How Jeremiah Smith led Ohio State Buckeyes past Purdue Boilermakers 34-10

Facing a struggling two-win Purdue Boilermakers team, and being without star wide receiver Carnell Tate, the gameplan for the Ohio State Buckeyes would be simple.

The offense wanted to sustain drives with a balanced running game, and get the ball to the best player in college football, Jeremiah Smith, when they needed a splash. They did excatly that, getting Smith a career-high 10 catches for 137 yards as the Buckeyes won 34-10

After both sides traded punts on their first drives, it was the Boilermakers striking first and taking the early lead.

The Ohio State secondary had a difficult time slowing down Ryan Browne and the Purdue passing game. Browne found Rico Walker for a 30-yard pickup, and Purdue kept marching across midfield with short, but productive, passes.

The Buckeyes’ defense, which is full of potential award winners, eventually forced a stop, but Spencer Porath drilled a 40-yard field goal for a 3-0 lead.

Now it was the Buckeyes’ chance to respond. Jeremiah Smith hauled in three passes on the drive, though one wasn’t needed due to a penalty on Purdue. Smith had 47 yards on the drive, including a 33-yard pickup that set up first-and-goal right as the first quarter ended.

Ohio State’s powerback, C.J. Donaldson, closed out the drive with a 1-yard touchdown to give the Buckeyes a 7-3 lead.

Once the Buckeyes’ offense got the ball back, they really started clicking. Hard running from Isaiah West and Bo Jackson set up a few quick passes to Smith. Then Julian Sayin ran a play action, firing it deep over the middle where Smith was in the endzone, ready to haul in the 35-yard touchdown.

Smith was now already over 100 yards halfway through the second quarter.

On Purdue’s next drive, Browne tried to fit a pass into a tight window, but it was knocked into the air. Jermaine Matthews Jr. snatched it out of the air for the pick, then added a 23-yard return.

That set up a run-heavy Ohio State drive, where West, Donaldson, Jackson and James Peoples all had carries as they tried to chew the clock. The drive ended with Lincoln Kienholz punching in a 3-yard rushing touchdown with 1:12 left in the half.

The Buckeyes weren’t done for the half though. The defense made a quick stop, and the offense was able to run a one minute drill. Sayin went 4/5 on the drive for 35 yards, with a 10-yard scramble, to get the Buckeyes in field goal range. Jayden Fielding hit a career long 49-yard field goal to make the score 24-3 at the end of the half.

Coming out of the break, Ohio State went on the move again thanks to a balanced effort from Sayin and the run game. The Buckeyes moved inside the 10, but soon faced a third-and-goal.

Sayin made a rare mistake. He rolled out right, but tried to throw across his body to the middle of the endzone. The pass went straight to Purdue’s CJ Nunnally for Sayin’s fourth interception of the year, and his first since week three.

The defense forced another Purdue punt, and a short third quarter ended as the Buckeyes began marching once again.

Another 20-yard pickup from Smith, plus one from Mylan Graham moved the offense downfield, and West broke off a 14-yard run to put them in the red zone. From there, the offense struggled. They would have to settle for a 45-yard field goal from Fielding.

Ohio State’s defense and running game controlled the remainder of the fourth quarter. Donaldson added his second touchdown of the day on a 1-yard run.

Purdue did get one final laugh against the Buckeyes’ backups. Malachi Singleton tossed a touchdown to Jesse Watson within the final two minutes, capitalizing on some Buckeye penalties.

The offense drained the clock out after that, coming away with a 34-10 victory over the Boilermakers.

Sayin finished the game 27/33 for 303 yards with a touchdown and a pick. Smith caught 10 passes for 137 yards and a score. Jackson had 75 rushing yards, West had 60 and Donaldson had two touchdowns.

Ohio State will play UCLA next week with a 7:30 p.m. kickoff time.