Ohio State continued to dominate the competition, shutting out Wisconsin 34-0 on Saturday. The Buckeyes now head into their bye week with a 7-0 record, while only having allowed one opponent to score more
than 10 points this season. There was a lot to like about the victory over the Badgers, but there were also some negatives that really stood out. Not only will we touch on the things we liked from Ohio State in Madison, but we will also take a look at some of the lowlights. Even though the only thing that matters in the end is staying undefeated, there are some areas that could use some extra focus during the bye week.
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Julian Sayin
Don’t trust anyone who doesn’t think Julian Sayin is a serious contender for the Heisman Trophy. In the first quarter alone, Sayin completed 14 of his 15 passes for 169 yards and two touchdowns. The Ohio State quarterback would finish with 36 completions on 42 passing attempts, totaling a career-high 393 yards and four scores. The stat line doesn’t tell the whole story, though. Sayin’s passes were so crisp throughout the game, as he routinely put his throws in perfect spots for his receivers to catch.
Many people will likely say Sayin doesn’t deserve to be in the Heisman mix since he gets to throw to two of the best receivers in the country. Just remember, Sayin was only making his seventh career start in college on Saturday, and he already looks this good. The command of the offense Sayin already has is incredible to watch. The redshirt freshman rarely looks rushed, and even when he does see pressure, he still has the poise to find an open receiver.
Earlier on Saturday, Diego Pavia hit the Heisman pose after scoring a touchdown against LSU. Don’t get me wrong, Pavia is a great story,but he just isn’t the best quarterback in the country. Pavia has found success at Vanderbilt in his 34th year of college football and has led the Commodores to an incredible turnaround in Nashville. Thinking he is better than Sayin is just crazy talk. If Ohio State beats Michigan, finishes the regular season undefeated, and goes on to win the Big Ten Championship Game, it’s going to be awfully hard for someone to say they had a better season than Julian Sayin.
Carnell Tate
On any other team, Carnell Tate would be the unquestioned top receiver. Since Tate plays for the Buckeyes, he has to share the spotlight with Jeremiah Smith. Luckily for Ohio State, Julian Sayin has done a great job at spreading the love when the Buckeyes go to the air.
Saturday’s win against Wisconsin saw Tate make a case for why he could be the top receiver in the 2026 NFL Draft if he declares after the season. Tate’s leaping touchdown while he was double-covered was a thing of beauty. Then later in the game, the Ohio State wide receiver hauled in a pass where he caught the ends of the football as he was going out of bounds.
For the day, Tate finished with a team-high six catches for 111 yards and two scores. While Smith has 15 more catches than Tate’s 34, the junior has 587 yards on the year, which is just 15 fewer than Smith. The dynamic duo is causing havoc for opposing defenses, showing why they are the best receiving combo in the country.
The Ohio State defense
What more can you say about this group? The Buckeyes notched their second shutout of the season and now have held six of their seven opponents to less than 10 points. If Matt Patricia isn’t the assistant coach of the year in college football, I’m curious to see who has been better than the first-year Ohio State defensive coordinator.
Not that Wisconsin’s offense is anything special, especially considering they were starting their third-string quarterback. It’s still impressive how Ohio State didn’t give the Badgers any hope in the game. Wisconsin didn’t really threaten to score until late in the game with the result already in the bag.
The Buckeyes allowed less than 150 yards in the game, sacked Wisconsin quarterbacks three times, and Sonny Styles picked off a pass in the first half. With the five opponents left on the regular season for the Buckeyes, it’s a real possibility that Patricia’s defense will give up fewer than 100 points during the regular season.
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Special teams
Was Parker Fleming still in charge of the special teams on Saturday? Even though the performance from the special teams unit didn’t cost Ohio State the game, it is definitely an area of concern if the Buckeyes want to win back-to-back national titles.
Is Jayden Fielding really the best Ohio State has at kicker? Fielding has been decent over the last few years; he just isn’t as consistent as he should be. Since the start of last season, Fielding has missed three kicks under 40 yards. That’s just not going to cut it. Dating back to 2023, Fielding has missed seven field goals over 40 yards. Hopefully, the Buckeyes don’t have any games that come down to Fielding’s leg the rest of the season because he doesn’t inspire much confidence.
The most puzzling play of the game was the fake punt by Wisconsin, where their punter ran 20 yards for a first down. There wasn’t even any trickery to the play, either. The punt coverage team just fell asleep. Thankfully, the game was decided by then, or it could have led to a massive shift in momentum in a close contest.
The running game
Had it not been for Isaiah West’s work in the second half, the numbers would have looked even uglier for the Buckeye rushing attack. West finished with 55 yards, which were more than half of the yards on the ground for Ohio State. Bo Jackson saw 10 carries, which were a team-high, totaling just 26 yards. As a team, the Buckeyes averaged 3.5 yards per carry.
Not that Wisconsin doesn’t have a tough rush defense, but they also just allowed over 200 yards to Iowa. Julian Sayin’s surgical performance through the air minimized the woes of the ground game, thankfully. There is still cause for concern since we have seen in the past that once the calendar turns to November in the Big Ten, running the football becomes even more important.
Luke Fickell
It’s always tough to see a former Buckeye struggle. Luke Fickell’s days at Wisconsin feel like they are numbered, especially when you see how quickly coaches have been given the axe after struggles this season. Maybe a return to Columbus in some capacity could be in the works if Wisconsin moves on from Fickell.
Some of the issues with the Badgers are Fickell’s doing, while others are just bad luck. When he arrived in Madison, Fickell drastically changed the philosophies of the Badgers, which he should have never done. Wisconsin is a power running team, not a program that can spread out opponents. It’s almost like Fickell seemed determined to fit a square peg into a round hole.
The other major issue has been injuries at quarterback. In his three seasons at Wisconsin, Fickell’s quarterbacks have gotten injured earlier and earlier. Last year, Tyler Van Dyke was hurt in the third game, while this year, Billy Edwards Jr. only saw a handful of snaps before going down. It’s almost like the universe didn’t want Fickell to succeed in the Big Ten.
