Up until this point in the college football season, I have been somewhat hesitant to post a story about my beloved Ohio State Buckeyes. Even though the hiring of one of the best college coaches in the country, Urban Meyer, was a great move to get OSU past the final season of the Jim Tressel tenure, I wanted to see a signature win before I began to “chat them up.”
Well, this past Saturday up in East Lansing, Michigan, Meyer & his Buckeyes certainly provided that, as they won a hard fought, physical battle with the Michigan State Spartans by the score of 17-16. It was a win against a tough opponent, on the Spartans home turf no less, that have people starting to say, that yes, the Buckeyes might be back.
OSU dominated at the line of scrimmage. That was in my mind, the key to the game. They held Columbus, Ohio native Le’Veon Bell, one of the nation’s leading rushers, to just 45 yards on 17 carries. His longest run was 8 yards, and more impressive, it was the first time since his freshman season that one of his carries did not result in a first down.
Once again, it was the Braxton Miller show on the offensive side of the ball, as the sophomore had over 300 yards of total offense. His 63 yard scoring strike to Devin Smith in the 3rd quarter gave OSU a 17-13 lead, and the defense would make it stand up the rest of the way.
After wins over Miami of Ohio, UCF, Cal, and UAB, the victory over the Spartans makes the 5-0 start a little more impressive. It doesn’t get any easier though, as Ohio State will come home to host the Nebraska Cornhuskers this Saturday. Nebraska came from 17 down on Saturday to get a win over Wisconsin.
Go Bucks! O-H-I-O!