COLUMBUS, Ohio — Ohio State had Jeremiah Smith.
Illinois had no answer for him.
Smith caught 12 passes for a career-high 217 yards and four touchdowns, and the Buckeyes opened Big Ten play with a 42-19 win over Illinois Saturday at Ohio Stadium.
Three of Smith’s touchdowns came in the first half as Ohio State built a 28-10 lead, and his fourth came early in the fourth quarter to help the Buckeyes put the game away.
Julian Sayin completed 27 of 36 passes for 367 yards and four touchdowns, with all four touchdown passes going to Smith. He also added a rushing touchdown as Ohio State’s offense finished with 518 total yards.
The Buckeyes didn’t completely put Illinois away until the fourth quarter, though.
After Illinois opened the second half with a field goal to cut the deficit to 28-13, the Illini put together a 13-play, 74-yard drive that lasted 7:50. Ohio State’s defense finally stopped the drive on downs at the Buckeyes’ 20-yard line.
Four plays later, Sayin found Smith for a 26-yard touchdown. That was the answer Ohio State needed.
Illinois scored another touchdown with 6:02 remaining, but Ohio State responded with an eight-play, 43-yard drive capped by Ja’Kobi Jackson’s 2-yard touchdown run to make it 42-19. And from there, the Buckeyes were on their way to their 10th consecutive win over Illinois.
Smith was already rolling before Illinois had much of a chance to settle in. Ohio State opened the game with a nine-play, 75-yard drive, and Sayin found Smith for a 7-yard touchdown to put the Buckeyes ahead 7-0.
On Ohio State’s next possession, the two connected again, this time on a 72-yard touchdown that gave the Buckeyes a 14-0 lead with 3:39 left in the first quarter.
Smith finished the opening quarter with 123 receiving yards, the most by any player in a Big Ten game over the last 20 years, according to Ohio State.
Illinois answered with a 22-yard touchdown run from Jordan Anderson, but Ohio State continued to control the game through the second quarter.
The Buckeyes put together a 19-play, 96-yard drive that lasted 8:31, with Sayin again finding Smith for a touchdown. The 9-yard score gave Smith three touchdowns before halftime.
Ohio State then added another touchdown just before halftime when Sayin kept the ball himself and ran 7 yards for the score, sending the Buckeyes into halftime with a 28-10 lead.
Illinois’ offense continued to move the ball in the second half. The Illini finished with 462 total yards, including 199 rushing and 263 passing. Aidan Laughery led Illinois with 113 rushing yards, while quarterback Katin Houser completed 21 of 37 passes for 263 yards and a touchdown.
But Illinois couldn’t turn enough of those yards into points. The Illini went 6-for-14 on third down and 1-for-3 on fourth down. They also went through all nine of their possessions without a three-and-out, but Ohio State’s defense came up with stops when Illinois reached scoring range.
Riley Pettijohn recorded a sack and two tackles for loss, while Kenyatta Jackson Jr. added a sack. Ohio State finished with three sacks and five tackles for loss.
The Buckeyes, meanwhile, kept converting. Ohio State went 8-for-12 on third down, 2-for-2 on fourth down and 4-for-4 in the red zone, scoring a touchdown on each trip.
Bo Jackson carried 11 times for 53 yards, while Ja’Kobi Jackson added 56 yards and a touchdown on 10 carries. The Buckeyes’ rushing attack wasn’t explosive in the same way Smith was through the air, but Ohio State still averaged 4.7 yards per carry after accounting for five yards lost.
Sayin continued to add to an already productive season. His 367 passing yards marked the eighth 300-yard passing game of his career, tying him for third in Ohio State history. Through four games this season, he has completed 82 of 116 passes for 1,206 yards and 10 touchdowns.
Smith’s numbers were the story Saturday, though.
His 217 yards made him the sixth Buckeye to record at least 200 receiving yards in a game. He now has 3,175 career receiving yards, moving past Michael Jenkins for the most in Ohio State history. He also has 34 career receiving touchdowns, two behind Chris Olave’s school record of 36, and 196 career receptions, 10 behind Emeka Egbuka’s Ohio State record of 205.
For one afternoon, though, the numbers that mattered most were the ones on the scoreboard.
Ohio State moved to 3-1 on the season and 1-0 in Big Ten play, while Illinois fell to 3-1.
And the Buckeyes did it with Smith making sure there was never much doubt about who controlled the game.
