Ohio State football: Grading Buckeyes after win vs Michigan

Making history is starting to be routine for the Ohio State Buckeyes.

On Saturday, the top-ranked Buckeyes defeated Michigan 56-27 for their eighth consecutive victory over the Wolverines, a first in OSU program history.

They also became the first OSU team to put up 50 points on Michigan in back-to-back years. Woody Hayes would not have even had to ponder whether anybody would let him go for 3 on Saturday.

And most of all, J.K. Dobbins kept writing his name in the Ohio State football record books — and rivalry record books, because his 260 total yards were the most by a Buckeye in series history against UM. Dobbins passed Ezekiel Elliott for second on OSU’s all-time rushing list and surpassed 4,000 career rushing yards.

His massive performance leads off the 5 things we liked and 3 we didn’t like from Saturday’s OSU victory over No. 13 Michigan in Ann Arbor.

5 things I liked

Dobbins, Dobbins and more Dobbins: One of the most remarkable aspects of J.K. Dobbins’ glittering career in scarlet and gray is how often he comes up big in the most meaningful games. On Saturday the junior running back outdid himself, setting career highs with rushing 211 rushing yards and four touchdowns against the Wolverines. He also had two catches for 49 yards, including a 28-yard reception to convert on 3rd and 14 on OSU’s first drive in the first quarter. Dobbins made Michigan’s Ambry Thomas whiff on a tackle near the first-down marker, then scored a rushing touchdown on the next play.

Fans might have guessed that it was going to be Dobbins’ day very early in that same opening possession. On his first carry of the day, with OSU down 6-0 after Michigan scored on its opening drive, Dobbins fumbled but the ball bounced right back into his arms. Dobbins barely broke stride, scooped the ball back up and raced for a 34-yard gain.

Fields plays it smart: Buckeyes quarterback Justin Fields had an injury scare (more on that later) but also judiciously slid a few times on running plays, showing better judgement than he often has done this season. Better decisions on when to keep running and when to slide — and avoid taking a big hit — equals a quarterback whose health is bound to be better as the Big Ten Championship Game approaches, as well as a likely College Football Playoff berth.

Landers lets loose: Veteran defensive lineman Robert Landers has not played as big of a role as he did last season, but he had perhaps his best game of the season for the Buckeyes. The senior had 2 tackles, both for loss, and a fumble recovery. Landers was there to pounce on a loose ball when Wolverines quarterback Shea Patterson couldn’t handle a snap deep in OSU territory in the first half, ending a promising UM drive.

Effort equals result: Even deep into the game, with the result no longer in doubt, the Buckeyes showed an unrelenting attitude. A typical play to display that trait was on Austin Mack’s 16-yard touchdown catch in the fourth quarter. The wide receiver lowered his shoulder near the goal line and just bulled his way past Michigan’s Josh Mettelus on his way to the end zone.

That play might seem obvious — of course Mack would want to score, right? — but that hard-hitting, tough attitude has permeated the entire OSU team all season. That is a big part of the reason this Buckeyes team is so much better than last season’s even though the 2018 team finished 13-1.

Arnette and secondary: It might seem odd to praise OSU’s secondary when the team allowed a season-high 305 passing yards. The Buckeyes hadn’t allowed 300 total yards in a game all season, never mind that many passing. Shea Patterson came out hot, completing 14 of his first 17 passes.

But cornerback Damon Arnette, who chirped at Clay Travis on social media last week because Travis had called out OSU’s secondary, made several big plays to nullify Michigan’s apparent strategy of staying away from Jim Thorpe Award candidate Jeff Okudah on the other side. The result? Patterson was absolutely shut down late, completing just 4 of his final 26 pass attempts.

3 things I didn’t like

Punt return issues: Garrett Wilson muffed a punt in the third quarter and Michigan recovered. It was Wilson’s third muffed punt this season. The play was part of a continuing trend for the Buckeyes, who are tied for 62nd in FBS in punt returns, averaging just 8 yards per return. As often as OSU opponents punt, the Buckeyes should be able to do more with those opportunities.

Fields injury scare: Every OSU fan probably feared for the team’s College Football Playoff hopes in an instant in the third quarter. That was when Fields went down after a play, writing in pain and grabbing his left knee. Fields was taken to the sideline and evaluated in the medical tent. What looked like a possibly severe injury wound up keeping Fields out of play only for a short time. He came back — with a brace on his left knee — later in that drive and hit Wilson for a touchdown to give OSU a 42-16 lead.

Patterson’s first half: We wrote last week that Patterson had been rounding into form as Michigan’s quarterback the past few weeks and that he’d be the key matchup for OSU. That turned out to be the case as Patterson looked like an All-American in the first half, passing for 250 yards and a touchdown.

OSU did a great job to shut down Patterson in the second half as he threw for just 55 yards in the final two quarters. But his first-half production might have been enough to make Buckeyes fans wonder what might happen if OSU reaches the CFP and has to face Clemson’s Trevor Lawrence or LSU’s Joe Burrow.

Jim Tomlin

Longtime newspaper veteran Jim Tomlin is a writer and editor for saturdaytradition.com and saturdaydownsouth.com.