J.T. BARRETT SPARKS OHIO STATE'S ROUT OF PENN STATE, BUT URBAN MEYER AND COMPANY AREN'T READY TO MAKE DECISION ON A CHANGE AT QUARTERBACK
Urban Meyer's patented jump pass made an appearance, Ohio State had all but put away Penn State to move to remain unbeaten on the season, and J.T. Barrett trotted back to the sideline in earnest.
An ear-to-ear smile across his face, Barrett hugged Meyer, shook hands with his teammates and maneuvered along the Ohio State sideline. He snatched his jacked and headset from an assistant coach, tossed both on his body, then moved to the section of the bench where his offensive line sat.
Waving a finger at each one, Barrett passed out high-fives and head taps. Jacoby Boren, Chase Farris, Pat Elflein, Taylor Decker and Billy Price all got one, each responding with the zeal that they knew they'd just done what they had set out to do — and enjoyed every minute of it.
"I think there are times where teams say, 'OK, we've had enough.' A checkmate, things like that," Barrett told reporters after the Buckeyes dispatched Penn State, 38-10, Saturday at Ohio Stadium. "So with that, it was one of those types of things where we looked at the offensive line and said, 'Hey, it's about that time. Let's make sure we get them out of there.'
"That was the main thing, make sure we keep driving and get a touchdown on that drive, which we did."
Barrett's first touchdown pass in nearly a month came on a signature play Tim Tebow made famous at Florida under Meyer. Suck the defense in near the goal line after shredding it all night beforehand on quarterback runs, then hop over the line and fire a quick strike to your wide receiver. The guy on the receiving end just happened to be Braxton Miller, and those on the receiving end of the knockout blow were the Penn State Nittany Lions.
"I just read that we were 6-for-6 in the red zone again, so that's 12-for-12 in the last 12 times we've been in there," said Meyer, who won his 20th consecutive game for the fourth time in his coaching career. "First of all, that's a lot of times in there, which is good.
"Second thing is just let me evaluate it, let you guys know on Monday, and go from there."
"It" is the Buckeye quarterback battle, a bout between Barrett and Cardale Jones that lasted throughout training camp and bled into the regular season. The two were listed as co-starters on the depth chart the first month of the season, but then Jones earned the nod as the Buckeyes went to Indiana.
Ohio State beat the Hoosiers, 34-27, and Barrett didn't play a snap. The Buckeyes returned home and Meyer decided to insert the calm Texan in red zone situations against lowly Maryland, witnessing the immediate results as he mentioned. It started that way Saturday night against the Nittany Lions, but then Barrett solely took the reins in the third quarter and finished the game.
"It's too early to make any decisions right now," offensive coordinator Ed Warinner said of a potential switch at starting quarterback. "It's the head coach's decision first of all, second of all we'll have a consult about it, but there's a reason we had Cardale starting and we just have to assess where we're at right now."
It is Meyer's choice, and it seemed he went with Jones and was going to stick with him. The junior, however, finished 9-of-15 for 84 yards Saturday and is not the run threat Barrett is — his four rushes netted -16 yards, while Barrett ran 11 times for 102 yards and a pair of touchdowns.
"I think he sparked us," Warinner said of Barrett. "Some of those things we did with him in there gave us some momentum. He had a big impact in the game."
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