The Ohio State Buckeyes (4-0) Defeated The Miami (OH) Redhawks (1-3)

The Ohio State Buckeyes have been on a tear as of late, but early on it looked bleak as they fell behind early 5-0.  A strip-sack that resulted in a safety and on the ensuing possession, the Redhawks drove into the red zone before kicking a field goal to give them the lead and their last points of the contest.  It certainly looked ugly and they started off slow, but they picked up steam after that wakeup call and they rattled off 76 straight points.

The Redhawks came into Columbus juiced and they played hard for nearly the entirety of the first quarter, but when the Buckeyes found their stride, there was no stopping the offensive onslaught.  Slow starts have bitten the Buckeyes on the road and to start this slow, they need to clean that up with a trip to Lincoln on the horizon and it is also their first night game of the season and their first prime time game to boot.  With road losses at night to Iowa in 2017 and to Purdue in 2018, they cannot afford to have an off start.

This game was lost after the 5-0 start and it was utter dominance at every phase of the game.  This contest was like an audition for the young and inexperienced, but the future looks pretty bright, even against a team like Miami (OH).  The starters made sure that this team will not be denied, especially at home and they dominated the rest of the first half.

Chase Young and the defense struggled for the first two drives, occasionally giving up some yardage, but they eventually shut the door on the opposing team.  He finished the game with two key strip-sack fumbles that resulted in turnovers.  Okudah also benefitted from the constant pressure and he came away with an easy first interception of the season.  After regaining the momentum, the offensive attack was relentless.  The defense played relentlessly as well and they shut out the Redhawks for the rest of the game.

The starters eventually were pulled out of the game at halftime and the reserves lit it up.  At halftime, it remained 49-5.  By the end of the contest, after the game was called, the Buckeyes finished the game 76-5, a 25-point addition courtesy of the second and third stringers.  Chugunov and Hoak combined for three passing scores and Steele Chambers had his first touchdown as a Buckeye.  Garrett Wilson and Jameson Williams lit it up at wide receiver and Marcus Crowley got into the action with his first receiving score in his young career.

The depth showed that there is no drop-off between the starting and the reserve units, and even a few of the offensive walk-ons got into the action and made a difference.  The back-up defenders also showed out as they continued to shut down the opposing offense.  Zaid Hamadan, a reserve defensive tackle along with Jarron Cage gutted the interior and stopped the run.  Dallas Gant shot through and got himself on the board with the first sack of his Buckeye career, joining Zach Harrison, Javonte Jean-Baptiste, and the aforementioned Gant.

The back-ups had their shot and they didn’t disappoint.  The momentum by the starters and with the reserve players keeping it for the rest of the game was what we all wanted to see.  There will be a battle next week and a night game, on the road, hasn’t been kind to the Buckeyes, but will this bring the juice to prevent another mid-season letdown?  After an undefeated non-conference slate, the conference slate remains.  They cannot afford to start slow once again, but this 70-burger can help with the confidence coming into the game.

For the time being, let us enjoy the game and the eventual turnaround.  We all know that it wasn’t perfect, but it was a dominating performance.  There are some things that Coach Day needs to address, but it’ll get there.  Go Bucks.

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