No. 3 Ohio State (6-0, 3-0) outscored conference rival Indiana (4-2, 1-2 B1G) by a 21-6 margin in the second half to turn what had been a competitive game at the half into a 49-26 one-sided win.
The Buckeye offense performed well in both halves against the Hoosiers, putting up 28 points in the first half to go with the 21 they tallied after the intermission.
Quarterback Dwayne Haskins was spectacular. Haskins threw for 455 yards and six touchdowns on 33-of-44 passing. He was intercepted twice. His six TDs and 33 completions tied OSU school records and his yardage total was three yards off the OSU single game record.
Defensively, however, the first half left a lot to be desired. The Buckeye defense gave up 20 first-half points to Indiana and struggled to get off the field. The leaky defense allowed Indiana to stay close despite the offensive fireworks by Haskins and the rest of the Buckeye offense.
The second half was a different story, at least defensively. Indiana put just six points on the board with a single touchdown after the intermission. The touchdown was made a bit easier for them when Ohio State attempted to convert a fourth and and one at the 42-yard line and failed. That gave Indiana a short field that led to the score. The Hoosiers attempted a two-point conversion which failed. That was the lone score they could muster against an Ohio State defense that seemed to have righted the ship in the second half.
Indiana’s lone other second-half scoring threat came after a shanked punt gave them possession at the OSU 33-yard line. Three plays later they were still at the 33 and attempted a 51-yard field goal that missed badly to the right.
The Ohio State offense once again produced big plays, which included a 71-yard touchdown catch and run by H-back Parris Campbell for OSU’s first score of the second half. Wide receiver Johnnie Dixon had a 39-yard touchdown reception to score from long range as well. Campbell and Dixon’s plays went for big yardage, but nobody made a more spectacular touchdown catch than wide receiver Binjimen Victor. His diving reception for a 30-yard touchdown reception in the back of the north end zone was nothing short of spectacular and was the final score of the game.
For the day, Campbell led all receivers with nine receptions for 142 yards (15.8 avg) and two touchdowns. Dixon grabbed five balls for 73 yards and a score. Wide receiver Terry McLaurin had 4 catches for 59 yards and two scores, while Austin Mack and K. J. Hill had five and four catches respectively.
Sophomore running back J.K. Dobbins lead all rushers with 82 yards on 26 carries for a 3.2 yard per carry average. Weber added 70 yards on 13 carries for a 5.4 yard average.
Indiana was led by quarterback and Ohio native Peyton Ramsey, who threw for 322 yards and three touchdowns with no interceptions. He completed 26-of-49 attempts.
Ohio State amassed 609 yards rushing and passing, Indiana 406.
The Buckeyes were penalized nine times for 82 yards and lost three turnovers, one on a fumble and two interceptions.