Rutgers fell to No. 1 Ohio State 42-9 in Columbus, after trailing only 14-3 at the half. With this loss, the Scarlet Knights have their backs against the wall in terms of earning bowl eligibility and will need to secure a win over Penn State on senior day to punch their ticket to postseason play.
Rutgers’ defense played a solid game in the first half, limiting Ohio State to just 14 points on five first-half drives. The Knights had an opportunity to stop the Buckeyes on fourth down, which would have
held them to a field goal, but an untimely roughing the passer penalty gave their opponent the first down. Ohio State would use its second life to score its second touchdown of the game. The offense was unable to capitalize on these opportunities and could not muster more than 3 points before the break.
Unfortunately for the Knights, the offense could not find any rhythm in the second half, as Ohio State began to pull away. Rutgers’ offense went three and out twice in the third quarter, and had one drive that ended in a fumble that was recovered by Ohio State at the Knights’ one-yard line. The Buckeyes would take advantage of this ineptitude and pile on 28 points after the half.
Despite the score, the defense was a pleasant surprise for Rutgers in this game, especially when factoring in how they looked at the beginning of the season. Despite only falling on one of them, the Knights forced three fumbles in this game, after hardly forcing any all season.
Rutgers’ offense will need to show all-around improvement to beat the Nittany Lions next week, as they were held to just 147 total yards in this game. Knights quarterback Athan Kaliakmanis will need to be more efficient throwing the ball, while the offensive line needs to open up more holes in the running game to have success next week. In this game, Kaliakmanis only completed 50 percent of his passes, while Rutgers only had 66 rushing yards on 35 carries. This cannot continue for the Knights to get a win on senior day.
Up next, Rutgers will return home to play Penn State. Depending on the result of the Nittany Lions’ game against Nebraska tonight, the Knights could be in a winner-take-all situation in terms of qualifying for a bowl game next week. That game is set to kick off at 3:30 with live coverage available on BTN.
