Ohio State wanted Saturday to be about more than Jeremiah Smith, and for stretches against Maryland, the Buckeyes made that point clear.
Smith did not see his first target until Ohio State had run 10 plays and nearly seven minutes had come off the clock. When it finally came, he turned it into a 33-yard touchdown to open the scoring.
His next touch didn’t arrive until the middle of the second quarter, when he caught a bubble screen and raced 40 yards for another score. It was the kind of play that made the whole thing look easy, because with Smith, it often does.
There was some method to the way Ohio State handled it. Maryland deserved credit, too, for doing a decent job limiting Smith down the field. But the moment the ball got into his hands, he still looked like a player operating on another level.
That left Julian Sayin with plenty of other work to do, and his afternoon ended up being uneven. The performance was solid, at best.
Two moments defined the day for Sayin: the fumble and the interception. The interception that was returned for a touchdown did not look like a Sayin issue. The protection broke down, and the play took an unfortunate bounce.
The fumble, though, is a different conversation. Sayin has been pushed this season to use his legs more and extend plays, and he has made progress there.
This was the next step in that process. When he was moving around in the pocket, he needed more awareness of what was trailing behind him.
It was the kind of mistake he can learn from, especially while trying to do more on the run.
Another clear issue was the connection with the rest of the receiver group. Sayin did not seem to have much rhythm with anyone besides Smith.
Ohio State finished with only three catches by non-Smith wide receivers for 68 yards. Chris Henry Jr. had a 46-yard catch, but even that play felt a little out of sync between quarterback and receiver.
The cleanest big play of the game came on the 68-yard touchdown to tight end Nate Roberts. That one owed a lot to scheme. Sayin handled the play-action look well and put a strong throw right over the middle, and Roberts did the rest.
In Other News...
Ohio State Just Got Snubbed Before A Huge Top 10 Road Test
Ohio States trip to Indiana was shaping up as one of the weekends biggest showcases, but College GameDay is heading somewhere else. Instead of Bloomington, the pregame crew will set up for BYU and Notre Dame in Provo, a top-10 matchup that also carries plenty of national appeal and gives the show another marquee stage.
For the Buckeyes, the snub is notable because this was the kind of road test that usually brings extra attention, especially with a top-10 opponent waiting and a chance to make a statement away from home. Ohio State fans may not get another GameDay appearance this season, so this one feels like a missed opportunity even before the Buckeyes take the field. [Read more 🡒]
Marvin Harrison Jr. Just Landed In A Familiar NFL Situation
Marvin Harrison Jr.s NFL path has taken another sharp turn, this time landing him in Houston after the Cardinals agreed to send the former Ohio State standout and a future seventh-round pick to the Texans for a 2027 second- and sixth-rounder. The move is expected to become official once Harrison passes a physical, and it sets up a familiar reunion for one of the Buckeyes biggest recent stars.
Harrison will be back with C.J. Stroud, the quarterback who helped make him such a feared weapon in college before both became first-round NFL names. For Ohio State fans, it is the kind of pairing that feels instantly recognizable, even if the pro version has taken some unexpected stops to get there. [Read more 🡒]
Ohio States Latest Blowout Drew Telling Praise From Marylands Coach
Marylands trip to Ohio Stadium ended in another lopsided loss for Mike Locksleys group, and the box score only underscored how comfortably Ohio State controlled the afternoon. The Buckeyes rolled to a 45-16 victory while the Terrapins managed just 146 total yards, a gap that reflected both the talent difference and how thoroughly Ohio State dictated the game from start to finish.
Locksley came away with little choice but to credit the Buckeyes, who piled up 449 yards and kept Maryland from finding much rhythm at all. He pointed to the Terps inability to make key plays and their problems in man-to-man coverage as part of what made the day so difficult, another reminder of how steep the challenge remains when Maryland lines up against Ohio State. [Read more 🡒]