Oct. 18, 2014
COLUMBUS, OHIO - If there's one thing Rutgers learned today about life in the Big Ten it's the need for a short memory.
No. 13-ranked Ohio State, a team predicted by many as a preseason national championship contender before losing quarterback Braxton Miller, showed exactly why the early hype was warranted in a 56-17 victory over the Scarlet Knights today before a crowd of 106,795 at Ohio Stadium.
Rutgers, coming off the school's first-ever Big Ten victory (over Michigan), has to quickly put the loss in its rearview mirror with a game at Nebraska next Saturday.
But the recurring image of Buckeyes redshirt freshman quarterback J.T. Barrett will be a tough one to shake.
Barrett, the fill-in for the injured Braxton, passed for 261 yards and three touchdowns and rushed for 107 and two scores as Ohio State improved to 5-1 overall and 2-0 in the Big Ten. It was Ohio State's 18th straight conference victory.
Rutgers (5-2 overall, 1-2 Big Ten) struggled all game to keep Barrett and the Buckeyes' explosive offensive in check, with Ohio State scoring 50 points or more for the fourth straight game.
Running back Desmon Peoples provided one of the few bright spots on offense for the Scarlet Knights, matching his career high with 83 rushing yards and the first two touchdowns of his career. Peoples' second touchdown run was a 12-yard dash with 14:54 to play.
In addition, wide receiver Leonte Carroo had five catches for 100 yards, the junior's third 100-yard receiving game of the season and fifth of his career. It was highlighted by a 40-yard catch in which Carroo wrested the ball away from Ohio State cornerback Gareon Conley.
But Barrett was simply too much, helping the Buckeyes to a 49-7 lead late in the third quarter, highlighted by his 33-yard touchdown scramble early in the third quarter, before Rutgers showed a spark of offensive life with 10 points the rest of the way.
The 6-1, 225-pound Barrett was impressive right from the outset, too, with his first-half performance and two costly turnovers first-half turnovers proving to be Rutgers' undoing early on in the program's first-ever Big Ten road game.
Barrett, in a near-flawless opening 30 minutes, hurt the Scarlet Knights with both his arm and legs as Ohio State raced out to a 35-7 halftime lead.
He connected on his first nine passes, finishing the first half 11-of-14 for 147 yards and two touchdowns, and also rushed for 50 yards in the half on four carries. As a team, Rutgers rushed for just 34 yards in the opening half.
Barrett was on point from the first possession, too, leading the Buckeyes to touchdowns the first three times they had the ball, with drives covering 52, 74 and 67 yards. Rutgers' only answer then, after Ohio State opened a quick 14-0 first quarter lead, was a neatly-engineered 66-yard touchdown drive by quarterback Gary Nova.
Though Peoples was the workhorse during Rutgers' touchdown drive, rushing for 34 of those 66 yards, Nova kept the drive going with a scramble on third and four by running for a first down. Peoples eventually finished the drive with a one-yard run - his first career touchdown - to make it 14-7 after the first quarter.
From there, the Scarlet Knights simply couldn't keep pace, and those two turnovers proved costly in that regard.
With Rutgers backed up at its 10 yard line in a 21-7 game, Nova threw a swing pass to Janarion Grant, who was immediately sandwiched by Ohio State defenders Rashad Frazier and Darron Lee, with Lee forcing the ball loose.
Cornerback Eli Apple scooped up the fumble at the four yard line and ran the short distance for a touchdown and a 28-7 Ohio State lead.
It grew to 35-7 before Rutgers showed a spark of offensive life again, moving from its 11 yard line to the Ohio State five yard line for a third and two play with 16 seconds left before halftime.
But Nova's fade to Leonte Carroo in the corner of the end zone was intercepted by Ohio State cornerback Doran Grant.
Nova finished the game - in front of the largest crowd ever to watch Rutgers play - 17-of-28 for 192 yards. He had that one interception and no touchdown passes.
