The Buckeyes took care of business against the Wildcats at Wrigley Field.
While it was technically a road game for Ohio State, the Buckeyes played in front of a sea of red at the friendly confines of Wrigley Field on Saturday, defeating Northwestern 31-7 to set up a top-five matchup next weekend against Indiana with a spot in the Big Ten title game on the line. Ryan Day’s team did not play its most impressive game of the year by any stretch, but they did more than enough against an overmatched opponent as they move to 9-1 on the season.
Here is the good, the bad and the ugly from Ohio State’s victory over Northwestern.
The Good
Carnell Tate
A huge story coming into this game was Carnell Tate’s return to his hometown. The Ohio State wide receiver has been through a lot, including the murder of his mother in July 2023, which took place in Chicago. Going into this matchup at Wrigley Field, Ryan Day spoke about how much it meant for the sophomore to play in this game in front of friends and family, especially with the tremendous loss he suffered in that city.
“I want to win this game personally for him,” Day said. “I know this team respects the fact that he’s going home – and it means a lot to him. He’s not a guy who speaks a lot or says a lot or tries to bring a lot of attention to himself. He’s a team player. I know the team loves who he is. I know Buckeye Nation appreciates him.”
Sports have a way of making feel-good moments out of even the biggest of tragedies, and it was that kind of day for Tate. The second-year man scored a pair of touchdowns on Saturday, including an impressive diving catch in the end zone at the end of the first half. Tate finished with four receptions for 52 yards and the two scores in what was surely an emotional day for the young wide receiver.
Caleb Downs
When Ohio State landed Caleb Downs out of the transfer portal this offseason, it knew it was getting one of the sport’s premiere defenders. Statistically it has been a bit of a quiet year for the safety, who coming into the afternoon was tied for third on the team in total tackles and second in tackles for loss with no takeaways. That being said, the box score, while still impressive, doesn’t quite match the level of play we have seen from the former SEC Freshman of the Year.
At least once a game, Downs reminds us of how impressive a player he truly is. Against Northwestern, it was an open-field tackle against tight end Marshall Lang, coming downfield in space and blowing up the 6-foot-4 ballcarrier for a loss of a yard. We have seen on a number of occasions the tackling prowess of Downs, but when those flash plays pop up he really jumps off the screen. This Buckeyes defense would be nowhere near as good without the versatility and skillset of Caleb Downs.
C.J. “Put Me on the Edge” Hicks
It has been a difficult season for C.J. Hicks. The former five-star linebacker has gotten more than a fair share of opportunities to play significant snaps for the Buckeyes this year, but has not been able to perform when thrust into action. Following Ohio State’s win over Purdue last weekend, Hicks voiced his frustrations with the way he has been utilized thus far, telling THE Podcast’s Austin Ward, “They need to put me on the f***ing edge.”
Well, we saw Hicks play a little off the edge against the Wildcats, and it resulted in the junior being in on a pair of sacks, officially being credited with half a sack and half a tackle for loss on the stat sheet. Hicks got into the backfield in a hurry, and looked like a natural fit rushing the quarterback each time he was put in that position. With Ohio State having struggled to generate consistent pressure this season, it is strange that Jim Knowles hasn’t looked to Hicks more often — especially on obvious passing downs.
It is clear that Hicks is much better suited as a pass-rusher rather than a traditional linebacker, and hopefully we get to see the former blue-chipper unleashed more from that spot as Ohio State enters its toughest games.
Take Me Out to the Ballgame
There was much consternation heading into this game about the field conditions at Wrigley Field. While it is a very cool venue and added a little bit of mystique to an otherwise expectedly lopsided game, the poor locker room situation and dangerously close walls in the end zone gave fans a bit of concern about player safety. Luckily, both teams seemed to avoid any issues related to the makeshift football stadium.
I thought it was a nice touch that the crowd sang, “Take Me Out to the Ballgame,” as is customarily done during the seventh-inning stretch at Chicago Cubs games, in the break between the third and fourth quarters. It was a fun little addition to the fan fare of the afternoon.
The Bad
Sluggish Starts
Ohio State has made a bit of a habit of getting off to slow starts under Ryan Day, but especially so as of late. The Buckeyes trailed 10-0 against Penn Sate to start the game, and have not scored more than seven points in the first quarter against Nebraska, Purdue or Northwestern, with Saturday’s opening period against the Wildcats ending 0-0 before Ohio State fell behind 7-0 to begin the second quarter.
The Buckeyes overcame the sluggish open with touchdowns on four-straight drives, and would go on to score 31 unanswered points, but they would obviously like to avoid wasting an entire quarter of play to open games — especially with the opposition about to get a lot tougher. Whether it’s been the noon start times, poor coaching or a lack of intensity, Ohio State cannot afford to dig themselves an early hole against teams like Indiana, Michigan or potential College Football Playoff opponents.
Kick Returns
Stop me if you’ve heard this before, but Ohio State has had a bit of an issue on special teams. For what its worth, the Buckeyes have now blocked punts in two consecutive games, so it hasn’t all been bad like it was in year’s past. However, Ohio State’s kick returns — and the decision to attempt them — have been pretty bad.
It was odd enough that TreVeyon Henderson was returning kickoffs against Northwestern, putting an oft-injured running back in an even more dangerous spot, but opting to attempt to return the kick rather than starting at the 25-yard line on a fair catch put the Buckeyes in poor starting position twice. Henderson fielded a kick at the 4-yard line to begin the second quarter and only got it out the 15-yard line, and later returned the second half kickoff from the 10-yard line to the 20, but a holding call moved it back to the 10-yard line.
Just take the fair catch.
Risking Injury
One of the staples of the Ryan Day era has been starters remaining in games for too long. On far too many occasions Ohio State enters the fourth quarter with a hefty lead, but opts to keep the starting offense on the field anyway. While it hasn’t cost the Buckeyes yet this season, there is no reason for guys like Jeremiah Smith — who was banged up earlier in the game — to be playing in the fourth quarter of a 31-7 game.
On top of risking injuries to key players with a massive matchup coming up next weekend, you are wasting valuable reps for the guys who are going to be starters for your team next season. The Buckeyes should be getting as many snaps as possible for guys like Julian Sayin, who is likely going to be your QB1 when you open the 2025 campaign against Texas.
The Ugly
Long Conversions
As a whole, it was a pretty solid day for Ohio State’s defense. The Silver Bullets allowed only seven points in the game, and they were about as good as you could ask in the second half with just 84 total yards allowed and zero points. Ohio State held Northwestern to 50 yards rushing, recorded four sacks and forced a turnover. On paper, the Buckeyes did what they were supposed to do against an offense that has not covered itself in glory this season, and have now allowed one offensive touchdown over their last three games combined.
However, the most frustrating part of the afternoon was the amount of long conversions Ohio State allowed. The Buckeyes’ defense struggled to get off the field on some key downs, and while the Wildcats converted on only 6-of-16 third down attempts overall, Knowles’ group allowed them to move the chains on a 3rd-and-12, two 3rd-and-10s and a 4th-and-8. Perhaps the most egregious was the 3rd-and-12 on Northwestern’s opening drive, where David Braun’s group ran a draw play, seemingly content with a punt, but picked up the first down anyway.
Against better teams, Ohio State has to be able to get off the field on 3rd-and-long. Doing all the work to get it to third down only to let up a big chunk play and extend drives can be killer for both momentum and the game clock, as teams have really looked to bleed time and keep the Buckeyes’ offense off the field.