After looking sharp early, Ohio State’s new quarterback C.J. Stroud came out sharp, but late in the second half appeared to lose some of his sharpness.

And with a little over 8 minutes to go in the first half, it cost him.

Stroud’s pass was just behind wide receiver Chris Olave, and charmed off Olave’s hands into the waiting arms of Gophers safety Terell Smith.

Smith returned the ball well into Buckeyes territory, just beyond the OSU 30-yard line.

The Gophers capitalized. After a pass interference call in the endzone, they converted on a one-yard touchdown score from running back Mohamed Ibrahim.