The 2022 Rose Bowl<\/a> was one of the most dramatic games of the season, ending in a 48-45 win for Ohio State over Utah.<\/p>\n This was the first-ever Rose Bowl appearance for Utah, as the hopes of their first win in the game fell apart in the fourth quarter.<\/p>\n Meanwhile, Ohio State extended their Rose Bowl winning streak to four, a streak that goes back to 1997.<\/p>\n Utah started swinging, scoring on a Britain Covey<\/a><\/strong> touchdown reception and a Micah Bernard<\/a><\/strong> reception. The first quarter was all Utah, as Ohio State didn’t even have a first down until 1:23 remained in the quarter.<\/p>\n Ohio State scored to open the second quarter of the 2022 Rose Bowl, getting on the board with the first career touchdown for Marvin Harrison Jr<\/a>.<\/strong><\/p>\n The middle of the second quarter saw a deluge of touchdowns from both teams. In less than four minutes of gameplay, Utah scored two rushing touchdowns, C.J. Stroud<\/strong><\/a> had two 50-yard plays to\u00a0Jaxon Smith-Njigba<\/strong><\/a>, <\/strong>and Covey scored on a kick return.<\/p>\n The halftime score was 35-21, favoring the underdog Utes.<\/p>\n Ohio State figured out what they were doing on defense, and kept the Utes to only 10 points in the second half.<\/p>\n Stroud had three more touchdown passes in the second half, and Ohio State took their first lead of the game late in the fourth quarter.<\/p>\n Utah wasn’t done, even with starting quarterback Cam Rising<\/a><\/strong> out for the game with an injury. Bryson Barnes<\/strong> came in and threw a touchdown pass to get the Utes level once again.<\/p>\n That left Stroud with 1:47 to try and get one more score.\u00a0Emeka Egbuka<\/a><\/strong> helped with a generous kick return, and the Buckeyes got it down inside the five-yard line.\u00a0Noah Ruggles<\/strong><\/a> made the short kick, and Ohio State took the lead with nine seconds left.<\/p>\n That was enough to cement Ohio State’s improbable 48-45 win. After an up-and-down game, the Buckeyes were crowned Champions of the 2021 Rose Bowl.<\/p>\n Ohio State lost two games to rush-heavy teams already this season, and they found that the formula worked for them as well.<\/p>\n In the first half, Utah rushed for 6.6 yards per attempt against the worn-out Ohio State front. Utah dominated on the line of scrimmage, and Ute ball carriers broke tackles with ease.<\/p>\n But their rushing attack died in the second half. Ohio State made the defensive adjustments and stifled the Utes’ offense.<\/p>\n The Buckeyes held Utah to only 60 rushing yards on 19 attempts in the second half, averaging only three yards a carry.<\/p>\n Rising left the game in the fourth quarter, so Utah brought in Barnes, even though Barnes had never attempted a pass in college. With Barnes in the game, Ohio State knew runs were coming, and they stuffed the box and stopped the rush.<\/p>\n The Buckeyes were missing a lot of contributors on defense, which is part of why they were vulnerable.\u00a0Cade Stover<\/a><\/strong> moved over from tight end to play linebacker, and he was one of the standout players of the game. Taron Vincent<\/a><\/strong> and Tommy Eichenberg<\/a> <\/strong>were other players who had not had the majority of snaps throughout the year but helped turn the game around for the Buckeyes.<\/p>\n Just about the only thing going right for Ohio State was the Stroud-Smith-Njigba connection.<\/p>\n The two connected for 15 receptions, 347 yards, and three touchdowns.<\/p>\n Stroud became the first Ohio State quarterback to pass for 500 yards in a single game, and Smith-Njigba became the first Ohio State receiver to post 300 receiving yards in a single game.<\/p>\n For Smith-Njigba, that was the best game ever played by an Ohio State receiver in the history of the program.<\/p>\n He passed David Boston<\/strong> for the most receiving yards in a single season at Ohio State history. The record was 1,435, which was set by Boston in 1998. Smith-Njigba set the Rose Bowl record for receiving yards, passing Keyshawn Johnson<\/strong>.<\/p>\n Smith-Njigba also passed Terry Glenn<\/strong> for the most receiving yards in a single game in school history. Paris Campbell’s single-season receptions record also broke under Smith-Njigba’s dominating performance.<\/p>\n The final stat line for Smith-Njigba in 2021 was 95 receptions, 1,606 yards, and nine touchdowns.<\/p>\n His performance in the game merited the 2022 Rose Bowl MVP award.<\/p>\n Stroud became the second player in Ohio State history to pass for 4,000 yards, behind only Dwayne Haskins<\/strong>. Haskins not only holds the record for passing touchdowns at Ohio State but in the Big Ten as well. Stroud passed Justin Fields<\/strong> for second place on both the conference list and the Ohio State list.<\/p>\n Stroud ended the game going 37 of 46, for 573 yards and six touchdowns.<\/p>\nThe Utah Running Game<\/h3>\n
Buckeyes Setting Records<\/h3>\n