a score from the 1 after Henderson deliberately slipped to use the clock after a 39-yard gain.

    Day was pleased with the line’s performance. The Buckeyes only had 55 offensive snaps, which contributed to only having 316 offensive yards.

    “Some plays, guys were just tense,” Day said of the linemen’s efforts. “In this style of defense, people move every play and change fronts. There were times where they had guys loose in a hole.

    “The game plan was there were maybe a few loose players near the line of scrimmage, but we were going to get the ball and not play hesitantly. I thought they played hard and protected themselves good in pass protection.”

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    Umito
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