Grumpy Old Buckeye: Nitpicking Ohio State’s 20-13 win over No. 3 Penn State
Michael Citro via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
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A big win isn’t a perfect win. Let’s discuss what could have gone better.
Ohio State went to Happy Valley on Saturday in a battle of coaches looking to change their narratives. Ryan Day was searching for a win over a Top 5 team, while James Franklin was trying to win against Ohio State and/or
any big time opponent.
Day won the… err, day… thanks to a dominating performance on the line of scrimmage on both sides of the ball. The Buckeyes ran the football and stopped the run effectively, which is how big games are typically won.
That said, here are the things that had me yelling “WE ARE! AN-NOYED!” at my television:
The Will Howard Trilogy
As Ohio State’s starting quarterback said after the game, he didn’t play his best game on Saturday. He ultimately made enough plays in the game to make up for his lack of sharpness, but it was an up-and-down performance for the Pennsylvania native.
Let’s start with some of the misadventures he had...
Howard lives childhood dream, throws TD pass for Penn State
Ugh, just ugh.
With a makeshift offensive line, the Buckeyes needed to avoid being predictable on their first drive of the game. They did not accomplish that.
A handoff on first down gained only one yard. A second Quinshon Judkins run set up third-and-5. Penn State was always going to be sitting on a short route on that initial passing situation because of the OSU offensive line situation. The Buckeyes didn’t disappoint the Nittany Lions’ defense by trying a quick slant with crossing receivers.
Penn State was ready for it and passed off coverage so quickly the defense never appeared to expect the OSU receivers to do anything else. Zion Tracy stepped in front of Jeremiah Smith, intercepting the pass and taking it back 31 yards to make it 10-0.
Howard misses wide-open Tate
Ohio State had just gotten a gift from Penn State when Elliot Washington II took an unnecessary unsportsmanlike conduct penalty after Carnell Tate caught a third-down pass short of the sticks. Rather than pushing himself up, Washington intentionally stepped over Tate, straddling him and stared him down while walking forward, effectively putting his groin in Tate’s face.
While Penn State fans, people on social media, and national media members moaned about it, that has supposedly been a point of emphasis this year with the officials. If so, it was not a smart move by Washington, and watching the telecast, it wasn’t clear if he also said something to Tate. Regardless, the flag flew.
On the next play, Tate broke wide open deep down the right sideline. Howard saw him but couldn’t deliver an accurate pass. Tate caught it, but couldn’t remain in bounds while doing so. It ultimately didn’t cost Ohio State, which scored later in the drive on a Howard pass to Brandon Inniss, but those aren’t the kinds of gifts to turn down when the defense presents them.
I’m not going to beat Howard up too much for throwing a high, wobbly pass later in the second quarter that Judkins couldn’t handle, but that was another one on which he should have done better. I saw folks on social media saying Judkins should have caught it, but the end zone look on that play showed just how much effort it took just to get his fingertips to it.
I mean, I
should beat him up over it, because I’m pretty sure Jelani Thurman’s fourth down quadruple-bobble conversion catch a few plays later took years off my life, but it kept the drive alive.
The fumble
Ohio State was inches from taking a 21-10 lead late in the second quarter, but another Howard mistake prevented the Buckeyes from gaining some separation on the scoreboard.
Starting at their own 42-yard line, the Buckeyes drove down to the Penn State 13, where it was first down. Chip Kelly called a designed Howard run around the left side. TreVeyon Henderson delivered a crushing block, destroying safety Jaylen Reed to spring Howard, who just needed to beat one man to get in.
Safety Zakee Wheatley met Howard inside the 1-yard line and Howard, who had already picked up a first down, didn’t secure the ball before contact. Wheatley knocked it loose, and the ball hit Howard’s torso and caromed into and out of the end zone for a turnover, keeping it a 14-10 game.
The Rest of the Story
Why am I soft in the middle? The rest of my life is so hard
While Ohio State’s defense allowed Penn State just 3.8 yards per carry, which was inflated by a single 33-yard run by tight end Tyler Warren, there was an area of the field where the Buckeyes struggled early.
The Nittany Lions had success and produced points on their first drive with multiple Drew Allar scrambles, taking advantage of gaps in a four-man pass rush with the linebackers and defensive backs dropping into coverage, giving up the middle of the field. That included a key third down early in the first drive near midfield.
The Buckeyes adjusted to some degree, and it got better as the game went on, but Penn State would have been smart to call more designed delayed quarterback draws on Saturday.
Missed sacks are costly
Whether it was nerves early in the game or simply poor execution, Jack Sawyer missed Allar in the backfield on the first Penn State series.
Had he made the sack, Penn State may not have been able to get on the board on its opening drive. It would have required converting a third-and-long to keep the drive alive. If not, the sack would have pushed the Nittany Lions back to where their field goal attempt would have been from beyond 50 yards.
When Sawyer whiffed, Allar was able to find an outlet, and his receiver picked up the first down. Sawyer managed to somewhat make amends for the mistake later in the drive by pushing right tackle Nolan Rucci back into Allar’s face on third down, forcing an errant pass that made Penn State settle for three points.
The bad play before the good play
Following Howard’s fumble into and out of the end zone, the teams exchanged punts, with Penn State ultimately taking possession at the OSU 49-yard line with a plus-9 in yardage on the punt exchange, plus a missed tackle in punt coverage by the Buckeyes, allowing a 7-yard return. Penn State took advantage with a fourth-down conversion in OSU territory to extend the drive, although Franklin hedged his bet and allowed the clock to run down in case the attempt failed.
Allar ran 14 yards on the next play to get his team into easy field goal range. On the play after that, Allar threw deep down the right sideline to Harrison Wallace III. Davison Igbinosun was in coverage and was beaten. In college, you surrender 15 yards for pass interference rather than placing the ball at the spot of the foul.
Despite being beaten, and grabbing his man, Igbinosun could have prevented further damage by tackling his receiver and conceding the 15 yards. Instead of doing that, he allowed a 21-yard reception to the OSU 3-yard line. Igbinosun had pretty good coverage on the next play, but Wallace should have caught it in the corner of the end zone.
Instead, it bounced off the Penn State receiver to Igbinosun, who grabbed it with one foot still in bounds to end the threat with an interception.
Mismanagement
Ohio State had to settle for a field goal on the first drive of the second half when Howard was sacked on third down trying to dump it off to Henderson. Penn State then marched down the field and kicked a field goal on its first drive of the third quarter, cutting the lead to 17-13. The ensuing drive by Ohio State was a quick three-and-out, as the coaching staff managed it poorly.
The series started with a quarterback run that lost yardage. It looked like an option, but even if Howard had given the ball, the play wouldn’t have netted anything. The Buckeyes became predictable with first-down runs in the game, and the Nittany Lions shut down the expected run. A short pass to Gee Scott Jr. then left Ohio State with a third-and-long situation.
Starting left guard Donovan Jackson, who started at left tackle for the first time in his career, was left all alone to block Penn State’s best pass rusher, Abdul Carter, who sacked Howard. The Buckeyes had done a good job all day to that point in helping Jackson with tight ends or chips from the running back. Jackson had the assistance of neither on the play, so the outcome was predictable.
It could have been a turning point in the game for the home team, as Penn State took over on its own 38-yard line. Fortunately, the Buckeyes got back-to-back sacks to stop that drive and get the ball back.
Another missed opportunity
It was a tight game throughout the second half, but the Buckeyes had a chance to make a big play when Smith shook free behind the secondary early in the fourth quarter. Howard delivered a good ball, but for some reason the freshman slowed his route before trying to catch up to it at the last second — and nearly doing so, watching as it hit his outstretched hand.
This time, Smith couldn’t make the one-handed, highlight-reel catch. Whether he thought Howard had already thrown the ball elsewhere, was trying to create separation from his defender with a sudden change of speed, or simply lost sight of it in the sun, had he kept running his route at speed, he likely would have scored a vital touchdown. Instead, the Buckeyes eventually settled for another field goal to push their lead to 20-13.
Smith failed to keep his touchdown streak alive in this game, so it was a shame to see him get into position but not be able to make the play.
Confusion instead of clarity
One thing that always baffles me is how a team can come out of a timeout confused.
Ohio State was looking to run out the clock, facing a critical third-and-3 play on the drive after the defense came up with a huge goal-line stand. Penn State used its last timeout and Ohio State trotted onto the field to try to pick up the game-clinching first down. However, the Buckeyes were confused when trying to line up for the play they had just discussed in the huddle on the sideline.
Ryan Day wisely called timeout rather than risk a blown assignment. The Buckeyes came out of that timeout and picked up the first down, so it didn’t matter, but had Ohio State been out of timeouts, that inexplicable confusion could have given Penn State one more chance.
These are the things that had me saying mean things at my television on Saturday, but Ohio State’s win over Penn State was a big one, keeping the team’s goals in play. If the Buckeyes can handle their business as expected, it sets up a huge showdown with [/checks notes] Indiana [/checks notes again] ...yes, that’s right, Indiana. Oh, and then there’s that whole The Game thing at the end of the regular season.
Beating a Top 5 team on the road is obviously a cause for celebration, not cynicism (my considerable remarks above notwithstanding). Ohio State did a lot of good things Saturday, and may have found a definitive answer to Josh Simmons’ injury with Carson Hinzman’s performance. The Buckeyes were able to run the ball when they had to — and when Penn State knew they would. The defense stopped the run, mostly shut down Penn State’s best offensive player, and held the Nittany Lions’ offense to just two field goals.
Next up for Ohio State is a home date with the Purdue Boilermakers.
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