Post Game Notes
1. It was a grim, gritty, hard-fought 20-12 victory that came down to the wire (Penn State failing to recover an onside kick with 28 seconds left on the clock). It probably should've been a much more relaxing 30-6 semi-blowout, but I will take any win against the previously undefeated #7 team in the country, especially when that team is Penn State. Ohio State has on several occasions snatched defeat from the jaws of victory when Penn State was the opponent:
• 1997: The Buckeyes led the contest 27-17 with 1:48 left in the third quarter; Penn State's Curtis Enis rushed for 114 yards in the 4th quarter and Ohio State lost 31-27.
• 2001: Derek Ross had a 45-yard pick six with 12:16 left in the third quarter to put the Buckeyes ahead, 27-9; Penn State would then score 20 unanswered points to win the game, 29-27.
• 2008: Ohio State led 6-3 with just under eleven minutes left in the game when Terrelle Pryor fumbled a quarterback sneak near midfield (despite conventional wisdom, QB sneaks aren't alway successful); Penn State went on to win by the score of 13-6.
• 2016: Ohio State led 21-7 with 14:52 left in the game but thanks to a blocked punt and a blocked field goal, Penn State scored 17 unanswered points to win, 24-21.
• 2014: Even though this game ended up being a win in double overtime, the Buckeyes had a comfortable 17-0 lead at halftime that they managed to piss away thanks in large part to an unlikely pick six by a Penn State defensive lineman.
I've seen enough weird things happen in Penn State games, weird things that almost always go against the Buckeyes, so I will savor this win and move on to next week.
2. Check out these numbers: 3, 7, 7, 10, 12, 14, 17. No, it's not a Fibonacci sequence but the points surrendered by the Buckeye defense in the first seven games this season. That's an average of 10.0 points per game, which isn't quite as good as the amazing 1973 defense that surrendered just 5.8 points per game (64 points in 11 games with four shutouts) but it's in the same ballpark, especially when you consider the evolution of offensive football over the past 50 years. The current Buckeye defense doesn't need to be historically good beat the upcoming chumps on their schedule (Wisconsin, Rutgers, Michigan State, Minnesota), but it had better be that good in the season finale and during a (long?) postseason run.
3. The Buckeye defense lived up to its billing and then some: they stuffed the Nittany Lions on 3rd and 4th downs (2 for 19, for a conversion rate of .105); held highly-touted QB Drew Allar to 18 for 42 (.429 completion percentage) for 191 yards (4.5 yards per attempt) with four sacks and one touchdown; and virtually eliminated the Lions' rushing attack (26 attempts, 49 yards, 1.9 average).
4. Penn State's offensive production was very bad, but it was even worse before Ohio State went into prevent mode with 2:41 left in the game. On Penn State's final drive, the Lions had 73 of their 240 total yards (30.4 percent), their lone conversions on 3rd and 4th downs, and their only touchdown.
5. The Buckeye offense was basically Marvin Harrison Jr, who had 11 receptions for 162 yards and a touchdown. Although Harrison probably won't win the Heisman Trophy or be the #1 overall pick in the 2024 NFL draft, he is the best player in college football and a future Hall of Famer.
6. You can complain about the Buckeye offense all you want, but in my humble opinion the biggest negative from yesterday's game was Jayden Fielding missing a 45-yard field goal attempt. When your team relies on stifling defense and (dare I say it?) Tresselball offense, your kicker needs to be nearly automatic from inside 50 yards and give you a decent chance from 50+, and I'm not convinced that Fielding is there yet (his career long is just 41 yards).
