No. 4 Ohio State’s goal-line stand with 5:13 to go powered the Buckeyes to a 20-13 road win over No. 3 Penn State.
After Ohio State kicked a field goal to go up seven — a drive aided by a controversial overturn on a replay review — Penn State immediately drove down the field and got into position for a TD after a 33-yard run by tight end Tyler Warren.
On first-and-goal, RB Kaytron Allen was stuffed for no gain. On second down, he got a yard to get to the Ohio State 2 yard-line. On third down, QB Drew Allar got another yard. And on fourth down, Penn State went to the air, but Allar’s pass to Khalil Dinkins in traffic was incomplete.
It was a statement stand from an Ohio State defense that locked down Penn State’s offense for the second straight season. And Penn State never got the chance to have the ball again after that Ohio State stop.
The Buckeyes drained the remaining 5:13 off the clock thanks to Quinshon Judkins. The Ole Miss transfer had three straight carries for two first downs at the start of the drive and then provided a key third-down block as QB Will Howard rushed for a first down just inside the two-minute warning.
Three plays later, Howard, a Pennsylvania native, closed out the game with another third-down conversion.
Judkins also featured prominently in the replay review we mentioned above. On that drive that extended Ohio State’s lead to seven, Judkins appeared to catch a pass from Howard and fumble the ball when he was hit. Officials immediately reviewed that the play was a catch and a fumble, but determined after a replay review that Judkins didn’t have time to actually make a catch.
It was really, really close.
Had the call of a fumble stood, Penn State would have taken over inside Ohio State territory. Instead, Howard hit freshman Jeremiah Smith for a 14-yard pass on the next play and the Buckeyes got a field goal from Jayden Fielding.
The win is the eighth consecutive for the Buckeyes over the Nittany Lions and drops Penn State coach James Franklin’s record against OSU to 1-10. Perhaps well aware of that record, Franklin responded to an unhappy Penn State fan as he walked off the field after the game.
James Franklin responded to heckling Penn State fans after the loss to Ohio State: “If you’re gonna be man enough to talk, what’s your name?” pic.twitter.com/kILxOn8UqU
— Seth Engle (@bigsengtweets) November 2, 2024
Key first-half turnovers
The first half was defined by pivotal turnovers in and around the end zone along with a pick-6.
The first touchdown of the game came when Penn State CB Zion Tracy returned an interception 31 yards for a score and a 10-0 lead.
Howard then made a key mistake in the second quarter after Ohio State had taken a 14-10 lead thanks to some help from a sketchy taunting penalty. Howard fumbled as he was running for a touchdown and the ball bounced off his leg and out of the end zone.
A TD was called on the field, but it was blatantly obvious that Howard lost the ball short of the end zone. After a review, officials determined that the ball stayed in bounds before it landed out of bounds in the end zone and Penn State took over.
Penn State failed to capitalize on that turnover, however, and then turned the ball over at the end of the first half on an incredible interception by Ohio State’s Davison Igbinosun. As he was in man coverage facing the receiver and had a hand in his face, Igbinosun was able to get his hand on the ball and quickly realized he could grab it all while keeping his foot down in the end zone.
The impacts on the Big Ten race and the playoff
There are now just two teams undefeated in Big Ten play: Indiana and Oregon.
Oregon is the clear favorite to be one of the two teams in the Big Ten title game thanks to its win over Ohio State and a schedule that doesn’t include any ranked teams the rest of the way.
You can put Indiana and Ohio State in the next tier. The two teams meet on Nov. 23 and it’s conceivable that the winner of that game will face Oregon for a first-round bye in the expanded playoff.
Penn State needs help. It needs an Ohio State loss and, possibly, multiple losses from either Indiana or Oregon. But the Nittany Lions should still be in great shape for the College Football Playoff and even a home game in the first round. Penn State has Washington, Purdue, Minnesota and Maryland to end the season. A 4-0 stretch over the rest of November would equal an 11-1 regular season and very likely a playoff game in State College on either Dec. 20 or Dec. 21.