Ohio State started slow, but finished strong in a 30-3 win over Denison University (JV) on Sunday afternoon.
Trailing 3-0 after the first quarter, the Buckeyes leaned on their offensive line and stifling defense to post 30 unanswered points and a second half shutout en route to the 27-point win, the largest margin of victory in series history between Ohio State and Denison (JV).
Ohio State got on the board in the second quarter after a 57-yard run by sophomore running back Jack Laing set up a 4-yard score by fellow sophomore JR Burton. On the ensuing Big Red possession, the Buckeye defense forced a three-and-out before senior defensive lineman James Smith blocked the Denison punt, which was recovered by junior Christian Allen for an OSU touchdown.
The Buckeyes carried a 14-3 lead into halftime and never looked back.
Denison received the ball to start the second half, and drove the ball to midfield before a fourth down sack by freshman linebacker Tyler Beckman gave the ball back to the Buckeyes. After an 18-yard strike from Spencer Moore to wide receiver Abdou Keita got Ohio State into the red zone, the Buckeye drive stalled. However, junior kicker David Rive converted a 32-yard field goal to push the lead to 17-3.
After Ohio State’s defense forced another three-and-out, the Buckeyes needed just one play to get back on the scoreboard as Moore connected with senior David Cooper on a perfectly executed screen play for a 55-yard touchdown, putting the Buckeyes up 23-3 after the missed PAT. Cooper finished the day with a career-high 90 yards receiving on three receptions.
The Buckeyes ended the scoring late in the third quarter when Burton found the end zone for the second time, scampering 57 yards up the middle for a touchdown. Despite just three carries, Burton finished with 63 yards and a pair of scores. Laing finished with a career-best 100 yards on 16 carries.
Despite a slow start, Moore completed 9-of-21 passes for 137 yards and the score to Cooper, in addition to a pair of interceptions.
Ohio State was once again driving deep into Denison territory midway through the fourth quarter when a Denison player suffered a significant injury, at which point the game was called with seven minutes remaining in the game. Both teams are happy to report that the injured player was discharged from the hospital and was able to return home Sunday night.
The Buckeye defense has yet to surrender a touchdown through four games played this season, and Ohio State as a team has not given up any second-half points. Ohio State has posted a 193-10 point differential through four games played, the best in the NCFA.
Defensively, Ohio State was led by Beckman and Allen, who each posted 10 total tackles. Freshman Glorien Gough collected an interception to go along with three tackles, while defensive lineman Matt Humphreys added a sack to go along with seven total stops. Smith and Beckman also each added a sack.
Ohio State now sits at 3-2 all-time against Denison (JV) and 4-3 all-time against NCAA JV opponents. Next up for the Buckeyes (5-0) is a matchup with Wittenberg University’s JV squad. The Tigers’ varsity team is 5-2 overall on the year and beat Denison’s varsity 27-24 earlier this season.
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