Ohio State blows out Rutgers, 56-0

Ohio State was expected to blowout Rutgers, but I don’t think anyone expected it to be this bad. The Buckeyes scored early and often and the Silver Bullets dominated to demolish the Scarlet Knights, 56-0. The Buckeyes have now shutout Rutgers in back-to-back seasons.

Quick recap

Much like last week against UNLV, the scarlet and gray were expected to easily beat Rutgers and they did just that. If anything, it was a confidence-booster for Ohio State, for both the starters and the backups. Having easy games like this gets boring at times, but being able to give so many players playing time will only beam good things as the season (and their careers at Ohio State) go on.

The turning point

Dante Booker’s one-handed interception with 6:13 left in the first quarter. At the time, the Buckeyes only held a 7-0 lead, but prior to the turnover, Rutgers had the ball inside the red zone and on the brink of scoring. This turned out to be the Scarlet Knights’ last chance to possibly score any points in the game.

Top performers

J.T. Barrett: 14-of-22, 275 yards, three touchdowns; 10 carries, 89 yards

He continues to receive plenty of hate, but the redshirt senior took advantage of a bad team and used it to boost his confidence. He doesn’t look much better the last three games, but then again, we won’t know just how much better he has improved until Ohio State goes against a better opponent.

Barrett eclipsed 10,000 career total yards, which is the first time a player has done that in school history. He also got the school record for passing yards in the game as well, with 7,563 and counting.

Demario McCall: 11 carries, 103 yards, one touchdown; one catch, 35 yards, one touchdown

Still not fully healthy, McCall took advantage of the playing time that he did receive and led the Buckeyes in rushing yards, rushing for a career-high 103 yards. His touchdown run allowed Buckeye Nation to see just the type of playmaker he can be.

J.K. Dobbins: six carries, 53 yards

Not only was it a blowout, but Urban Meyer wanted to give Mike Weber plenty of carries as well in order to get him back into game action. With that said, Dobbins averaged just under nine yards per carry. Not bad.

Mike Weber: 10 carries, 44 yards, three touchdowns

Not a bad way to get your first significant game action now that Weber is 100 percent. All three of his touchdowns were inside three yards, but still, it was a good way for the running back to gain some confidence and get in the end zone.

Johnnie Dixon: three catches, 115 yards, two touchdowns

Speed kills, especially when opposing secondaries let a receiver like Dixon get behind them. In his best game of the season, Dixon led the team in both receiving yards and receiving touchdowns.

Binjimen Victor: two catches, 69 yards, one touchdown

Dixon showed off his speed and Victor showed off his height. Barrett took advantage of it and allowed Victor to catch a touchdown by just throwing it up to him.

Jordan Fuller

The entire defense dominated, but Fuller’s eight tackles are hard to miss, especially given the fact that the next best on the team only had four. The safety was all over the field.

Dante Booker

Whether it was his one-handed interception or four tackles, one sack, and two tackles for loss, Saturday night was Booker’s best game of the season so far.

Sam Hubbard

The defensive line dominated Rutgers, but they were led by Hubbard. He totaled four tackles, one tackle for loss, and one forced fumble while wreaking havoc in the Scarlet Knights’ backfield when he was in the game.

Denzel Ward

Although he could have had two interceptions that ended up being two incompletions, Ward proved why he is the team’s top cornerback. He had one tackle, one tackle for loss, and two pass breakups on the night.

Top plays

At 100 percent for the first time this season, Mike Weber scored his first touchdown of the season on an easy one-yard touchdown run.

Dante Booker shows off his athletic ability with a one-handed interception to stop the Rutgers’ drive inside the red zone.

Weber is taking advantage of all these carries now that he’s fully healthy. He scores his second touchdown of the night, this one’s from three yards out.

J.T. Barrett created more time for himself to look downfield, but Rutgers can’t be leaving wide receivers wide open. Johnnie Dixon gets behind the defense for a 70-yard touchdown. It was Ohio State’s Big Ten-leading sixth play of 50 yards or more.

Just three minutes later, Dixon finds a way to stay tiptoe the sidelines for a 39-yard catch and run from Barrett.

Alright, it’s time to spread the wealth. Weber runs it in again, this time from two yards out.

When your receiver is taller than the cornerback he’s going against, you just throw it up and along him to do the work. That’s exactly what Barrett did for Binjimen Victor for a 23-yard touchdown.

Still not 100 percent, Demario McCall catches a perfectly thrown ball from Dwayne Haskins off a wheel route for an easy 35-yard touchdown.

McCall is just having fun now. He shows off his speed for a 48-yard touchdown run.

On to the next one

Ohio State will host Maryland for Homecoming next Saturday. Kickoff is set for 4 p.m. ET.