It was very clear that the Buckeyes really tried their best for only a half against Tulane.
It was all they needed.
Led once again by quarterback Dwayne Haskins, the Ohio State offense was unstoppable against Tulane.
The Buckeyes scored touchdowns on their first six possessions with five of those scores coming via passes from Haskins that included scoring tosses of 14 yards to Parris Campbell, 17 yards to Terry McLaurin, 37 yards again to Campbell, 31 yards to Binjimen Victor, and 14 yards to Austin Mack.
Just for variety, J.K. Dobbins added a 9 -yard touchdown run in between the scoring passes to Victor and Mack.
An out-manned Tulane squad did manage to put up a touchdown in the first half to cut the OSU lead to 21-6, but the extra point was blocked. It was their last – and only – hurrah.
The 42-6 lead at the half meant that Haskins’ day was over as well as most of the OSU other starters on both offense and defense.
As a result the second half was essentially a scoreless affair pitting OSU’s reserves against Tulane’s starters. The Buckeye second-team offensive line did not protect reserve quarterback Tate Martell as well as the first unit had protected Haskins, and that made it tough for the OSU offense to be consistent.
Ohio State running backs had trouble finding holes as well, though DeMario McCall had some success late in the fourth quarter, both rushing the ball and as a receiver. It was McCall’s effectiveness that led to the last score of the game, an OSU touchdown by Martell late in the final quarter to make the final score 49-6.
Haskins finished the day with 21 of 24 passing for 304 yards, five touchdowns and no interceptions. H-back Parris Campbell had a big day with 8 receptions for 147 yards and two touchdowns. Dobbins led the Buckeye rushing attack with 55 yards and a touchdown on just 11 carries. Ohio State amassed 570 yards of offense, 419 of them in the air and 151 on the ground.
Fourteen different Buckeyes caught passes in the game.
The Buckeye defense held Tulane to 256 yards of total offense, 100 rushing and 156 through the air.
Ohio State tailback Mike Weber left the game in the second half with what appeared to be a minor leg injury. After the game head coach Urban Meyer said that Weber would be available for next week’s big matchup with Penn State in Happy Valley.