Purdue had a pair of top 5 upsets to its credit this season. Given the Boilermakers’ high-octane offense, some thought Ohio State could be a third victim. To steal a phrase from an old Big Ten guy, not so fast.

Ohio State handled everything the Boilermakers threw at them, going over, around and through Purdue early en route to a relatively easy 59-31 win.

Yes, Purdue and QB Aidan O’Connell showed the form that has Purdue 2nd in the Big Ten in passing (and 8th in FBS entering Saturday). O’Connell topped 350 passing yards and threw for 4 touchdowns. But even as Purdue started running up scoreboard numbers against the Buckeyes, Ohio State already had the game all but finished.

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Ohio State’s big-play offense didn’t necessitate an OSU punt until the middle of the third quarter, and by that point, the Buckeyes had already cracked the half-century mark in points. Freshman QB CJ Stroud continued to flash Heisman Trophy form, easily eclipsing 300 yards and throwing his 5th touchdown early in the 4th quarter, one shy of the OSU single-game record. His main beneficiary on this day was Garrett Wilson, who missed last week’s win over Nebraska. Wilson made up for lost time with a trio of touchdown grabs and a TD run for good measure.

After a Purdue 3-and-out, OSU struck first with a 5-play, 39-yard drive, finishing on a 21-yard connection from Stroud to Wilson. Purdue retaliated with a 7-play, 75-yard march that ended on a 25-yard TD pass from O’Connell to Jackson Anthrop. The game was knotted at 7 with 8:56 to play in the first quarter. The tie did not last long, as it took OSU under 2 minutes to re-take the lead. After a 49-yard hookup from Stroud to Jaxon Smith-Njigba, running back TreVeyon Henderson had a 3-yard touchdown run. After a Purdue fumble, Henderson struck again, this time with a 57-yard back-breaker touchdown that opened a multi-score cushion that Ohio State would preserve throughout the rest of the game.

Already up 21-7, Ohio State then showed it could score slowly (11-play, 75-yard drive, ending on a 20-yard Stroud to Smith-Njigba connection) or quickly (after a Purdue fumble, 2 plays, 12 yards, that distance coming on a Stroud to Wilson TD). That score left Ohio State with a 35-7 advantage with 13:28 to go in the first half. From there, the teams traded scores for the rest of the half, with O’Connell hitting Broc Thompson for a 12-yard TD, but Ohio State then answering with a 51-yard Wilson run on a jet sweep. The two teams then traded field goals to reach halftime with a 45-17 Ohio State tally.

Ohio State scored on the first possession of the second half, with Stroud completing a 24-yard TD throw to Wilson for his 4th score of the game. From there, the Buckeyes did let off the gas pedal a bit, as O’Connell completed a pair of TD throws to draw Purdue to within 52-31 with 2:02 to play in the 3rd quarter.

But when pressured, OSU responded in form, with a 9-play, 75-yard drive, finishing with a 5-yard strike to Chris Olave from Stroud with 12:51 to play. Olave was the third Buckeyes receiver on the day to grab at least 9 receptions and pick up at least 85 yards receiving.

Ohio State moved to 9-1 on the season and will host Michigan State next week. The Spartans appeared to be holding off Maryland and likely moving to 9-1 themselves. Of course, a trip to Michigan awaits for the Buckeyes on the following Saturday. Meanwhile, Purdue, despite falling to 6-4, should finish their season strong by playing at Northwestern and then hosting Indiana.