COLUMBUS, Ohio – Penn State sought to keep Ohio State wide receivers Jeremiah Smith and Carnell Tate from getting behind the secondary and failed miserably.
Smith and Tate made their case as the best pair of wide receivers in the country, fueling the top-ranked Buckeyes’ 38-14 victory Saturday at Ohio Stadium.
They combined for 11 catches for 247 yards and three touchdowns as Ohio State (5-0 Big Ten, 8-0) beat the Nittany Lions (0-5, 3-5) for the ninth straight year by pulling away in the second half.
“You cannot let them behind you,” Penn State interim head coach Terry Smith said. “I don’t mean this disrespectfully to the Ohio State guys in the past because they were great receivers.
“These two guys are better than all of them. They were outstanding today. We could not cover them.”
Smith, who has coached cornerbacks since he joined the Lions staff, said before this season that he believed he had the best group in the country. They had been one of the few bright spots on the defense this season, but they played poorly against the Buckeyes.
“You have to compete with the ball in the air,” safety Zakee Wheatley said. “That goes for everybody, (including) myself. When you play corner, that’s what you sign up for. You sign up for one-on-one matchups like this. They just got the best of us.”
Ohio State sent the Lions to their fifth consecutive loss in the final game between the teams until 2028.
The Buckeyes spoiled the homecoming of Penn State quarterback Ethan Grunkemeyer, who grew up just north of Columbus. Making his second college start, Grunkemeyer was 19-of-28 passing for 145 yards and an end-zone interception in the fourth quarter.
Ohio State also ruined the return of Penn State defensive coordinator Jim Knowles, who left the Buckeyes after helping them win the national championship in January. Knowles was mocked on the video board in the fourth quarter and booed by most of the sellout crowd of 105.517.
“You can’t replicate that speed and that talent in practice,” linebacker Amare Campbell said. “Those guys are gifted athletes, amazing athletes, so their speed was something that was definitely a problem for us.
“We had a game plan of trying to keep the ball in front of us. We have to do better at that.”
With terrific protection, sophomore quarterback Julian Sayin completed 20-of-23 passes for 316 yards and four touchdowns.
After Penn State stayed within 17-14 at halftime, Ohio State scored on its first two possessions in the third quarter to break it open.
“The third quarter set the tone for them,” Terry Smith said. “They got 14 points and we could just never respond. Our guys didn’t quit, but we have to learn to finish.”
The Lions moved the football effectively in the first half, driving 75 yards for their first score and converting an Ohio State fumble into a touchdown late in the second quarter.
But they gained just 60 total yards in the second half and didn’t score. They had one completion longer than 20 yards all afternoon, a 26-yard pass from Grunkemeyer to freshman Koby Howard in the fourth quarter after the game was decided.
“We continue to struggle in the vertical pass game,” Smith said. “There were some opportunities in the second quarter. Ethan threw some nice balls in that intermediate range. We didn’t follow it up in the third or fourth quarter.
“I have to get that fixed. I have to talk to the staff. There are no exceptions. I have to get it fixed.”
Ohio State took a 10-0 lead on its first two series on a 14-yard touchdown catch by Smith and a short field goal before Penn State mounted a 15-play drive that ran more than eight minutes off the clock.
Grunkemeyer completed third-down passes to Devonte Ross and Liam Clifford. Nick Singleton accounted for 42 yards on two catches and three rushes, including a 3-yard touchdown on a sweep around left end.
The Lions had a chance to stop the Buckeyes on their next drive, but Dani Dennis-Sutton and Keon Wylie missed tackles on third down and allowed Sayin to scramble for a first down. Three plays later, Sayin found Tate behind Zion Tracy for a 45-yard score and a 17-7 lead.
Ohio State forced a Penn State punt, but Dennis-Sutton stripped the football from C.J. Donaldson on the next play. Chaz Coleman recovered the fumble and returned it to the Buckeyes’ 13.
After he caught a 5-yard shovel pass on third down, Kaytron Allen scored from the 1 to make it 17-14 at the half.
“We had a big break before the half,” Campbell said. “We were feeling good. We were in the game. The defense had to come out and get a stop and we didn’t do that.”
The Buckeyes ended all doubt in the second half.
The Lions dropped their seventh straight game in Columbus since 2011 and failed to beat a top-ranked team for the first time since 1990. They will face No. 2 Indiana next week at Beaver Stadium, trying to avoid their first six-game losing streak since 2004.
“Obviously, it’s disappointing,” Wheatley said, “especially knowing the game’s so close at half and we had a hell of a chance to win the game. I don’t think it’s effort. …That’s just how the plays landed.”
Source: Berkshire mont
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