The Buckeyes opened conference play with a bang on Sunday under the lights.
An 82-yard kickoff return for a touchdown from senior Jalen Haley on the opening play set the tone for a 42-0 victory over Toledo on Sunday night, the fourth shutout win in the last two years for the Buckeyes.
Ohio State’s offense scored on six of its eight possessions and never punted in the victory, accumulating 428 yards of total offense despite a running clock for most of the second half.
Following Haley’s return to give the Buckeyes a 7-0 lead, the Toledo offense, aided by numerous penalties, moved the ball into the Ohio State red zone on its first two possessions. However, the Buckeye defense stiffened both times, forcing a turnover on downs on the Rockets first possession before a Marcellas McLellan interception turned the home team away on their second possession.
After being stopped on downs on its first possession, Ohio State found the end zone on its second drive of the game thanks to a powerful run game. Quarterback Niko Pappas plunged in from a yard out to cap a 59-yard scoring drive to give the Buckeyes a 14-0 lead at the end of the first quarter.
The second quarter featured much of the same as Ohio State would find the end zone twice more, this time through the air. Pappas connected with freshman JP Naylor on a 6-yard pass to the front pylon before a 38-yard strike on the following possession to Haley gave Ohio State a 28-0 lead heading into halftime. A fifth touchdown of the half to wide receiver Charles Civiletto was negated due to a penalty and the Buckeyes would be turned away after missing a field goal just before the half ran out.
Coming out of the half, the Rockets once again drove into the red zone but were turned away on downs. On Ohio State’s first play of the ensuing drive, Pappas connected with tight end Aidan Donovan for a 55-yard pass over the middle. It was the longest play of the year for the Buckeyes and would set up an 11-yard touchdown pass from Pappas to Haley to give Ohio State a 35-0 lead midway through the third quarter. The touchdown capped an impressive 7-play, 90-yard scoring drive.
With the running clock taking affect midway through the third, Ohio State would get just one final possession. A 13-play, 70-yard scoring drive was punctuated by a 1-yard plunge from Ethan Young to close the scoring. Toledo would reach the red zone one final time on their last possession, but were again turned away thanks to an interception from linebacker Alex Anderson as time expired.
Pappas finished the day with 165 passing yards and three touchdowns, adding 121 yards and another score on the ground. Haley finished with three catches for 64 yards and two scores to go along with his 82-yard kick return touchdown. As a team, Ohio State rushed for an impressive 263 yards on the ground while the offensive line did not allow a sack for the second straight week.
Defensively, Ohio State received standout performances from its linebackers. With starters Christian Allen and Tyler Beckman sidelined due to injury, Ryan Keenan, Anderson and Colm Damron all posted stellar stats. Keenan led all players with 14 total tackles, including 1.5 for loss. Anderson and Damron each posted 10 total stops while safety Ryan Globokar chipped in 13. Defensive end Matt Humphreys collected Ohio State’s lone sack of the day to go along with six total tackles. Cornerback Joshua Clemons also impressed, posting six total tackles and five pass deflections.
Ohio State is scheduled to return home for another conference tilt against Wright State on Sunday, Oct. 6 at Noon. Should the Buckeyes win, they would clinch their spot in the Great Lakes Conference Championship Game. The Raiders are 1-1 on the season and are coming off of an impressive 37-15 win over Oakland in Week 3.
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