Ohio State football: Grading Buckeyes after B1G title game win

Ohio State earned its third consecutive Big Ten title on Saturday, beating Wisconsin 34-21 in the B1G Championship Game in Indianapolis.

The Buckeyes needed their gutsiest performance of the season because the Badgers had an excellent first half to lead 21-7 at halftime. OSU responded like champions, outscoring Wisconsin 27-0 in the second half and outgaining UW 260-138 in the final two quarters.

In 2019, OSU coach Ryan Day did what predecessor Urban Meyer was not allowed to do because of the NCAA sanctions the school faced in Meyer’s debut season of 2012: Cap a perfect regular season with a victory in the B1G title game.

Day is now 16-0 as Buckeyes coach and has steered his staff and players to the ultimate destination: The College Football Playoff.

One gutsy call in particular showed that Day — whose team had been crushing foes all season — was unafraid to take a risk that would provide a spark when OSU needed it most.

With that in mind, here are 5 things I liked and 3 things I didn’t like from Ohio State’s third consecutive Big Ten Championship Game victory:

5 things I liked

That fake punt call: Everything was working against Ohio State. The Buckeyes trailed 14-0 in the second quarter and faced a quick 3-and-out when they lined up to punt from the OSU 26-yard line. But Day had something else in mind. Punter Drue Chrisman pulled off a fake, passing to Luke Farrell for 21 yards on 4th and 9 to keep the drive going. Quarterback Justin Fields fumbled deep in Badgers territory and Wisconsin recovered to snuff out the drive, but the fake punt play call seemed to light a fire under the Buckeyes. It was also the first pass completion of Chrisman’s career.

All-around special teams play: That fake punt was just one of several special teams plays that favored Ohio State. Chrisman punted twice for a 44.0-yard average and pinned Wisconsin inside its 20 once. Blake Haubeil hit both of his field goal attempts, a key factor considering Zach Hintze missed his one attempt for the Badgers (granted, from 48 yards). And OSU caught a huge break on special teams in the third quarter when UW punter Anthony Lotti fumbled a snap deep in Badgers territory, setting up one of Haubeil’s field goals.

K.J. Hill record: Senior wide receiver K.J. Hill had a special moment in Saturday’s game, breaking David Boston’s OSU record for most career receptions. Hill backed that up with 7 catches for a season-high 83 yards and 2 touchdowns. That was Hill’s first multi-score game since he had 2 TDs against Minnesota on Oct. 13, 2018. Hill has 195 career catches, breaking the mark of 191 that Boston had owned since 1998.

Protection improved in second half: Running back J.K. Dobbins and his offensive line mates turned on the jets in the second half. But perhaps the more crucial element for OSU’s O-line was that the pass protection was better after halftime. With Fields not moving at 100% (more on that later) it was critical for the big guys up front to buy their quarterback more time. They did just that and Fields threw for 299 yards in the game after passing for just 127 in the first half.

Spectacular TD catch for Ruckert: The Buckeyes capped their quick TD drive to start the second half with tight end Jeremy Ruckert’s outstanding one-handed catch in the end zone:

I mean, if this play didn’t excite you, then you might want to try watching a different sport.

3 things I didn’t like

Two unsportsmanlike conduct penalties: For the most part OSU had pretty good composure, not only in erasing that 21-7 halftime deficit but also because the Buckeyes only committed 4 penalties for 40 yards. But two of them came on one Wisconsin drive in the third quarter and both were for unsportsmanlike conduct — one on the kickoff, the second on defensive back Damon Arnette for a post-play reaction to a small bit of taunting. Arnette is noted for the emotional spark he provides the defense, but he is a veteran who needs to be smarter than that.

First-half pass protection: OSU’s run blocking skills have never been in question all season, but the offensive line has not always looked as sharp in pass protection. When Fields scrambles and runs as well as he usually does, he can mitigate some of those problems. But this time Fields, dealing with a sprained left MCL, wore a bulky knee brace and was not as mobile as usual. Credit Wisconsin for making OSU pay, sacking Fields 5 times including on 3 crucial plays in the first half. The Badgers brought more pressure than they had in the first meeting in October, a big reason this game was closer.

Look out for … Coan on the run?: Coming into Saturday, Wisconsin quarterback Jack Coan’s career high for rushing yards in a game was … a whopping 20, the previous week against Minnesota. Coan had more than that on one drive Saturday against OSU. The second run on the drive was Coan’s 14-yard touchdown scamper up the middle with no defender near him. It’s safe to say that the OSU defense will have to focus on shutting down the opposing QB as a running threat in the CFP — and to their credit Coan did nothing either running or even scrambling in the second half.