BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – Football can be a game of halftime adjustments, and it certainly appeared to be for the Ohio State football team on Thursday night.
The Buckeyes trailed Indiana at halftime, 14-13, but ended up running away from the Hoosiers in the second half, winning the game, 49-21.
Ranked as the No. 2 team in both major polls with aspirations of finishing the year at No. 1, Ohio State wasn’t happy to be trailing an unranked team 30 minutes into the game. Buckeyes coach Urban Meyer, though, felt his team took the right approach at halftime to set itself up for a win in the second half.
"A little bit pissed, and they understand they didn’t play very well," Meyer said of the Buckeyes’ demeanor at halftime. "But I didn’t see any panic. I thought the offensive coaches did a nice job in their conversations, and the same with the defense."
After Ohio State’s offense got off to an underwhelming start, especially in the passing game, quarterback J.T. Barrett was encouraged by the way his unit responded in the second half – and felt it did so in a way it would not have done last year.
"I thought we operated in that second half faster," Barrett said. "Just older, experienced guys, whether receivers, O-linemen, tight ends, so I think the conversation is better on the sideline, as far as adjustments, because guys know what they’re looking for. Since the conversation, it’s easier to come out of a person’s mouth when they know what they’re talking about, so I think that was good. Especially when it got to halftime and was able to talk it through and really voice what was happening out there on the receivers, tight ends and O-line."
Ohio State’s passing defense had some real issues in the first half, too, allowing Indiana quarterback Richard Lagow to throw for 284 yards before the break. Buckeyes linebacker Chris Worley, though, said he and his unit also had confidence they would stop the bleeding – which they ultimately did, though not before allowing one more touchdown drive – in the second half.
"We knew that they couldn't block our defensive line," said Worley in regards to why the defense remained confident. "Every time (Lagow) held it, he got hit. There was a lot of great coverage, it was just better catches. We knew that they were going to live by that and they were going to die by it."
On the mood at halftime, Worley added: "We were great. Like I said, we knew what to expect coming in. We knew our corners were going to come back and make some plays and they did."
There was certainly an expectation among many Ohio State fans and even college football prognosticators that the Buckeyes would cruise to a victory over the Hoosiers on Thursday night. Meyer, though, said the Buckeyes knew better.
"To say we didn’t expect the first 30 minutes to be a street fight, that’s not true," Meyer said. "We expected it to be what it was.
"If we play a little better and hit a couple of those deep balls early in the game, we maybe score a couple touchdowns ... And then if just our corners play a little better, but we expected it to be a tough game."
The star of the show for Ohio State on Thursday night was running back J.K. Dobbins, who broke Ohio State’s record for rushing yards in a debut game with 181, but Dobbins didn’t want to take all the credit for himself, instead deferring to his teammates – especially the ones who opened up running lanes in front of him.
"I knew it was possible with my offensive linemen," Dobbins said. "I felt like I was going to do the things I did because I practice against the best defense in college football every day, and then I got a great offensive line. Billy (Price, Ohio State’s center), All-American, and then you got all the other guys around him."
With it now looking like a realistic possibility that Dobbins could usurp Mike Weber on the running back depth chart after just one game, Meyer was asked whether he would tell his team about Wally Pipp, the former New York Yankees first baseman who famously lost his job to Lou Gehrig. Meyer, however, laughed at the suggestion of talking to his team about something that happened in 1925.
"If I walked in that locker room and said Wally Pipp, they’d look at me like nine heads," Meyer said. "How many players you think know that?"
Ohio State right guard Branden Bowen met with the media Thursday night after making the first start of his Buckeyes career. The lone new starter in Ohio State’s offensive line this year, Bowen – who even got a series at left tackle when Jamarco Jones temporarily left the game – spoke on how meaningful it was for him to be a part of the lineup.
"It’s an honor to go out with my brothers and really get that feeling to contribute," Bowen said. "Everything just means so much more to you, as soon as the scoreboard go up, Carmen Ohio at the end, it just means a lot more to you.
"I worked all camp and answered the questions and did what I was told, and winning the job, it was just a blessing."
Another Buckeye who had a meaningful night was redshirt junior wide receiver Johnnie Dixon, who made the biggest play to date of his Ohio State career when he scored on a 59-yard catch-and-run touchdown – a play that made him feel blessed after being set back by knee injuries for the past three years.
"The first thing I do when I score is try to drop down to a knee and praise the Lord, because it’s just amazing that He’s gave me the opportunity to do this," Dixon said.
Johnnie Dixon dropped to a knee after scoring his 59-yard touchdown against Indiana.
Dixon acknowledged that scoring was a "great feeling," but he also expressed a desire to have more big moments for the Buckeyes going forward.
"I still feel like I have a long way to go," Dixon said. "Being back, it kind of gives you the jitters at first, you know. So I mean, I’m just looking to get better."
