I haven’t been in the Horseshoe in a couple days, but some say the Buckeyes are still scoring touchdowns against Toledo as we speak.
That’s how it felt in Saturday’s Week 3 matchup as Ohio State looked truly unstoppable for perhaps the first time this season. Needless to say, there was no shortage of Buckeyes that put rocket fuel into their stock during this past weekend’s 77-21 throttling, and we’ve taken account of them all below.
We also take a look around the Big Ten conference and the country as a whole in the latest edition of Eleven Warriors’ weekly stock report.
Stock Up
C.J. Stroud/OSU offense
Toledo entered the weekend with the No. 4 total defense in the country. Then Ohio State happened. That ranking dropped to No. 80 after C.J. Stroud and the Buckeye offense bombed the Rockets back to the stone age, putting up its second-most total yards in program history with 763.
Stroud put up Heisman-like numbers as he completed 22-of-27 passes for 357 yards and five touchdowns, and eight Buckeyes found the end zone in total. Ohio State scored touchdowns on all but two offensive possessions, and one of those was the game-ending drive in which the Buckeye backups ran out the clock in the fourth quarter.
After the obliteration, Ohio State moved to No. 1 in the nation in total offense – right where it finished the 2021 season.
Buckeye tight ends
Who needs Jeremy Ruckert? Cade Stover (er, Farmer Gronk) had more yards on Saturday than his predecessor ever did in scarlet and gray, making several huge plays downfield to finish with 83 yards on three catches. With 187 yards through the first three weeks, Stover’s on pace to be the most productive Ohio State tight end in the passing game since Jeff Heuerman in 2013. Who woulda thunk?
Mitch Rossi also deserves a shoutout for his efforts against Toledo, although his highlight moment came at fullback instead of the tight end position. The former Buckeye walk-on punched in a one-yard score out of the I-formation to notch a touchdown – just the second of his career – that would’ve made Woody Hayes proud.
Mitch Rossi punches it in and @OhioStateFB tacks on another one pic.twitter.com/CGwA6cExl0
— FOX College Football (@CFBONFOX) September 18, 2022
OSU freshman RBs
The first Buckeye running back to have a 100-yard game this season was neither TreVeyon Henderson nor Miyan Williams. In just the second game in which he received a college carry, true freshman Dallan Hayden dashed for 108 yards and a touchdown on 17 carries to prove that the future of the position remains bright in Columbus.
But he wasn’t the only first-year back to have a breakout performance. Freshman walk-on TC Caffey, who lost his black stripe just days before the Week 3 matchup, rushed for 57 yards and a touchdown on just six carries. Caffey broke off a 49-yard score that saw him shed and elude several would-be tacklers to put himself on the map against all odds.
WE SEE YOU TC CAFFEY
— FOX College Football (@CFBONFOX) September 18, 2022
The @OhioStateFB RB breaks off for a HUGE first career TD run pic.twitter.com/xSeUIFdYpQ
Julian Fleming
Held out of the first two games of the season due to injury, Julian Fleming made a splash in his 2022 debut. The five-star recruit hauled in two touchdown passes, double his career total to enter the season, and caught all three balls Stroud threw his way against Toledo. Perhaps Fleming could have had an even bigger performance had the Buckeyes not kept him on the sidelines in the second half for precautionary reasons as Ohio State continued its onslaught against the Rockets.
Jayden Ballard
Marvin Harrison Jr. and Emeka Egbuka continued their torrid pace to start the season, each racking up 100-yard games and a pair of touchdowns apiece. Still, a third OSU wideout joined the duo in hitting the century mark. Second-year receiver Jayden Ballard, who entered the game with just three career catches for 18 yards, turned in a 113-yard performance on four catches against Toledo.
Ballard's 72-yard catch-and-run touchdown in the second half was his standout moment, and it could be the first of many in an Ohio State uniform.
Another first!
— FOX College Football (@CFBONFOX) September 18, 2022
Jayden Ballard takes it 72 yards for his first career @OhioStateFB TD pic.twitter.com/s2HIxkfsLN
Javontae Jean-Baptiste
Given Ohio State's talent at defensive end, Javontae Jean-Baptiste is often the forgotten man in the unit. But the fifth-year pass rusher made more than one impactful play on Saturday, finishing with two sacks and forcing a fumble on the second one in the fourth quarter. Jean-Baptiste saw plenty of snaps in Jim Knowles’ hybrid Jack role against Toledo. If he continues to turn in performances like that, he’ll see an increased usage rate for Larry Johnson and company, even among his litany of five-star stablemates.
Penn State
The Nittany Lions didn’t look like world beaters in their season-opening four-point win against Purdue, but they’re quickly climbing the ranks after a convincing 41-12 blowout against Auburn on the road this past weekend. After going 11-11 combined in 2021 and 2020, James Franklin is now 3-0 to start the new year, with both a Big Ten and SEC win in their back pocket. Penn State is up to No. 14 in the AP Top 25 and continues to pick up steam despite some early critics.
Michael Penix Jr.
Penix is no longer in the Big Ten, but the former Indiana gunslinger isn’t done torching opposing secondaries in the conference. Penix led Washington to an upset win over No. 11 Michigan State with a monster 397-yard, four-touchdown showcase in a 39-28 victory. Penix hasn’t thrown for fewer than 337 yards and two scores in any of his three games to start the year with Washington, and his 1,079 yards and 10 touchdowns to just one pick have him creeping into the Heisman conversation as the Huskies are up to No. 18 in the AP poll.
Kansas
The basketball season doesn’t start for another couple months, but the Jayhawks are making noise beforehand with some surprising success on the gridiron early this season. After finishing the 2021 season with a 2-10 record in Lance Leipold’s first year at the helm of the program, Kansas has already surpassed that win total through the opening three weeks with victories over Tennessee Tech, West Virginia and Houston. The Jayhawks are No. 3 in the country in scoring offense (53 points per game) and might just challenge some of the Big 12’s heavy hitters if they keep on rolling in 2022.
Stock Down
Health for OSU starters
Ohio State’s triumphant weekend wasn’t without its downsides. The Buckeyes are a bit banged up entering Big Ten play, as several starters are dealing with injury issues ahead of their matchup with Wisconsin. Josh Proctor and Tanner McCalister were in street clothes before kickoff against Toledo, Mike Hall was held out of the game and both TreVeyon Henderson and Cameron Brown left the contest with injuries.
Ryan Day didn’t seem overly concerned in his postgame press conference, but the number of injuries seems a bit concerning given the caliber of opponent Ohio State faces on Saturday.
TreVeyon Henderson in a walking boot on his left foot. He left the game and didn't return after scoring the opening TD against Toledo. @nbc4i pic.twitter.com/G9EJO9CYri
— Justin Holbrock (@NBC4Justin) September 18, 2022
Michigan State
Mel Tucker’s Spartans became the first team in the Big Ten East Division to drop a game this season as they fell at the hands of Penix and the Huskies over the weekend. The 11-point loss was a setback for MSU, which finished 2021 with an 11-2 record, with its only two losses coming to Michigan and Ohio State. The Spartans have ample opportunity to bounce back against Minnesota and Maryland before hosting the Buckeyes next month, but an early season loss to a Pac-12 foe wasn’t exactly part of the plan in East Lansing.
Purdue
The Boilermakers fell just short of spoiling Penn State’s season opener at the start of the month, but moral victories have fallen by the wayside after an upset loss to Syracuse on the road over the weekend. Even a 424-yard game from Aidan O’Connell couldn’t save Purdue from falling to 1-2 on the year as Dino Babers and company picked up a 32-29 win over a formidable Big Ten opponent.
Notions of a post-Frost bounceback in Nebraska
Things looked promising for the post-Scott Frost era at the start of this weekend’s Nebraska-Oklahoma matchup, right up until they didn’t. The Huskers struck first but then failed to strike again until late in the fourth quarter, allowing 49 straight points to the Sooners as Mickey Joseph’s tenure began with a familiar taste of defeat for a once proud football program.
