Ohio State picked up a huge win on the road against No. 17 Illinois on Saturday. In a game that was headlined by the Illini’s miscues, the Buckeyes were able to capitalize and cruise to victory. Ohio State moves to 6-0 on the season and 3-0 in the Big Ten.
Here are five things you need to know about Ohio State’s 34-16 win over Illinois.
1) Ohio States defense forced three turnovers
The Buckeye defense made it an easy day for the offense, forcing three turnovers.
The first takeaway was an interception caught by sophomore linebacker Payton Pierce
off a deflection by Jermaine Mathews Jr., and also happened to be Illinois quarterback Luke Altmeyer’s first of the season.
After that, the Buckeyes forced two fumbles. One came from a corner blitz where Mathews came in unblocked and stripped Altmeyer. The other forced fumble was a case of physical dominance from Kayden McDonald, where he just ripped the ball from the Illini ball carrier.
As a result of the turnovers, the Ohio State offense got to enjoy good field position all game.
2. Offensive red zone struggles
In what has become an unfortunate recurring theme for the season, the Buckeye offense continues to struggle to score touchdowns in the red zone.
On the Ohio State’s opening drive, they had to settle for a field goal after a failed shovel pass on a 3rd-and-4 from the Illini 10-yard line. Then, in the 2nd quarter, after Illinois’ punter botched the snap and gave Ohio State phenomenal field position, they settled for three again. That possession ended on a third down miscommunication between Julian Sayin and Carnell Tate.
The Buckeyes were able to cruise to victory, but the red zone issues have been a mainstay for this offense all season, and need to be fixed.
3. Trench dominance
Ohio State’s offensive and defensive lines dominated on Saturday.
The offensive line, again, held the opposition to zero sacks. This group has still only allowed two sacks on the season.
The Buckeye defensive line held Illinois to 47 yards rushing on the day. They also picked up four sacks. As a result, Altmeyer was forced to throw the ball 44 times.
The dominance in the trenches from this Ohio State team is a recipe for continued success.
4. Fresh(ish) faces in the secondary
With Lorenzo Styles out with an injury, Devin Sanchez got the start and Aaron Scott saw playing time as well.
Sanchez, a five-star freshman out of Texas, got his first start as a Buckeye. It was a bit of an up and down day, as the Illini made a point to pick on Sanchez in the passing game. Overall, I think Sanchez held his own and has earned the confidence of the coaching staff to start future games in case of another injury.
Scott, a sophomore from Ohio, also saw some time on Saturday. Scott got burned on a quick inside release route for a touchdown in the fourth quarter, but besides that error seemed to be in the right spot for the majority of his snaps.
In any event, it’s good to see fresh faces getting significant experience under their belts.
5. Frustrating day for Jeremiah Smith
In a double digit victory over a ranked team it’s hard to really find any downside, but Jeremiah Smith was noticeably frustrated on Saturday.
Smith finished with five catches for 42 yards and a touchdown. However, Smith also had a 30-yard catch (questionably) called back, had a personal foul called on him (offsetting penalty), and left the game briefly with a back injury.
It’s hard to tell from watching on TV what the root of Smith’s frustration was, but a failed block on the play that got him shaken up and Illinois cornerback Juice Clarke appeared to be the sources.
As Smith always does, however, he came back in after a brief stint on the bench and burned Clarke for a touchdown.
