On a day when Nos. 2, 7 and 8 all experienced their first losses of the season, No. 3-ranked Ohio State remained unbeaten.
It wasn't pretty, but the Buckeyes defeated Minnesota on Saturday, 28-14. Ohio State moves to 9-0 on the season with the victory.
The Buckeyes' defense limited the Gophers to just 312 yards of total offense and forced eight punts, while running back Ezekiel Elliott topped the 100-yard mark for the 14th-straight game. Elliott finished with 25 carries for 114 yards and a touchdown.
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | F | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MINNESOTA | 0 | 0 | 0 | 14 | 14 |
| OHIO STATE | 0 | 14 | 7 | 7 | 28 |
Things were stagnant at the beginning of the game for third-ranked Ohio State. The Buckeyes had just 31 yards of total offense after a scoreless first quarter.
Vonn Bell’s 16-yard interception return of a Mitch Leidner pass for a touchdown with just under five minutes to play in the first half opened the scoring for Ohio State and got the ball rolling. Quarterback Cardale Jones connected with Jalin Marshall for a 44-yard strike on the very next drive and on the following play, Elliott found paydirt from 15 yards out to put the third-ranked Buckeyes ahead 14-0 at halftime.
Jones connected with Michael Thomas for a 6-yard touchdown in the third quarter and then sealed the victory with a 38-yard touchdown run with two minutes remaining in the game. Minnesota scored both of its touchdowns in the fourth quarter after trailing 21-0.
The Buckeyes travel to Illinois next weekend for a matchup with the Fighting Illini.
| Ohio State | Stat | MINNESOTA |
|---|---|---|
| 376 | NET TOTAL YARDS | 314 |
| 189 | RUSHING YARDS | 33 |
| 44 | RUSHING ATTEMPTS | 26 |
| 4.3 | AVERAGE PER RUSH | 1.3 |
| 2 | RUSHING TOUCHDOWNS | 0 |
| 187 | PASSING YARDS | 281 |
| 12-22 | COMPLETIONS–ATTEMPTS | 27-45 |
| 15.6 | AVERAGE PER COMPLETION | 10.4 |
| 1 | PASSING TOUCHDOWNS | 2 |
| 18 | 1st DOWNS | 13 |
| 9 | RUSHING 1st DOWNS | 0 |
| 9 | PASSING 1st DOWNS | 12 |
| 0 | PENALTY 1st DOWNS | 1 |
| 66 | TOTAL PLAYS | 71 |
| 5.7 | YARDS PER PLAY | 4.4 |
| 2-4 | RED ZONE | 2-2 |
| 7-16 | 3rd DOWNS | 7-19 |
| 0-0 | 4th DOWNS | 1-2 |
| 5-45 | PENALTIES | 3-25 |
| 28:32 | POSSESSION | 31:28 |
Game Notes
- Ohio State has now won a nation’s-best 22-consecutive games.
- Ohio State has now won 29 Big Ten regular season games in a row, extending its own Big Ten record. It is a consecutive-wins streak that ties the current conference landscape mark of 29 consecutive wins in the Atlantic Coast Conference by Florida State from 1992-95.
- Ohio State is 75-12-1 all-time as the nation’s AP No. 1-ranked team and 58-4 as a No. 1 team vs. unranked opponents.
- The attendance of 108,075 marked the fourth-largest in Ohio Stadium history.
- The Buckeyes notched their 50th all-time win in a night game and their 14th at home.
- Urban Meyer improves to 151-26 in his career, and maintains the highest winning percentage (.853) among active coaches.
- Meyer improved to 42-3 in games in which he has more than one week to prepare for an opponent and is a perfect 27-0 in games played in October and November at Ohio State.
- No FBS team has won more games in a coach's first 50 games at a school than Ohio State and Urban Meyer (47-3).
- Vonn Bell’s second-quarter interception was his second of the season and ninth of his career. It marked his first interception return for a touchdown and the Buckeyes’ first since Adolphus Washington returned an interception 20 yards for a score against Western Michigan Sept. 26.
- Bell also recorded a career-high tying 10 tackles which matched his total from the Northern Illinois game earlier this season.
- The 16-yard interception return marked the second score of the year for Bell after a 14-yard fumble return for a touchdown against Hawaii.
- Ezekiel Elliott scored his 14th rushing touchdown of the season and 34th of his career on a 15-yard scamper in the second quarter.
- Elliott topped the 100-yard mark for the 14th-straight game, finishing with 114 yards on 26 carries. He is now fourth in schoo history with 3,384 career rushing yards, passing Chris Wells who had 3,382 yards from 2006-08.
- Michael Thomas’ six-yard touchdown catch in the third quarter marked his team-high seventh touchdown reception of the season and 16th of his career.
- Cardale Jones’ 38-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter was the longest rush of his career. It was the fourth rushing touchdown of his career and his first since the opening game of the year against Virginia Tech.
- The Buckeyes limited Minnesota to just 33 yards rushing marking the lowest total an opponent has gained on the ground all year. It was the fewest since Ohio State allowed just 16 yards on the ground to Penn State last year on Oct. 25.
- Senior Joshua Perry recorded 10 tackles in the game which was his third game this season of 10 or more tackles and his first since the Western Michigan game in September. Perry now has six games of 10 or more tackles in his career.
- Defensive end Joey Bosa recorded a tackle for loss in his fifth-straight game, giving him a team-high 12 for the season.
