Ohio State Buckeyes Offense Continues To Amaze…In A Bad Way

This year’s game could has been circled on fans’ calendars for months and could have been one of the biggest Big Ten games in the past nine years if not for MI State’s stunning loss at Nebraska. Barrett and the rest of the offense couldn’t get into the rhythm they had during the games against Penn State and Rutgers.

So why all the hate?

Ohio State held the Illini to 20 yards rushing. MI State forced five turnovers, had a pair of fourth-down stops and returned an interception for a touchdown in the win over Maryland. But on social media and in the opinions of pundits across the country, the almost four-touchdown win earned nothing but criticism. Not only does this game carry a lot of weight in regards to the Big Ten, but it has a few College Football Playoff implications on the line as well. Lim’s great meet continued with his time of 1:50.61 in the 200 IM, beating the next closest swimmer by over three seconds and earning the fastest time for a Buckeye in that event to boot.

Last week, against Northern IL, the Buckeyes struggled mightily in several capacities.

But the problem is the word “potential”. They won their last 13 last season.

“It’s going to be a good test, a good measure of where we’re at”. But it’s also not that far off.

LeShun Daniels rushed for a career-high 195 yards and three touchdowns and the Hawkeyes (10-0, 6-0 Big Ten) improved to 10-0 to start a season for the first time in school history.

Ohio State wasn’t flashy on offense in this game.

If there was a turning point in this game, it arrived mid-way through the second quarter.

No, Ezekiel Elliott isn’t running away with the Heisman.

His 181 yards on 27 carries Saturday pushed his season total to 1,425 yards.

Ohio State’s first touchdown – Barrett’s 24-yard pass to wide receiver Michael Thomas with 3:43 left in the first quarter – came three plays after running back Curtis Samuel blocked Ryan Crain’s punt to set the Buckeyes up at the Illini 49.

That all seems pretty good. Ohio State isn’t dominating its opponents, they say.

After 10 weeks of undercards, the Buckeyes (10-0, 6-0 Big Ten) are ready for the main event. Notre Dame’s previous record for longest touchdown run stood since 1947 when Bob Livingstone scored from 92 yards against USC. At one point, the Buckeyes came within two points of MI, but kills from senior middle blocker Krystalyn Goode, Murphy and Warner put the Wolverines ahead by five and continued the offensive surge for the Maize and Blue.

It’s not dominating in the hyperbolic sense of the word, perhaps, and no one is arguing that Ohio State has been the most dominant team this season or that it’s a team without flaws.

“They’re a very good team”.

Doesn’t matter. All Ohio State’s warts will vanish with victories against MI State, Michigan and then Iowa in the Big Ten championship game.

The Buckeyes looked sharp in their 10th win of the year, but now the toughest test of their season awaits them as MI State heads to Columbus next weekend. UCLA at Utah (-1)The Pac-12 South Division is a muddled mess, but both these teams still have a shot to reach the conference title game, despite suffering upset losses on Saturday. The following week, Ohio State is at No. 15 MI. And two short touchdown runs by Elliott pushed the lead to 28-3 with 9:47 left in the game.