Jacoby, a 6-foot-5, 270 pound do-it-all lineman is the second member of Ohio State’s 2019 class, as he joins fellow offensive lineman Doug Nester, a tackle from West Virginia. Jacoby is ranked by 247Sports as the 353rd best player nationally, 39th best tackle, and 10th best player in Ohio.

While his rankings aren’t super lofty right now (though they certainly aren’t anything to complain about), he’s just now growing into his frame, and could be in for a massive senior season, and a pretty big recruiting bump around November, after all of the camps and games are over.

Jacoby held offers from Oregon, West Virginia, Michigan State, Michigan, and Penn State, among others, and has received a ton of attention in the past few months after a great junior season. While the Big Ten trio of Michigan State, Penn State and Michigan certainly expressed interest in Jacoby, this was always a case of when, rather than if he would commit to the home-state Buckeyes.

Jacoby visited Columbus just a couple of weeks ago, on February 10, and knew he’d be announcing his commitment to the Buckeyes just shortly after, when given the green light by Meyer and Greg Studrawa, and apparently, today was that day.

In Jacoby, the Buckeyes are getting a versatile, impressive athlete, with good feet, and a very good core. He’s fairly inexperienced in pass protection (to be expected with high school linemen), but his ceiling is pretty much sky-high when he gets in a college weight program, and starts to learn from an extremely talented coach like Studrawa. Buckeye fans should be very excited about this newest commitment.

The roster, which includes just under 100 total players, returns 49 letterwinners and 19 position starters from the 2018 campaign, according to the Spring Preview on MSUSpartans.com

In addition to the returning players, the Spartans also have seven early-enrollees from the 2018 recruiting class: Javez Alexander (WR), Theo Day (QB), Dimitri Douglas (OL), Kalon Gervin (CB), Xavier Henderson (DB), Julian Major (WR) and Edward Warinner (LB).

Douglas will sit out spring ball with an Achilles injury, however. As will redshirt freshman Weston Bridges with an “undisclosed” injury.

There were some notable absentees on the roster, starting with Jalen Watts-Jackson. He was the hero of the 2015 game against Michigan, but has dealt with injuries since, and didn’t see the field much in 2017 (appearing in just six games).

Defensive back T.J. Harrell and defensive tackle Kyonta Stallworth were also not listed on the roster. It is possible that these players could be on the summer roster, however.

Overall, the Spartans will be returning 10 starters on offense, nine starters on defense and three specialists (placekicker, punter and long snapper).

MSU has the most returning production returning in the country, as it returns 100 percent of its passing yards from the quarterback position, 82 percent of its receptions, 81 percent of its receiving yards, and 71 percent of its rushing yards on offense, according to MSUSpartans.com.

Defensively, the Spartans return 23 letterwinners. Of the nine returning starters, five of which started all 13 games last season — Khari Willis, Raquan Williams, Mike Panisiuk, Andrew Dowell and Joe Bachie. The unit ranked top-7 in the country in both rushing yards allowed (No. 2) and total defense (No. 7).

The Green-White Spring game takes place at Spartan Stadium on Saturday, April 7 at 5 p.m.

Check out the full spring practice schedule below:

No. 1 – Tuesday, Feb. 27
No. 2 – Thursday, March 1
No. 3 – Tuesday, March 13
No. 4 – Thursday, March 15
No. 5 – Friday/Saturday, March 16/17
No. 6 – Tuesday, March 20
No. 7 – Thursday, March 22
No. 8 – Friday/Saturday, March 23/24
No. 9 – Tuesday, March 27
No. 10 – Thursday, March 29
No. 11 – Tuesday, April 3
No. 12 – Thursday, April 5
No. 13 – Friday, April 6
No. 14 – Spring Game, Saturday, April 7, 5 p.m.
No. 15 – Tuesday, April 10

Jones is the 332nd nationally ranked player and the 36th ranked offensive tackle in his class, according to 247Sports’ composite rankings. He had other scholarship offers from big time schools like Alabama, Ohio State, Georgia, Florida, LSU, Miami (FL), Auburn, Texas A&M and more. He is listed at 6-foot-6 and 282 pounds.

This is a huge pick up for the Wolverines. After signing just one offensive lineman — perhaps two if Ryan Hayes ends up on the offensive line — in the 2018 class, offensive line was always going to be one of Michigan’s top priorities in the 2019 class. Having the commitment be from a big offensive lineman from the state of Georgia makes this commitment a huge one for Jim Harbaugh the Wolverines.

Jones is the fifth player to commit to Michigan’s 2019 class, along with five-star defensive end Chris Hinton, four-star defensive end Stephen Herron, four-star offensive lineman Nolan Rumler and three-star linebacker Charles Thomas.

Stay with Maize n Brew as this story develops...

-Ohio State running back J.K. Dobbins, via Bill Landis, Cleveland.com

Despite two games this season where the Ohio State offense has been utterly inconsistent, the offensive line has remained a high-performing unit through 10 games. Saturday, that high level of performance was apparent against a Michigan State defensive line which, previously, had allowed just 87 yards rushing per game, and had not given up a single 100-yard rusher all season. The Buckeyes, led by Mike Weber and J.K. Dobbins, dropped 335 yards rushing on the Spartans, scoring four touchdowns in the process, and much of the credit for that performance has to go to the offensive line opening up gaping holes for the running backs.

The line has also played a crucial role in protecting J.T. Barrett, allowing just 15 sacks this season. Last year, the Buckeyes gave up 28 sacks over 13 games. Saturday, the line didn’t give up a single sack, and allowed just two tackles for loss.

Michigan State entered the game as the nation’s third-best rushing defense, but was completely outwitted by the combination of Jamarco Jones, Michael Jordan, Billy Price, Demetrius Knox and Isaiah Prince. The unit paved the way for Dobbins, who went past the 1,000 yard mark Saturday, matching Weber’s status from last season as a 1,000-yard rusher as a freshman.

The offensive line returned four starters heading into the 2017 season, led by center Billy Price. Only Branden Bowen, who was injured against Maryland and who was replaced by Knox, came into the season without a start. Price set a program record with his 51st-straight start Saturday, having started every game since his first game at right guard as a redshirt freshman. Earning first team All-American honors last season, Price was named to the Rimington Award watch list this year as one of the nation’s top centers--an honor taken home by former Ohio State center Pat Elflein last season.

The idea of the Miami Hurricanes football team’s newly emblazoned turnover chain was born just weeks before this season began, when cornerbacks coach Mike Rumph reached out to a local jeweler to see if he could make a rope chain for when players on his defense forced a turnover. Vince Wilfork happened to intervene, and recommended a Cuban link with an enormous “U” pendant. The finished product weighs in at 2.5 kg and is emblazoned with no less than 900 sapphires which make up the pendant. And the chain seems to have worked. Through eight games, Miami has forced 23 turnovers, including four Saturday against Notre Dame.

As it turns out, the Ohio State Buckeyes men’s wrestling team, which kicked off its season last week, has some bling of its own which, in many ways, is akin to the Hurricanes’ turnover chain--at least according to senior wrestler Kyle Snyder. The “pin chain” was referenced by Snyder in a tweet Sunday following the Buckeyes’ home opener versus No. 11 Arizona State, and appears to be a thick chain with a large scarlet and grey “O” pendant at the end. Snyder had just pinned the Sun Devil’s Austyn Harris to win the heavyweight match and cap off Ohio State’s win when the chain was broken out. Like Miami’s chain, Ohio State’s pin chain was designed by an assistant coach as a motivational tool to encourage more pins in matches.

The Buckeyes, who entered the season ranked No. 2 nationally won the opener by a 31-12 overall mark, earning wins on seven of 10 matches. Snyder is widely considered the best pound-for-pound wrestler in the country, and is seeking a third-straight NCAA championship in his senior season in Columbus. The Maryland native made waves when he became the youngest World and Olympic champion in US wrestling history.

“This is one you want to burn, and you don’t want it to be indicative of how you play all the time.”

-Mark Dantonio, via Chris Solari, Detroit Free Press

It seems that all the top teams in the Big Ten have had an inexplicable loss this season that they simply want to forget about: Iowa trampling Ohio State at Kinnick; Penn State collapsing against the Buckeyes; Michigan getting blown out by Penn State (okay, maybe not everyone wants to forget that one). Now, Michigan State can add their own blowout defeat to the list. After clawing their way back into relevancy after losses to Notre Dame and Northwestern, the Spartans found themselves in control of their own destiny in the Big Ten East. All they had to do was beat Ohio State in Columbus in November as heavy underdogs. As dire as the situation sounds, it was one Sparty had been in before, and, on several occasions, come out on top.

Saturday was a different story, though, and Michigan State wound up on the receiving end of a severe beat-down from Ohio State following the Buckeyes’ loss to Iowa the week prior. It was the worst loss of Dantonio’s career at Michigan State, as the Spartans gave up 524 yards of total offense while themselves not even hitting the 200 yard mark.

On offense, the Buckeyes did an outstanding job defensively of outmaneuvering the Michigan State offensive line, pressuring quarterback Brian Lewerke and forcing inaccurate passes while hindering the running game. On the other side of the ball, the Spartan defense couldn’t seem to get lined up against a fast-paced Buckeye offense.

The loss didn’t look any better on tape, according to Dantonio, acknowledging that it was “one you want to burn.” The coach said that “everything seems like a scramble” when things are going against you, but that the team has to be ready to move forward and control what they can control in order to get to eight wins.

STICK TO SPORTS

-Alex Kirshner, SB Nation

Despite what the record books say about the past six times Ohio State and Michigan State have squared off, there’s reason to believe that this year’s matchup will break with tradition. Typically, whichever team is on the road leaves with the win, but coming off a big loss to Iowa last week, the Buckeyes will be filled with all sorts of anger when they take the field in Columbus.

Kirshner argues in the article above that Ohio State’s talent simply overrides that of the Mark Dantonio-led team — and Urban Meyer doesn’t lose back-to-back games. It’s rare for Meyer to lose two games in a season (not including the bowl game), but now that we’ve crossed that bridge, here’s hoping his record coming off a loss doesn’t take a hit too.

After a complete shock to the system last week in Iowa, it’s no wonder that fans and pundits are hedging their bet on what opened as a 15.5 point matchup tilting in favor of the Buckeyes. A blowout would be great, but it’d also be silly to doubt Michigan State’s potential — especially with the momentum coming off a big win over Penn State. The Spartans might not be Ohio State’s bitter rival, but as we say -- we don’t give a damn for the whole state of Michigan.

“Urban Meyer freaks out on the sideline and that’s probably not the best way to go about it when dealing with 20 year old kids.”

-James W Snyder, Off Tackle Empire

There have been a lot of comparisons between Jim Tressel and Urban Meyer, but one of the rarer hot takes I’ve come across this season is the comparison between their sideline demeanor. Granted, neither of the two ever really compared to the Brian Kelly’s of the world, but Meyer certainly is more colorful than Tressel was.

That’s not to say that’s a problem though. Meyer isn’t just screaming to scream. He isn’t throwing players under the bus. And sometimes you do need to yell at 19- and 20-year olds to get them to start paying attention.

More so than yelling out of anger, Meyer has to be disappointed in the wasted potential of this year’s Buckeye squad. What started out questionable, turned into a run with serious potential for the College Football Playoff, only for the team to see it squandered by a completely out of sync game with only three weeks to play.

There are a lot of very valid arguments and comparisons to be made between Ohio State teams under Tressel and under Meyer, but their sideline demeanor is not really one of them.

"This particular class represents seven states and some of the very best high school programs in the country. We look forward to getting these men in the Scarlet and Gray next year and following them all this spring as they compete for championships."

-Ohio State men’s lacrosse head coach Nick Myers, via Ohio State

College basketball’s early signing day may have been earlier this week, but there was another Buckeye squad who picked up a lot of future talent. The Ohio State men’s lacrosse team saw 12 future Buckeyes sign their National Letters of Intent to continue their careers in Columbus.

Of the 12 incoming players, they’ve added four midfielders, three attackmen, two goalies, two defensemen and one face off specialist. Three of the 12 hail from Ohio, Anthony Ameo of Painesville, and Skylar Wahlund and Johnny Wiseman both from Powell. The rest of the class includes: Alec Cerasoli, Matt Clibanoff, Mike Clibanoff, Buchanan Dunavant, Brandon Fisher, T.J. Hendricks, Zach Ludd, George Walsh, and Scott White.

STICK TO SPORTS

And in a lot of ways, despite the huge Vegas line favoring the Buckeyes, the Spartans are well-built to get the upset.

So how good are the Spartans? The rank just ahead of Ohio State in the College Football Playoff rankings, but still significantly behind in the S&P+. From Bill’s post on the Big Ten race:

MSU is good, but did need some turnovers luck to get by Michigan and Penn State. Based on national averages for fumble recovery rates and the ratio of interceptions to passes broken up, the Spartans’ expected turnover margin in those two huge wins was plus-zero. In real life, it was plus-seven. The average turnover is worth about five points’ worth of field position lost (by the offense) and gained (by the defense), so this discrepancy was worth around 35 points to the Spartans, who won these games by a combined seven.

So turnovers have played a significant role in the Spartans wins — but that shouldn’t be too comforting for Ohio State fans given their specific strengths and weaknesses.

Vegas favors Ohio State by a 15.5 point margin, which seems absurd on the face of it. But the raw statistics really love Ohio State because the Buckeyes’ best is the best in the country. The problem is that their floor, which we (hopefully) saw last Saturday in Kinnick Stadium, is just top-30, not top-4.

A few other notes:

• Ohio State’s average turnover margin per game has been steadily declining. Ohio State ranks 61st at just +.11/game on the year after ranking 3rd at +1.15/game last year.
• Kickoffs could be an issue, again. Michigan State ranks fifth in the country in kickoff return success rate
• Sometimes the more turnover, the better the end result. Michigan State had an insanely low percentage of returning production (116th and 107th), but appears to be better off for it.

When Ohio State has the ball

Before getting in to the specific matchup, it’s worth noting that Ohio State’s offense was not the problem in the loss to Iowa, but there were certainly some important issues that Iowa’s top-20 defense revealed: responding to defenses that take away intermediate throws, force Barrett to keep in the zone-read run game, and what happens with penalties or after offensive line injuries.

Michigan State’s defense is much-improved from last year, when they ranked 41st in the defensive S&P+ -- they’re up to 9th now, and particularly excel in stopping the run. Where Iowa was ranked poorly in run defense heading in to last week’s game, and stronger against the pass, the Spartans’ strengths are flipped, ranking 6th in rushing S&P+, but 38th in passing S&P+. Like Iowa, they prevent big plays (7th in overall IsoPPP+) but they’re much worse at finishing drives, allowing an average of 4.22 points per opponent scoring opportunity (51st).

Interestingly, while they are one of the best defenses in the country at preventing runs of 5+ yards (6th, or 31.1% of runs), their run defense isn’t built so much on making plays in the backfield, ranking just 43rd in stuff rate. In fact, the defense’s success as a whole isn’t built on making havoc plays, ranking 49th in overall havoc and 71st in defensive line havoc.

So that gives us two big questions:

1. Can Ohio State run on Michigan State? This is the best run defense the Buckeyes will have seen this season. They held Saquon Barkley to 14 carries for 63 yards last week. And if the Spartans win the battle up front, how will the offense respond if forced to rely on the pass? Meyer and Wilson also mentioned ways to increase the running back’s success rate on read-based runs. That suggests we might see more dart runs or RPO variations, as well as potentially some non-read running back runs as well.
2. Can Ohio State exploit the Spartans’ relative weakness against the pass? At 38th in passing S&P+, the Spartans are still a good pass defense, but they allow a relatively high percentage of successful shorter completions. They allowed 368 yards on 50 attempts (7.4 yards per attempt) to Northwestern, then 401 yards (8.4 yards per attempt) last week to Trace McSorley. Opposing offenses have keyed on the Spartans’ pass defense, throwing on 49.9% of standard downs -- which is the 5th-most in the country. All week we’ve talked about J.K. Dobbins getting the ball more — and Urban mentioned that it would be a point of emphasis this week after practice. But we should be prepared for a pass-heavy attack nevertheless, because that’s what is likely to be effective against the Michigan State defense.

When Michigan State has the ball

The Spartans don’t have the most elite offense the Buckeyes’ have seen this year, but they do have one well-positioned to take advantage of Ohio State’s weaknesses — similar to Iowa. The similarities are clear: the Spartans offense ranks 101st in rushing S&P+, but third in the country in passing S&P+ behind Brian Lewerke.

Lewerke’s stats don’t jump off the page immediately: 2,207 passing yards, 6.5 yards per attempt, five interceptions. But his passing success rate is 44.9%, which is 26th in the country, and they’ve faced a number of solid defenses. In the past two games against Northwestern and Penn State, Lewerke has thrown for 845 yards and over 7 yards per attempt. He’s had over 53 attempts three times this year.

Part of the reason for going so pass-heavy has to do with the poor run game. Not only are they 101st in rushing S&P+ overall, but they allow run stuffs on over a quarter of runs, ranking fourth-to-last in the country in stuff rate. Ohio State’s defense ranks 7th in the country in forcing run stuff. So you’d expect the Spartans offense to be completely one dimensional — but that’s also what should have happened last week, as well. But Ohio State’s defense, and linebackers specifically, failed to fill gaps behind the defensive line’s slants, and seemed unsure who had pursuit and coverage responsibilities. Michigan State undoubtedly seeks to take advantage of Ohio State’s defense in a similar way. If the defense allows the Spartans to have a steady run game in addition to a likely-efficient passing day, then it’s likely to be another long afternoon for Greg Schiano’s defense.

Given how much the numbers favor Ohio State’s run defense and don’t favor its pass defense, any schematic or execution issues for the run defense will likely be devastating.

Spartans tight end Matt Sokol is the fourth-most targeted player in the passing game, but he still only has 16 catches and 166 total receiving yards this year, while LJ Scott has 15 catches for 91 yards. Michigan State will likely try to use motions and shifts to create advantageous matchups with tight ends and running backs on Ohio State’s linebackers, as the linebacker corps hasn’t shown much improvement in pass coverage responsibilities since getting exposed against Oklahoma.

Assuming that Ohio State’s run defense corrects the most glaring issues from a week ago and realizes their statistical advantage in run defense, then even a steadily efficient passing game should be slowed in the red zone, where the Spartans average just 3.94 points per scoring opportunity, which is 105th in the country. Field goals should be the name of the game. Expect to see a fair number of third-down conversions, as they rank 3rd in passing downs S&P+ despite being fifth-worst overall in passing downs line yards per carry (which means that nearly all of that late-down success is due Lewerke and not the running backs).

Takeaways

1. The Spartans defense excels against the run, ranking 6th in rushing S&P+. They don’t make a ton of tackles for loss, but they also limit big gains.
2. Their relative defensive weakness is against the pass, ranking 38th, and 48th in passing success rate. The Spartans defense is very similar to Ohio State’s in that it intends to stop the run first, can allow efficient passers, but still rarely allows big pass plays.
3. Brian Lewerke is up there with Baker Mayfield and Trace McSorley in terms of passing threats. But while Lewerke may not be as dynamic as Mayfield or as deep ball-ready as McSorley, he has shown the ability to be efficient, potentially like Richard Lagow and Nate Stanley were. Lewerke leads the third-best passing offense overall and on passing downs.
4. Ohio State should have a huge advantage stopping the Spartans ground game (5th vs. 101st in rushing S&P+), but they should have been able to stop Iowa too, who has similar problems as the Spartans (127th in stuff rate). If this advantage isn’t realized, then the Buckeyes have big problems.
5. There are a number of less-quantifiable factors that could affect the game. Mark Dantonio has taken statistically inferior teams toe-to-tow with Meyer’s, forcing games decided by three points or less in four of the last six years. We’re also not sure where Ohio State’s mindset is now that their playoff hopes are almost assuredly gone.

Picks

• S&P+: Ohio State 33, Michigan State 19. 78.2% win probability
• F/+: Ohio State by 7.9. 67.6% win probability
• Adj. S&P+: Ohio State by 30.3 (!). 96% win probability
• My pick: Ohio State 31, Michigan State 28

It’s been 20 years since Tom Osborne retired as head coach at Nebraska after a perfect 13-0 season, claiming the top ranking in the coaches’ poll. Since then, the Cornhuskers have had four different coaches at the helm, migrated from the Big 12 to the Big Ten, and notched one lonely conference championship. I can’t even remember the last time Nebraska was in the conversation for the national championship. And it doesn’t appear Mike Riley will be the head coach to help the Huskers rejoin that conversation, as his firing is a near certainty now that Nebraska has hired a new athletic director and the football program teeters on the edge of its second losing season in three years.

It’s hard to imagine a worse turn of events for Nebraska, especially when you consider that Riley’s predecessor, Bo Pelini, was fired after winning at least nine games in each of his seven seasons as head coach. The grass isn’t always greener, apparently.

Offense

Junior quarterback Tanner Lee has been a bit inconsistent in his first season as the starting signal caller. He is fourth in the Big Ten with 17 passing touchdowns and third in passing yards with 2,365, but Lee has also thrown the second most interceptions (13) in all of college football. During a three-game stretch early in the year, Lee actually threw nine interceptions and completed exactly 50 percent of his passes. He followed that up with a four-game stretch that saw him average 310.5 passing yards per game. Lee also completed 61 percent of his passes and threw for eight touchdowns and one interception over that same stretch.

Lee certainly has weapons in the passing game. Junior wide receiver Stanley Morgan, Jr. is almost certain to find the end zone on Saturday, having scored a touchdown in all but three games this season. He leads the Huskers with 43 receptions, 690 receiving yards, and seven touchdowns. Redshirt freshman wide receiver J.D. Spielman, an Eden Prairie native, is a rising star. The versatile Spielman, who is also a playmaker on special teams, had a breakout game against Ohio State in which he hauled in 11 receptions for 200 yards and one touchdown. Senior wideout De’Morney Pierson-El rounds out the Huskers’ receiving corps with 35 receptions, 467 receiving yards, and four touchdowns.

The offensive line, which doesn’t have a single senior among the starting five, has kept Lee clean for the most part. The Huskers are tied for 31st in the country in sacks allowed, averaging 1.44 per game this season. But when Lee has struggled, it has been when the defense is able to apply pressure and force him into making bad decisions.

The Huskers’ rushing attack has been anemic to say the least, averaging 120.8 rushing yards per game, which ranks 107th nationally. Sophomore Tre Bryant was the starter to open the season, but hasn’t played since Week 2 against Oregon after suffering a knee injury. Junior running back Devin Ozigbo has shouldered the load in his absence, with mixed success (109 carries, 403 rushing yards, 1 touchdown). The fact that Ozigbo is the lone back to have passed Bryant’s two games of production is indicative of their struggles in the running game.

Verdict: I feel confident we won’t see a repeat of last week, when Michigan rushed for nearly 400 yards against the Gopher defense. The question will be whether the Minnesota secondary can hold up against the Huskers’ talented receiving corps. Having starting cornerbacks Antonio Shenault and Kiondre Thomas healthy and on the field will help, but the Gophers’ defensive backs will need to cut down on the mental mistakes that have been costly in recent weeks.

Defense

The Huskers’ defense, under new coordinator Bob Diaco, has not even remotely resembled the “Blackshirts” of the past. Nebraska ranks 81st in the country in rushing defense (176.9 rushing yards per game), 71st in passing defense (223.8 passing yards per game), and 92nd in scoring defense (30.1 points per game). Diaco has cited poor tackling and the switch from a 4-3 base defense to a 3-4 as reasons for their struggles, explaining that his players need a full year of strength and conditioning, skill development and "intellectual conditioning" to get acclimated.

Senior middle linebacker Chris Weber is the leader on defense, with a team-leading 77 tackles, seven tackles for loss, one sack, and one interception. Close behind is junior linebacker Dedrick Young with 64 tackles, 3 tackles for loss, and one sack. The linebackers have obviously contributed to the Huskers’ poor run defense, but outside linebackers Luke Gifford and Alex Davis have also struggled when asked to cover tight ends and wide receivers.

The defensive line, anchored by redshirt sophomore defensive end Carlos Davis, seems to have struggled the most with the transition from 4-3 to 3-4, which has effectively altered their role and asked them to fill space and allow the linebackers to make plays. With how much opposing teams have run wild against this defensive front — Northwestern racked up 232 rushing yards last week — their shortcomings have been front and center.

Wisconsin, for example, tailored their running game to attack the edge of the Huskers’ defense, forcing the secondary to come up in run support and make tackles in open space. In particular, Nebraska’s inexperience at cornerback was exposed early in the season, which is why the Blackshirts felt some relief in the form of senior Chris Jones, who suffered a torn ACL in the spring but returned to action against Wisconsin and started the following week.

Junior safety Aaron Williams has been their most consistent defender in the secondary, with 41 tackles, one tackle for loss, two interceptions, and one pass break-up.

Verdict: In all but one of their five losses, the Huskers have allowed the opposing team to rack up at least 200 rushing yards. For once, the Gophers won’t have to depend on the arm of Demry Croft to beat a team, as long as they’re able to get the ground game going. Nebraska has fared better defensively against Big Ten teams with lackluster offenses — Rutgers, Illinois, and Purdue — so Minnesota will still need to take a step forward from the inept performances we’ve seen the last two weeks. But the opportunity will be there.

Prediction: Minnesota 24, Nebraska 21. This is very likely the Gophers’ last winnable game this season. I’m not going to predict a loss. I have zero confidence in Minnesota’s offense at the moment, but I’m hoping for a pleasant surprise on Saturday.

-Doug Lesmerises, cleveland.com

As blasphemous as it might seem when looking at the totality of Meyer’s time in Columbus, this blazing hot take has been scorching up the interwebs since Ohio State’s historic, embarrassing 55-24 drubbing by the Iowa Hawkeyes on Saturday.

However, before you chug your Skip Bayless Haterade™, remember that Meyer is less than three seasons removed from winning a national title, and that his overall record as the Buckeye head man is still 68-8 (.895%).

There is no doubt that things are a little rocky right now for the Buckeyes, and that the team hasn’t consistently looked the same since the dream 2014 season, but to say that Meyer is degrading as a coach because he is now “a 53-year-old grandfather,” and that he is moving to the hands-off, CEO model of coaching is antithetical to what is actually going on, and to the thesis of Lesmerises’ article as a whole.

In his piece, Lesmerises says that Meyer is a “culture coach,” and that he mostly leaves the Xs and Os to his assistants. But, that isn’t something that is new, Meyer has always been the big picture guy who was great at getting the most out of his players. Therefore, how does that lead to the softening of his “edge”?

If the problem is with the coaches who are directly working with the players, perhaps you could say that Meyer missed on some coaching hires, but again, given the individual coaches’ resumes, that seems like a stretch (although, Lesmerises did expand on this idea in another article, specifically pointing a finger at former NFL defensive coordinator and OSU’s new linebacker coach Bill Davis).

Could it be that it has taken longer for the program’s new coaches and players to gel than was originally anticipated? Absolutely. But, to say that this is somehow indicative of Meyer losing his edge, even temporarily, is extremely short-sighted and solely of the moment.

In fact, in addition to the admitted truth that the coaching staff still has not found its footing as a cohesive unit, I would argue that Meyer’s “edge” might actually be the thing that is leading to the recent rash of disappointing results for the Buckeyes.

As Lesmerises says, Meyer can just about get any recruit that he wants to come to Columbus, meaning that it is incumbent upon him to go and get the best players for his team, whether they be from Pickerington, Miami, Dallas, or San Diego. The down side to getting the best talent from around the country is that they don’t have the inherent buy-in to the distinct, Ohio State culture and tradition that most of the team’s fans do. Eventually that can have an impact, especially on a team that is lacking in experience.

And that is where the other side of Meyer’s dangerous success comes into play. The Buckeyes have had 19 players drafted into the NFL in the last two seasons alone, not to mention a handful of other players signed as undrafted free agents, many of them leaving before exhausting their collegiate eligibility. At some point, competing with an inexperienced, albeit talented, roster is going to lead to some roadbumps, but I think most people would prefer those roadbumps to the ones suffered by teams who are excited to have one or two players drafted every year.

The point is that the Ohio State football team is nowhere near functioning at its max potential right now, and laying that at the feet of the head coach is perfectly acceptable, given that the buck stops at the top. But, to question if Urban Meyer, a man who has won nearly 90% of his games in Columbus, has all of a sudden lost his ability to coach, or even manage, his team is ludicrous, even in this age of click-bait sports commentary.

“Momentum is building in Ohio for a college basketball event similar to Indiana’s Crossroads Classic.”

-David Jablonski, Dayton Daily News

For years under Thad Matta, and long before, it was the stance of the Ohio State men’s basketball team to avoid scheduling games against other in-state, DI programs. As the state’s flagship school, and the only one in a major college conference, that was certainly in OSU’s prerogative.

The thought was that no matter the result of the game, there was no upside for the Buckeyes. If they beat Dayton, or Xavier, or Cincinnati, then it was expected for the big dog to dominate. However, if say Dayton was to beat OSU 60-59, like in the 2014 NCAA Tournament, it would be seen as a black eye for the Buckeyes, letting one of their “little brothers” beat them up.

However, it appears that those concerns are now all but being ignored as new Ohio State head coach Chris Holtmann has openly discussed the idea of putting together an Ohio version of the Crossroads Classic held in Indiana every year. Remember that Holtmann comes to Columbus from Indiana’s fourth(?) biggest basketball program in Butler.

According to Jablonski’s article, discussions have already begun. Ohio State previously announced that they will open up each of the next two seasons with a home-and-home against the Bearcats. While it likely won’t happen any time in the next few seasons, these are promising developments in a state whose basketball prowess shouldn’t have to take a backseat to anyone.

“The upsets in the Big Ten East were the biggest playoff plotlines from Week 10, as the stock of the entire conference dropped as a result.”

-Heather Dinich, ESPN.com

I’m not telling you anything that you don’t already know, but things ain’t looking good for the Big Ten to get a team into the College Football Playoff. With both Ohio State and Penn State losing their second games of the season this past weekend, unless all holy-hell breaks loose, they aren’t getting in. Meaning that the B1G’s best option might be the still undefeated Wisconsin Badgers, who, as of the first playoff rankings, were sitting at ninth.

Now, certainly, they will move up a spot or two with their conference brethren taking a tumble, but there is also the potential for an undefeated No. 10 Miami to jump the Badgers after a decisive win against No. 13 Virginia Tech.

So, even if Wisconsin moves up to No. 8 this week, they still would have two SEC teams, two Big XII teams, two ACC teams (assuming Miami move up), and independent Notre Dame ahead of them. Because there is a likelihood that the conference foes will eventually meet up, if they do, only one is likely to drop out of contention with a loss, leaving at least three teams and the Irish ahead of Wisconsin, who still has no guarantee to remain undefeated.

So, if you are banking on the B1G continuing its streak of playoff participants, you might want to start rooting for 2007 levels of chaos.

STICK TO SPORTS

Highlights of fans storming onto the field, as well as the locker room speech from coach Mick Marotti on how the team will prevail against the Nittany Lions made the final cut for the trailer.

Additionally, this week’s trailer focused on the game-changing plays against PSU. Denzel Ward’s blocked punt, J.T. Barrett’s touchdown passes in the closing minutes of the game, and Sam Hubbard’s double tackle of Penn State quarterback Trace McSorley and running back Saquon Barkley were shown, before the phrase “This is Ohio State” splashes onto the screen in-between more highlight clips.

Ohio State takes on Iowa at 3:30 p.m. on Saturday. The game will be broadcast on ESPN.

The 5-3 Hawkeyes are fourth in the Big Ten West and have already dropped three conference matchups. They had a chance to make an early statement against Penn State in Week 4, but lost on the final play. Since then, the floodgates have opened up.

Three years after appearing in the Big Ten title game, Iowa’s now in danger of missing postseason action entirely.

But for all that’s gone wrong, it’s star running back Akrum Wadley that continues to be the Hawkeyes consummate bright spot.

The senior out of New Jersey is coming off a breakout year that saw him compile nearly 1,400 total yards of offense and 13 touchdowns. While he probably won’t surpass those numbers at his current pace, that says more about the team than it does of his abilities.

Take a look at how Wadley’s fared thus far.

The production of a year ago may not be there, but Wadley’s impact is still felt.

Iowa’s offensive line hasn’t been able to get a consistent push this season. They’re routinely beat off the ball and it’s affected their standout tailback’s play. It’s why he’ll likely set a career-high in receiving yardage in his final go ‘round in college.

Regardless, Wadley’s averaged a solid four yards per carry, has found the end zone almost 10 times, and comes up big when Iowa needs him to.

With Penn State in town, Wadley put on a show alongside fellow stud back Saquon Barkley. He racked up 155 yards and a pair of scores, not to mention a jaw-dropping catch-and-run that kept the Hawkeyes in the game.

Part of what makes No. 25 so special is his versatility.

Similarly to Barkley, Wadley can be the workhorse or he can split out of the backfield as a receiver. His size and innate ability to make something out of nothing are why he’s indispensable in Iowa City.

And Wadley proved as much during his best outing of the year to date, courtesy of in-state rival Iowa State.

Not only did Wadley turn into a video game single-handedly tie things up in the waning moments, he literally ran over or around half of Iowa State’s defense.

This has been the theme throughout Iowa’s up-and-down season.

Wadley can’t always rescue the Hawkeyes, and that’s the main problem. They’re just not a well-rounded group and a porous offensive line doesn’t do them any favors.

So count on Wadley making more plays on Saturday. It’s what he does and it’s what he’ll continue to do.

How much will he impact the final score? That’s a different story.

The result?

Out of 345 interviewees*, not a single person would admit their willingness to dress up as a Husker football player this year. This is down quite significantly from every other year Corn Nation has done this sort of polling, and we mean to tell you, we’ve been doing this sort of thing for years.

A quick survey done by driving through neighborhoods in and around Omaha observed only a smattering of carved pumpkins done with a design of anything related to Cornhusker sports.

A call to Crazy Carl’s Costume House at the Outlet Mall found a surprising number of requests for “moose outfits”, even though the employee we spoke to at Carl’s, Larry Benson, admitted that they’d had only three or four requests for anything related to moose over the past five years he’d worked there.

“Everyone wants to be a moose. I don’t get it,” said Larry, who admitted he wasn’t much of a Husker fan. Larry said the second most common request was for a “Rick and Morty” combination and he didn’t understand what that was all about either.

“It’s sad that nobody wants to dress up as a Husker football player, though. It’s been one of our most popular outfits throughout the years. All these costumes going to waste.”

Asked what he would do about the unused Husker player outfits, Larry stated, “Probably ship them all to our Milwaukee store. They’re not that much different than Wisconsin outfits, and most of the time those people are too drunk to notice the difference.”

*All lies. We’re certainly too lazy to attempt anything as energetic as this.

Location: East Lansing, Michigan
Enrollment: 50,543 (39,143 undergraduates)
Home Stadium: Spartan Stadium
Head Coach: Mark Dantonio, 11th season, 92-42 (.687)
Conference: Big Ten (East Division)

Series History

First Game: November 13, 1914 (Michigan State won, 6-3)
Last Game: November 26, 2016 (Penn State won, 45-12)
Overall: Tied at 15 wins each and one tie
Current Win Streak: Penn State, 1

Last Season (3-9 overall, 1-8 Big Ten Conference)

It was a brutal year for the Spartans in 2016, going 3-9 in the regular season (1-8 Big Ten), with their first losing season under Dantonio and a year where Michigan State was not bowl eligible. The Spartans started the year off strong, ranked No. 12, defeating Furman and No. 18 Notre Dame. Then Michigan State dropped their next seven games in a row to No. 11 Wisconsin, Indiana, BYU, Northwestern, Maryland, No. 2 Michigan and Illinois. Ouch. The Spartans defeated Rutgers 49-0, their most decisive win of the season, only to lose to then No. 2 Ohio State and No. 8 Penn State in the following two games.

Last Week

The 6-2 (4-1 Big Ten) Spartans are having a much better year but unfortunately, this Saturday they snapped a four-game winning streak, losing in a three-overtime heartbreaker to the Northwestern Wildcats, 39-31.

Michigan State scored first in the first with a touchdown pass from quarterback Brian Lewerke to Cody White, then hit a field goal in the second quarter for a 10-0 lead. Northwestern responded by scoring 10 unanswered points in the second quarter to tie the game 10-10 at the half. In the fourth quarter, both teams scored touchdowns, leading to the 17-17 tie going into the first overtime, then made it 24-24 going into the second overtime, then 31-31 going into the third overtime.

In the final overtime, Northwestern quarterback Clayton Thorson threw a 22-yard touchdown pass to Flynn Nagel. But on the next Spartan possession, Wildcat Nate Hall intercepted Lewerke in the end zone sealing the Northwestern win.

Lewerke threw for a school record 445 yards and four touchdowns and Cody White had 165 yards receiving (the most by a Spartan freshman in a single game in school history) and two touchdowns. Michigan State’s defense held Northwestern to just 64 yards rushing. Joe Bachie led the Spartans in tackles for the sixth time this season with eight stops.

Recruiting and Offseason

The Michigan State 2017 class is ranked as the nation’s 36th recruiting class (sixth in the Big Ten), as compared to Penn State’s 2017 class ranked at 16th in the nation and third in the Big10.

This year, the Spartans lost graduating quarterback Tyler O’Connor and saw defensive lineman Malik McDowell and safety Montae Nicholson drafted in the 2017 NFL draft. Wide receiver R.J. Shelton later signed with the Vikings and safety Demetrious Cox signed with the Panthers.

In April, Michigan State dismissed a total of four players due to sexual assault investigations. Wide receiver Donnie Corley, defensive end Josh King, and wide receiver Demetric Vance were charged with criminal sexual conduct, and in a separate incident, defensive end Auston Robertson, was charged with sexual misconduct. Linebacker Jon Reschke also left the program, deciding to transfer.

Offense

Michigan State’s offense struggled last year, continues to struggle this year but has seen a few improvements, statistically speaking . They are 71^st in total offense in 2017 (75^th last year), 64th in rush offense (65^th last year), 67^th in passing offense (74th last year).

However, they’ve gone from 3-9 to being 6-2 overall, and have seen quarterback Brian Lewerke steadily improve.

As a freshman in four games in 2016, Lewerke was 31 of 57 (54.5%). In 2017, Lewerke is 159 for 259 (61.4%) for 1,807 yards with 14 touchdowns and three interceptions. Lewerke ranks third in the Big Ten in points responsible for per game (behind Trace McSorley). He set several school records against Northwestern last week, including a school record 445 yards and four touchdowns. Lewerke also has 75 rush attempts for 343 yards and 3 rushing touchdowns.

The Spartan offensive line is young, made up of sophomores, with the exception of center and captain, senior Brian Allen and junior right guard David Beedle (uncertain for this week with an injury). The unit allowed 27 sacks, averaging 2.3 sacks per game last year, tied for the fifth-highest rate per game in the Big Ten. This year they’ve improved that stat, allowing 10 sacks (1.25 per game) of quarterback Lewerke.

Michigan State has a number of talented running backs, with LJ Scott leading the Spartans with 113 attempts for 511 yards and four touchdowns (and 11 receptions for 82 yards and one touchdown). Gerald Holmes and Madre London also split time rushing, but Holmes may not see play this week after an ankle injury earlier in the season.

Top targets in the air include wide receiver Felton Davis who is second in the team in scoring with 42 points – and the top receiver with 33 receptions for 405 yards and seven touchdowns. Darrell Stewart has 35 receptions for 362 yards and one touchdown. Cody White and Hunter Rison also see time at receiver.

Defense

Michigan State’s defense had a rough 2016. First, the losing season, then losing key defensive players including linebacker Jon Reschke, who transferred, and defensive ends Auston Robertson and Josh King, dismissed for sexual assault cases. Even so, they’ve improved their defense over last year, and fast.

Last year, the Spartans were 32^nd in total defense, 51^st in rush defense, 14^th in first down defense, and 84^th in pass efficiency defense. This year, improvements include 8^th in total defense (3rd in Big Ten), 4^th in rush defense with 89.8 yards allowed (top in the Big Ten), 14^th in first down defense, and 17^th in team passing efficiency defense.

Senior defensive end Demetrious Cooper returns as the veteran along with (all sophomores) defensive end Kenny Willekes, defensive tackle Mike Panasiuk and nose tackle Raequan Williams. Willekes has 43 tackles total for the year (fourth for the Spartans) along with three sacks, 7.5 tackles for loss and one fumble recovery.

Michigan State boasts some talented linebackers, especially in sophomore Joe Bachie, who leads the Spartans in defense with 71 tackles, 6.5 tackles for loss, two sacks, one interception, one fumble recovery and two fumbles forced. Bachie is fourth in the Big Ten averaging 8.9 tackles per game.

Other starting linebackers include junior Andrew Dowell and senior Chris Frey. Andrew Dowell has 29 tackles this year and two interceptions for 35 yards. Frey led the linebacker unit last year with 96 tackles and so far has 34 this year along with four tackles for loss and 3.5 sacks.

The Spartans do have depth at safety with juniors Khari Willis and starter David Dowell (yep, that's Andrew Dowell's twin brother). Willis is third for Michigan State in tackles with 49 while David Dowell is second on the team with tackles with 55.

The cornerback position is young, with sophomore Justin Layne returning after starting five games in 2016, making him the veteran. Freshman Josiah Scott is also starting as cornerback with backups filling in - sophomore Josh Butler and junior Tyson Smith (who thankfully battled back from a stroke last season).

Special Teams

The Spartans’ redshirt freshman kicker Matt Coghlin, the leading scorer for the Spartans with 44 points, is 23 of 23 for extra points but he’s 7 of 11 (63.6%) for field goals this season. Punter Jake Hartbarger has 45 punts for 1,905 yards and an average punt of 42.3, and had a career-best 62-yard punt against Indiana, pinning them at their own 1-yard line.

Connor Heyward and Darrell Stewart have handled most kick return duties and have been the most successful, with Heyward catching six returns for 171 yards and Stewart with six returns for 152 yards.

Blog

Check out more on Michigan State Spartans football at their SB Nation blog, The Only Colors.

-Ohio State wide receiver Terry McLaurin, via Doug Lesmerises, Cleveland.com

The Ohio State Buckeyes took all 60 minutes to prove that they were the better team against a very worthy adversary in Penn State. The Buckeyes, who boast some of the greatest talent in the nation and consistently better recruiting classes than the Nittany Lions, trailed for the duration of the game until quarterback J.T. Barrett found tight end Marcus Baugh in the end zone for the touchdown that put Ohio State up one point with 1:48 remaining in the fourth quarter.

How the Buckeyes got so far behind to start--by as much as 18--however, was as much a factor of mistakes on the part of the Buckeyes as it was great plays by Penn State. The Ohio State defense, for their part, did extraordinarily well, holding Heisman frontrunner Saquon Barkley to 44 yards and a touchdown on 21 carries. Trace McSorley, who had four total touchdowns against Michigan last week, had just 192 yards passing on the day. Still, two crucial pass interference penalties--including one on a potential interception in the end zone--turned the tide in favor of Penn State early.

Special teams continued to be flawed throughout the game, especially at the start as Barkley ran the opening kickoff back 97 yards for a touchdown. Later in the first half, after cutting Penn State’s lead to 11, Ohio State was penalized for being offsides on the ensuing kickoff. Even later in the game, punter Drue Chrisman dropped the snap and, mercifully, managed to still get the punt away. K.J. Hill managed to hang on after his own blunder after he muffed a punt from the Nittany Lions.

However, the most egregious, and consistent, errors seemed to come from the offense. Fumbles by Parris Campbell and Barrett were both recovered by Penn State, while one by Binjimen Victor was thankfully called back due to holding on the Nittany Lions. Both Hill and Baugh dropped crucial passes from Barrett, and members of the offensive line kept committing false starts at critical times.

Despite their mistakes, the team pulled together when it counted. Barrett was laser focused in the fourth quarter, the defense proved utterly dominant and starters made their way to special teams. It doesn’t help to have so many errors setting the team back, but managing to overcome them--against one of the best teams in the country--speaks volumes about the unit and their resilience.

“It’s no secret. The Ohio State Buckeyes always bring the ratings for TV networks, but especially when they’re lined up against another big-named foe.”

-D.J. Byrnes, Eleven Warriors

Despite a heavy slate of 3:30 p.m. games Saturday, including Notre Dame’s win over NC State, Iowa State’s knocking off of TCU and Northwestern’s upset of then-No. 16 Michigan State, Ohio State’s win over Penn State proved to be the most-watched game of the entire weekend, and the second-most-watched game of the season (Alabama’s win over Florida State in week one earned a 7.3 mark). FOX Sports PR announced Sunday that the top-10 matchup drew a 6.4 overnight metered market rating, with the audience peaking at a 9.0 rating from 7 p.m.-7:15 p.m. during the Buckeyes’ epic comeback. The rating is FOX’s best ever for a regular season college football game.

Of course, the Buckeyes tend to draw a crowd, whether in-person or on TV. Last year’s matchup against Michigan--a noon game on ABC--had a 10.4 overnight rating. That viewership was the highest for a noon kickoff ever. It was also the most-watched game of the 2016 regular season. This season, the Buckeyes’ opener versus Indiana had a rating of 3.6, which made the game the most-watched Thursday opener ever. Ohio State’s matchup with Oklahoma the following week drew more than 8.2 million live viewers and a rating of 5.3.

In addition, millions of people have watched Michigan versus Florida, Michigan State and Penn State. All three matchups, the latter two of which were featured night games on ABC, rank in the top-10 most-watched games this season.

So far this season, Saturday Night Football on ABC has proven to be the dominant force in the television football landscape, and the ESPN family of networks (including ABC) have aired the majority of the most-watched games so far this season.

Ratings for NFL games, while still higher than for college games, have begun to dwindle, while growth for college games has remained steady.

After an exit in round of 16 the NCAA Women’s Basketball Tournament last season, the No. 8 Ohio State Buckeyes women’s basketball team is set to open up regular season play Nov. 10 against No. 9 Stanford. Over the weekend, however, the Buckeyes had a strong showing in an exhibition game against the Ashland Eagles, defeating the Division II champs of 2017 110-80 at the Schottenstein Center. Senior forward Stephanie Mavunga and senior guard, and reigning Big Ten Player of the Year, Kelsey Mitchell led the Buckeyes in scoring with 28 points a piece. Mavinga also added 23 rebounds and four assists to cap her performance. Three other Buckeyes scored in double digits on the day.

The Buckeyes are considered one of the top teams in the nation headed into the season, especially with Mitchell’s decision to forego the WNBA Draft and return to Columbus for her senior season. Mitchell began making waves as a freshman when she became the first freshman ever to lead the country in scoring with 24.9 points per game. She broke the single-season scoring records for both Ohio State and the Big Ten with 873 points on the year, and broke the NCAA record for three-pointers made in a season with 127. She continued her dominant performance throughout her sophomore and junior seasons, earning first team All-Big Ten honors both years, and is expected to be one of the top players in the conference this season.

Next up, the women are scheduled to face Urbana on Sunday, Nov. 5 before tipping off regular season play.

The men’s team meanwhile, under the direction of first-year head coach Chris Holtmann, looks to be off to an auspicious start in the pre-season as well, earning a victory in a closed scrimmage against Xavier over the weekend. Xavier is widely considered a top-20 team, so even a win in a scrimmage is worthwhile considering the Buckeyes have now been left out of the NCAA Tournament for two-straight seasons.

STICK TO SPORTS

Though I was sure it would, sometimes seeing is believing.

There’s no better way to explain what happened in Columbus on Saturday other than that one hurt.

“They are who we thought they were, and we let ‘em off the hook,” in the immortal words of the late, great Dennis Green.

So, given that, here are my three takeaways from Penn State’s crushing loss.

1. James Franklin and Joe Moorhead are great coaches, but both are fallible

Part of the dread of Saturday’s loss has to come from the feeling of deja vu that most Penn State fans suffered. Just like in the Rose Bowl, Penn State had a late lead and the ball with a chance to let one of the premier offenses in the country salt away the game, and the coaching staff balked. Rather than letting Trace McSorley go out and win the game, they played not to lose it and it bit them in the behind. Franklin and Moorhead have been integral in putting Penn State way ahead of schedule in its rebuild, but Saturday’s ending surely needs to be questioned.

2. Penn State still lacks the depth to be an elite team

There are many reasons the Nittany Lions lost on Saturday, but injuries played a sizable role. Defensive end Ryan Buchholz left early in the game with what looked to be a serious knee injury. Buchholz has been one of Penn State’s best pass rushers and run stoppers and it was unable to replace that production, particularly after Shareef Miller was hobbled later in the contest. Later, Ryan Bates got rolled up on and was forced to leave the game. While Penn State’s offensive line was far from great prior, it was at least passable. After the injury, the Nittany Lions were forced to move Will Fries to left tackle and put Chasz Wright in at right tackle and everything began to fell apart. If Penn State wants to compete with the big boys, it will need to continue to build depth up front in recruiting.

3. Saquon Barkley should still be the Heisman front runner

Barkley was limited greatly on the ground after an early 36-yard touchdown run, but his impact in the kick return game cannot be understated. His 97-yard return for a touchdown to open the game set the tone and gave the Nittany Lions a ton of momentum. Additionally, Ohio State had to change its whole kickoff game plan, allowing Koa Farmer to get a massive kickoff return of his own and putting Penn State in fantastic field position at the end of the game with a chance to retake the lead. Barkley is still the country’s most dangerous player with the ball in his hands, and that was evident.

Despite trailing by 15 points in the fourth quarter, the Buckeyes kept their College Football Playoff hopes alive with their miraculous 39-38 win over No. 2 Penn State, and in the process put the rest of the sport on notice. While everyone had a hand in the comeback (even special teams did something good!), J.T. Barrett and the Ohio State defensive line went above and beyond in carrying the Buckeyes to an improbable win.

You probably already know J.T.’s 4th quarter stats by heart: 13/13, 170 yards, and three touchdowns, including the beautifully designed and executed game-winner to Marcus Baugh:

Not bad for a guy people said couldn’t win a big game.

Meanwhile, the defensive line continued to show why it might be the best position group in the country. The unit racked up 7.5 tackles for loss and two sacks, held all-world running back Saquon Barkley to just 44 yards on 21 carries, and closed the game out by absolutely mauling the Penn State offensive line on four straight plays:

On this episode of The Hangout in the Holy Land, Colton Denning and Patrick Mayhorn are effusive in their praise of Barrett and the line, and talk about everything that happened in Ohio State’s wild win, including:

• Barrett’s status as the best quarterback in school history.
• Why they think the coaches nearly bungled the game with their kickoff strategy, and wondering what was up with forgetting about J.K. Dobbins, plus the swing passes to Mike Weber.
• Discussing where the game was at its bleakest, but why they always thought Ohio State had a chance to win.
• Giving props to the Austin Mack, Jordan Fuller, and the offensive line, plus looking ahead to the last four games of the season, and more!

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