Despite a win, Ohio State had an unexpectedly turbulent first half for the second straight week Saturday night against Michigan State.
Jonathan Smith recognized as much in searching for positives following Ohio State's 38-7 victory over Michigan State in East Lansing to open conference play for the Buckeyes. Smith went out of his way to emphasize several times in his post-game press conference that he felt his team did not appear or feel overwhelmed on many snaps during the game.
However, the Spartans' head coach also offered a critique of MSU's mistakes and shortcomings while crediting Ohio State for capitalizing. Smith specifically pointed out the first drive of the game for Michigan State's offense than ended in a turnover on downs, as well as a dropped interception later, multiple fumbles and a 27-yard punt before the end of the first half.
“Credit to Ohio State. That is a Good Football Team, well coached. in the first half, we did not help ourselves. self-inflicted.”
Smith admitted that the margin of victory indicated the game really did not seem close despite his insistence that MSU avoided looking overmatched. After going into the locker room down 24-7, he believed a strong effort that included winning on points in the third quarter would have put the Spartans in a position to make the game competitive again in the fourth. Instead, Ohio State scored two more touchdowns and shut out the hosts for the rest of the evening to the tune of four MSU punts and an interception across the final 30 minutes of the game.
“Credit to OSU, 38-7 isn't that close. looking at each snap, we were not overwhelmed.... i did think the effort was there.... differences are that they made plays, taking care of the ball. i do think both teams played pretty hard.”
Michigan State's head coach specifically credited the Buckeyes' defensive front for making life difficult for the Spartans on offense. Ohio State finished the evening with four sacks, three turnovers and allowed only 65 total yards of offense in the second half. The Spartans averaged only 1.9 yards per carry as a team on the ground, while dual-threat quarterback Aidan Chiles concluded the night with -9 rushing yards on six attempts.
“Without Total Studying it, (OL Rakeem Johnson and OL Rustin Young) I felt like they were not completely overwhelmed and (QB aidan chiles) had time.... they (OSU) got a good front there, you got to choose between pressure with one-on-ones. we had the mentality to make them earn it.”
