Tale of a Lil’ Cowboy and a Big Lefty : Ball Played
October 15, 2016Close But No Cigar; Titans Escape with Win, 28-26
October 16, 2016What a game. No matter how good or bad the Wisconsin Badgers are, the Ohio State Buckeyes always seem to have close games with them at Camp Randall. Against the No. 8 team in the country Saturday night, that continued. Luckily for Buckeye Nation, the scarlet and gray pulled out a 30-23 victory in overtime to remain undefeated.
Quarter by Quarter
First Quarter
- 9:03 – Fourth-and-1 – Wisconsin gets on the board first with a 47-yard field goal from Andrew Endicott. (0-3)
- 7:25 – First-and-10 – Badgers’ Corey Clement breaks off a 68-yard run, but Chris Worley remarkably catches up to him and forces a fumble, recovered by Ohio State. Unfortunately, after review, the ball went out of bounds before being recovered by the Buckeyes. Wisconsin keeps possession.
- 6:17 – Third-and-7 – After getting the ball back following a potential turnover, Wisconsin’s Alex Hornibrook finds Jazz Peavy for a 24-yard touchdown. (0-10)
- 2:46 – Fourth-and-7 – Following consecutive punts on their first two possessions of the game, the Buckeyes answer back, Tyler Durbin makes a 25-yard chip shot to put the scarlet and gray on the board. (3-10)
First Quarter Analysis
Has there been a first quarter where Ohio State’s offense hasn’t at least somewhat struggled so far this season. Their struggles continued in the opening quarter against Wisconsin. Whether it was on the ground or through the air, they had a tough time putting points on the board.
Luckily for the offense, the defense continued to play well. If it weren’t for a potential turnover barely bouncing out of bounds, their first quarter would have been much better. But still, the Silver Bullets did their job, not it’s the offense’s turn.
Second Quarter
- 8:43 – Fourth-and-5 – Tyler Durbin connects on another field goal, this time it’s a 40-yarder. The Buckeyes may not be scoring touchdowns, but at least they’re putting points on the board. (6-10)
- 2:47 – Fourth-and-goal – The Badgers answer right back with a 32-yard field goal of their own by Andrew Endicott (6-13)
- 0:14 – Fourth-and-goal – Wisconsin finishes a nice little two-minute drill with an Andrew Endicott 22-yard field goal just before the half. (6-16)
Second Quarter Analysis
Outside of a couple field goals from the offense, it was basically the same as the first quarter.
Thank goodness the Buckeyes have one heck of a defense.
Third Quarter
- 2:52 – Second-and-goal – After a couple fourth down conversions inside the 30-yard line, J.T. Barrett scores Ohio State’s first touchdown of the game with a 1-yard run. (13-16)
- 1:48 – First-and-10 – Gareon Conley picks off an overthrown pass from Alex Hornibrook, giving the Buckeyes very good field position.
Third Quarter Analysis
Finally, the Buckeyes can actually score a touchdown in Camp Randall. After a very impressive touchdown drive, it was nice to see the offense use both their passing game and running game to put six (and seven with the extra point) on the scoreboard.
The Silver Bullets got the turnover that they needed, along with holding the Badgers scoreless in the third stanza. The third quarter was probably the defense’s best so far and it wasn’t just because of the interception.
Fourth Quarter
- 14:09 – Third-and-6 – The offense takes advantage of the turnover and scores on yet another J.T. Barrett run, this time it’s an 8-yard run to take their first lead of the game. (20-16)
- 7:54 – Third-and-2 – Wisconsin takes the lead yet again on a four-yard touchdown run by Austin Ramesh. (20-23)
- 3:57 – Fourth-and-3 – No pressure kid, but Tyler Durbin connects on a 31-yard field goal to tie the game with just a few minutes remaining. (23-23)
- 0:49 – Third-and-12 – Gareon Conley picks off another pass from Alex Hornibrook but it may have hit the ground before he actually had full possession of it. The interception call is overturned on what looked to be questionable evidence of an incompletion.
Fourth Quarter Analysis
My heart can’t take this. With a back-and-forth fourth quarter, this game is now headed to overtime. Here I thought only the Cleveland Indians would give me this kind of anxiety this weekend.
Overtime
- Third-and-2 – J.T. Barrett makes a beautiful pass to Corey Brown for a 7-yard touchdown on the opening drive of overtime. The pass touchdown was Barett’s 89th touchdown of his Ohio State career, passing Braxton Miller for the most in school history. (30-23)
- Fourth-and-goal – Tyquan Lewis sacks Wisconsin’s Alex Hornibrook to secure the win for the Buckeyes.
Top Performers
J.T. Barrett – 17-of-29, 226 yards, one touchdown, one interception; 21 carries, 92 yards, two touchdowns
Curtis Samuel – six receptions, 58 yards; 12 yards, 46 yards
Noah Brown – four catches, 48 yards, one touchdown
Jerome Baker – 13 tackles, 1.5 tackles for loss
Marshon Lattimore – nine tackles
Chris Worley – seven tackles, one forced fumble
Sam Hubbard – five tackles, one sack, two tackles for loss
Gareon Conley – three tackles, one interception
Jalyn Holmes – two tackles, one sack, two tackles for loss
Final Thoughts
My heart can’t take games like this, but I guess I can take it if the result is a big-time victory for Ohio State.
The Buckeyes’ offense may have struggled early on, but they stepped up when they had to late in the game, which is all that matters. Whether it was J.T. Barrett’s arm or legs, he came up big late in the game, leading to the comeback and eventually the win.
When the offense struggles, the defense will be able to bail them out and that continued Saturday night at Camp Randall. Whether it was the front-seven or the defensive backs, the Silver Bullets were impressive once again, just like they have been all season.
Arguably Ohio State’s biggest game of the year outside of The Game, this was a huge victory for the Bucks, especially since it was on the road against a top 10 opponent. If they hadn’t already this season, the young Buckeyes grew up tonight right in front of our eyes. If you haven’t learned yet, never count out head coach Urban Meyer, who is now 20-0 in road games as the coach of the Buckeyes.