Ohio State Overcomes Injuries, Weather to Overwhelm UCLA

The 10th meeting between Ohio State and UCLA will not likely be one of the games you go back and remember fondly. In just about every facet, it was a routine Buckeye beatdown. On offense, Ohio State was methodical, and defensively, the Bruins struggled until the backups entered the game. On a day without one star suiting up and another on a short leash, the Ohio State offense had to figure it out in a way it hadn’t to this point. In the rain, Ohio State responded in all three phases en route to a commanding 48-10 win over its friends from Southern California. The Buckeyes move to 10-0 and are all but locked in to this year’s College Football Playoff. However, the goals of beating Michigan and winning the Big Ten are still ahead.

Ohio State Overcomes Injuries, Weather to Overwhelm UCLA

Sorry, No Heisman Moment

Last week, Fernando Mendoza had to come back on a last-minute miracle touchdown to beat a bad Penn State team. As a result, he was crowned the Heisman favorite. This week, Marcel Reed turned the ball over three times in the first half to dig his team a four-score deficit. He led his team back against a bad South Carolina Team, so now he’s a Heisman favorite because of his “Heisman Moment.” Julian Sayin, meanwhile, did his job against a bad team and finished with 184 yards and a touchdown in his worst game as a Buckeye. Of course, saying it was his worst game to this point is not saying much. It was his first real test with any kind of weather. Plus, he was missing his top two weapons. At the same time, for a quarterback of his caliber with the level of talent around him, that’s no excuse. Sayin was still incredible in this one. He completed 18 of his first 20 passes. His third quarterback was a bit rough, however. Sayin missed with a few errant passes and miscommunications. Either way, he will be fine. Sayin was fitting the ball in a number of NFL-tight windows. His lone touchdown was thanks to a crafty bit of extending the play.

Who Stepped Up?

Carnell Tate was out for this one again as a precaution. Jeremiah Smith was questionable, but tried to make it work. Despite having a visible limp, Smith gutted out a four-catch, 40-yard effort in the first half. Many Buckeye fans are of the mindset that Ryan Day should sit out both next week against Rutgers to make sure they are 100% for Michigan. As a result, someone needed to step up. Despite some miscommunications and drops, a few players were able to make an impact. Brandon Inniss embraced the number-one receiver role with the top two options out. Inniss hauled in six passes for 30 hard-fought yards. Bryson Rodgers was on the receiving end of that scramble-drill touchdown. While he came open in the initial route, Rodgers kept himself in the play and found space in front of the endzone for his first career touchdown. All eyes were on redshirt freshman Mylan Graham and true freshman Quincy Porter, however. Both players came to Ohio State as five-star recruits and were tabbed as the future. Porter found himself in the rotation in the second drive of the game. On a first down, Porter caught an impressive 15-yard catch to move the chains in his first bit of action. Graham had a drop to start the second half, but he showed a few flashes of what Brian Hartline saw in him. All in all, it was apparent that neither freshman had much chemistry with Sayin.

Run Game Established

With the uncertainty of the receiving corps, plus the fact that Sayin looked a tad hobbled after a late hit, the Buckeyes worked on the run game. As a result, guys like Bo Jackson, Isaiah West, and James Peoples had strong outings. CJ Donaldson was questionable heading into the game and was evidently held out as a precaution. Jackson led the way as the starter yet again. Often running behind the left side of the line, Jackson used his vision and twitch to set a new career high in yardage. The freshman went for 112 yards and one touchdown on 15 rushes. On a few occasions, UCLA defended the run well, but Jackson was able to power his way to make something out of nothing. For West, it was more of the same. Both freshmen have impressive vision. Their physicality and refusal to go down at the first sign of contact are what set them apart. Peoples fell down the depth chart this year as the fourth back. He made things interesting in this one with a pair of touchdowns. His first was off a hurdle of a Bruin defender, while the second was shedding a tackler in the backfield and bouncing it outside to score the game’s final touchdown. The Buckeyes ran for 222 yards on the day. That’s the best they’ve fared on the ground against a Power 4 opponent since November 12, 2020, against Indiana.