EAST LANSING, Mich. — Gareon Conley leaped through the air, extended his arms and snatched the football as it tumbled toward the turf. As Ohio State's sideline and stands erupted behind him, the star cornerback couldn't wrap his head around what exactly he had done.
“It's a rush,” Conley said. “When I got up, I didn't feel like I made the play. It's surreal. Knowing my teammates are happy for me, that's the most important thing.
“I'm going to put it away and keep it.”
Conley's interception of Tyler O'Connor with 1:30 left on the clock sealed Ohio State's 10th win of the season, a tight 17-16 victory that keeps their postseason dreams alive. When the redshirt junior came down the ball, O'Connor and coach Mark Dantonio's head dropped. Without any timeouts to stop the clock, the only thing left to happen in Spartan Stadium were two J.T. Barrett kneel downs and Carmen Ohio.
“I thought we measured up. I think that's the case,” Dantonio said. “You're one point away from winning and having the chance to win the game, maybe two or three different ways.”
“Tough day at the office right there. We'll take the win against a team that we know very well on the road in November,” Urban Meyer said. “Get ready for our rivalry week.”
Rivalry week is officially (and finally) upon the Buckeyes. Their annual date with Michigan sits just seven days away, with Big Ten Championship and College Football Playoff implications riding on the high noon kickoff from Ohio Stadium next Saturday. That game was always going to be big but would have lost some of its luster had the Buckeyes not taken care of business against the Spartans, the only team to beat them in 2015.
Meyer and his team preached that all week, in addition to the fact they knew it wouldn't be easy because it never is against Dantonio's club. An awful weather forecast didn't help, as snow, cold and wind prevented any semblance of a downfield passing game for both teams.
“It was really odd because at times it would calm down but then it would pick up crazy,” Barrett said. “That was part of it. I did miss some throws that I know I should have had. But I think for the most part I did my best to make the right decisions and do the best I can with the conditions.”
“We are a balanced football team. When we're not balanced, it's tough,” Meyer said. “They had the same problem. We threw a bubble screen and I looked and the ball was bouncing. It was real difficult to execute in the throw game. Had a couple drops.”
Barrett only completed 10-of-22 passes for 86 yards, with 24 coming on a scoring toss to Curtis Samuel that evened the score in the first quarter. The quarterback took the lion's share of the rushing tries for the Buckeyes, a typical move for Meyer when weather changes things for his offense—put it in the hands of your most trusted player and tell him to go win the game.
It ended with Barrett carrying 24 times—though not all on designed quarterback runs—for 105 yards. Mike Weber also ran 14 times for 111 yards and the go-ahead score on a 4-yard plunge in the third quarter. He went over 1,000 yards for the season on that drive. Not bad for the Detroit native's first game in his home state, especially after fumbling away a drive earlier in the game.
“He's over 1,000 yards which is a great accomplishment for him with three new starters on the offensive line as well. Very pleased,” Meyer said.
“With Mike, it's one of those things that he's a grinder. He has to keep on plugging,” Barrett said. “I knew Coach [Tony] Alford was going to talk to him, everything was going to be fine, just one of those unfortunate things that happens. I knew he would forget about it, go play next play and he came up big for us in the second half.
“I think it was one of those personal battles for himself because he is from the state up north. He knew a lot of those guys, jawing back and forth. I had to calm him down at the beginning but I think he settled in and we were able to do what we needed to do on offense.”
The Buckeyes outrushed Michigan State 224-207 but not because the Spartans didn't have big plays of their own. Ohio native L.J. Scott ran for 160 yards and his touchdown pushed Michigan State within one point late in the fourth quarter. Scott finished with 236 total yards and two touchdowns.
“They were controlling the line of scrimmage. That was a tough drive for us. Usually that doesn't happen to us,” Meyer said. “Really good back. No. 3, Ohio guy.”
Dantonio elected to go for 2 and the lead, sensing the need to force Ohio State's offense to become an aggressor once again even though it reverted back to the opposite after taking the lead. Mired in a 3-win season, he kept his foot on the pedal—a move that surprised Meyer.
“I was somewhat surprised but I've been in that situation before where you have all kinds of momentum and swing and try to have a knockout punch,” Meyer said.
“All week long I had said that if we get close at the end of the game, we're going for two,” Dantonio said. “We're going to take an aggressive approach and play to win the football game, rather than tie the football game. So, that felt like what we wanted to do.”
He called for a short pass over the middle from O'Connor, which both Chris Worley and Malik Hooker read like a book. They combined on the interception to keep the Buckeyes out front and ultimately help save the season.
Michigan's victory over Indiana pits the 10-1 Wolverines against the 10-1 Buckeyes, with pressure mounting and bragging rights on the line. Oh, and a chance at a conference title and even further—the College Football Playoff.
It is officially rivalry week. What is done is over. The Game is upon us.
“They know what is at stake. We know what is at stake,” Billy Price said. “We're of course going to enjoy the win today and get after it tomorrow for The Team Up North.”
“We didn't play our best ball at all. We had a lot of mistakes, missed a lot of tackles. We usually don't miss a lot of tackles,” Worley said. “Do have some things that we need to work on. That's what we have a whole week for.”
“It's officially rivalry week,” Meyer said.
