Ohio State football just completed its third top five match-up of the season and earned its second victory against a top five opponent as it defeated the Indiana Hoosiers to the tune of 38-15. The Buckeyes are moving on to their next opponent, which is against The Team Up North, but before that happens us fans needs to reflect on the game that just occurred.
We complained about OSU coming out sleepy against a pitiful Northwestern Wildcat squad last week, but Ohio State showed up today and in a big way. This Indiana team is no joke and once the Hoosiers unloaded its script in the first drive, they had no ammo left. There isn’t a whole lot of negative to take away from this contest as the Buckeyes looked dominant in every facet.
Indiana has some talent at the skill positions and the OSU defense held this offense to just 151 total yads, but let’s dive into the top five observations from the day.
Ohio State Buckeyes quarterback Will Howard (18)
Will Howard had another outstanding day completing 22 of his 26 passing attempts for 201 yards and two touchdowns and even added nine more yards and a touchdown on the ground on five attempts. It is very clear at this point that Howard is a good quarterback. He now has six games where his completion percentage has either been at or exceeded 80%, which is a school record.
Ohio State Buckeyes quarterback Will Howard (18)
If Ohio State plays like this the rest of the way it will make a deep run into the College Football Playoff. Indiana receives a ton of hate for its schedule, but those same people hating had it winning four games back in August. The Hoosiers are a quality opponent and the Buckeyes looked dominant the whole game.
Ohio State Buckeyes offensive lineman Josh Fryar (70)
The Seth McLaughlin injury had a ton of people scared and rightfully so, he has been a major bright spot on a unit that has not been so bright, but the offensive line looked great today. Carson Hinzman started every game at center last season and played at an All-Big Ten level and he has only improved.
Ohio State Buckeyes defensive end Jack Sawyer (33)
The Ohio State defense line was disappointing against Northwestern but really showed up today. Jack Sawyer looked like an All-American with 1.5 sacks and four total tackles while J.T. Tuimoloau also looked good with a sack of his own and five total tackles.
Ohio State Buckeyes safety Caleb Downs
Everyone already knows Caleb Downs is a freak, but his punt return for a touchdown today really showed the world what he is capable of. That punt return touchdown was the first since Jalin Marshall scored against Indiana in 2014.
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