History is a funny thing. It often gives irrational hope to some and anxiety to others. With a trip to West Lafayette on the schedule, memories of the five upsets since the turn of the millennium hung in the minds of the Buckeyes’ faithful. Needless to say, the 2023 edition of Ohio State at Purdue did not yield the same results as it did in 2018.
In every phase of the game, Ohio State dominated Purdue. The Buckeyes out-gained the Boilermakers, forced more turnovers, and even played better on special teams. With three offensive playmakers sitting out due to injury, Ryan Day‘s offense had to rely on those few healthy pieces to get by.
As the clock struck 0:00, the Buckeyes owned a 41-7 lead, securing their biggest win over the Boilermakers since 2013.
Ohio State Easily Dispatches Purdue, 41-7
A Well-Oiled Machine
As a nearly three-touchdown favorite, the expectation was that Ohio State’s offense was going to score and the defense was going to suffocate. By all intents and purposes, that’s what happened.
Kyle McCord likely had one of the best games of his short Buckeye career. He finished with 276 yards and three touchdowns. From the onset, McCord was looking to uncork it and find Marvin Harrison, Jr., down the field. With the absence of Emeka Egbuka, someone had to step up. Harrison led all receivers with 107 yards and a score off of just six catches. He continues to play at an NFL level. Harrison added to his demo reel with an incredible one-handed catch with a defender in his face on the first drive.
Ohio State was missing two of its top two running backs. After six runs for 28 yards, Chip Trayanum went down with an injury. Enter Dallan Hayden. Hayden had a big game against Maryland last year and was a serviceable back otherwise. He was given the opportunity to carry the team and he responded. Hayden led the way with 11 rushes for 76 yards and a touchdown.
Overall, Ohio State’s offense looked as good as it has all year. Cade Stover turned in another solid effort at tight end. True freshmen Carnell Tate and Brandon Inniss had career days with the latter notching his first career catch which resulted in a 58-yard touchdown. Tate hauled in a trio of passes for 79 yards and was essential to the Buckeyes’ second second-half scoring drive with back-to-back explosive plays.
Injury Bug Keeps Biting
Coming into this one, Ohio State was missing Egbuka, Miyan Williams, and TreVeyon Henderson. Through five games, this trio accounted for 803 total yards and 10 touchdowns. Just these three have garnered 37% of the team’s offensive productivity heading into this week. The injuries would continue to add up.
On offense, Ohio State lost Trayanum to what appeared to be a head injury/concussion. He took a hit in the second quarter, got up wobbly, and had his helmet confiscated. Considering how banged up the running back room was heading into this game, losing another potential starter took a toll. Hayden, as previously detailed, stepped up in their absence. Fortunately, Trayanum was the only injury of note on offense.
Defensively, Denzel Burke was having a solid game. On the stat sheet, he only recorded three tackles with a pass breakup. His presence was felt off of the box score, however. That lone pass deflection came on a pass in the end zone where he broke late on an open receiver and perfectly timed his hand placement. Burke had been having a much better junior campaign than he did in 2022. He has developed into a true leader on defense and has seen his NFL stock rise. Burke’s injury occurred in the third quarter off of a massive Purdue play where his legs got tangled up.
Ohio State needs both of these players healthy for next week’s clash with Penn State.
Bending But Not Breaking
Perhaps the biggest strength for Ohio State against Purdue was its defense. After allowing just seven points, Ohio State joins its Big Ten East bretheren in the sub-10 points per game allowed club.
On one hand, 41-7 did not feel like it fully details how lopsided this game was. On the other, it doesn’t show how well Purdue was able to move the ball. Boilermaker running back Devin Mockobee slashed the defense to the tune of 110 yards off of 18 carries. However, they only allowed one score. Purdue built drives of nine, 10, 10, and 10 but couldn’t capitalize. The Boilermakers missed three field goals and turned it over on downs. Some of it is luck but some of it is the defense coming in clutch when needed.
Jaylahn Tuimoloau and Jack Sawyer finally had the game that many expect from them weekly. The talented duo combined for five tackles and three sacks, often meeting up where the quarterback was positioned.
The defensive line as a whole starred in this one. Tyleik Williams continued his strong 2023 campaign with three tackles, two tackles for loss, and two pass breakups from his defensive tackle position. As with many defensive tackles, his impact on the game goes beyond the box score.
Despite those handfuls of long drives, Ohio State actually held Purdue to fewer yards than it allows on average. Heading into this game, the Buckeyes allowed just under 265 yards per game and Purdue managed 257. At the same time, the Boilermakers were averaging 390 yards per game on offense.
Red Zone Wrinkles
What kind of odds would one get if they wanted to place a bet that Devin Brown would score a touchdown in a competitive game? Well, Ohio State decided to try something new against Purdue and Brown came in for a handful of red zone snaps.
In true wild cat fashion, he was primarily utilized as a runner which resulted in a score. He might have had two scores if not for a fumble on a leaping attempt to score a second time. Brown is unequivocally a better athlete than McCord and provides a completely different profile. Day brought Brown in for five plays in the first half where Brown managed 17 yards off of three runs, an ugly incomplete pass, and a fumble into the end zone.
Perhaps Day was trying new ideas out to iron out the wrinkles before Penn State. Perhaps he was playing to the weather and did not want to make the same mistakes as last year’s ugly win at Northwestern. Either way, utilizing Brown in the red zone adds another headache for defenses. Could Ohio State have a package with both McCord and Brown? Only time will tell.
The Best Thing About Being 6-0…
While Ohio State’s win over Purdue was not the most dominant in recent memory, it was as decisive as they needed. In the era of style points and not having mercy for bottom-dwelling conference foes, Ohio State was able to put away Purdue without so much as a bead of sweat.
Now, the second massive test of the year looms. Penn State travels to Columbus and will be looking for its first win over Ohio State since 2016. Despite the claim that the Nittany Lions are unrivaled, this matchup has felt like a true rivalry game over the past couple of decades. The winner of this game will be in the driver’s seat to represent the Big Ten East in Indianapolis.
