Ohio State Offense Dominates Youngstown State
The No. 5 Ohio State Buckeyes held off the Youngstown State Penguins 35-7 at Ohio Stadium on Saturday in a game that had plenty of good.
Aside from remaining undefeated through the first two games of the season, the Buckeyes answered a lot of questions from their opener against Indiana.
To start, junior quarterback Kyle McCord was phenomenal.
The man from Mount Laurel, New Jersey fielded a lot of flack after coming out shaky against the Hoosiers in his first start of the year. The negative feedback seems to have stuck with McCord however, as he fixed most of what fans said was wrong from Bloomington.
McCord looked more settled into his role as the lead gunslinger for the Buckeyes and remained calm whenever the Penguins tried to pressure him. At the end of the game, McCord had thrown for 258 yards and three touchdowns, two of which were to junior receiver Marvin Harrison Jr.
Speaking of the veteran pass-catcher, Harrison Jr.’s touchdown connection with McCord early in the opening quarter was the first score of the season after going without one on two receptions in Indiana last weekend. Harrison Jr. did not play as much in the second half, having recorded both touchdowns and a majority of his 160 yards in the first pair of quarters.
Junior receiver Emeka Egbuka also scored a touchdown off a pass from McCord, along with 94 passing yards on five receptions.
Junior running back TreVeyon Henderson also got in on the action. While only rushing for 56 yards, Henderson’s two touchdowns on the ground alleviated pressure from the receivers, allowing both groups to play pressure-free football.
All-in-all, this was a game Ohio State and their fans needed following a less-than-optimal start on the road. However, the biggest tests for the Buckeyes are still down the road.
Time will tell which of the first two performances is a true showcase of Ohio State’s season potential.