Ohio State spent the first half against Kent State answering one of the biggest questions hanging over its passing game, and the answer was mixed at best.
Yes, Julian Sayin kept feeding Jeremiah Smith, because that part of the operation is already humming. Smith entered the game with 28 targets, 16 more than anyone else, and he picked up six more in the first half.
He also checked off a milestone quickly in the first quarter, leaving the weekend as the program’s new all-time leader in receiving yards. The catches and touchdowns records are still out there, and the source of the article expects those to fall later this season.
But the real issue was never whether Sayin could find Smith. The concern was whether he could build the same kind of rhythm with everyone else, and three straight first-half dropbacks showed that piece is still under construction.
The sequence started after Riley Pettijohn grabbed his first career interception and gave Ohio State the ball at the Kent State 13-yard line. It should have been a gift-wrapped chance to make it 35-0.
Instead, Sayin missed Bennett Christian on a check-and-release on first down, overthrowing the tight end slightly. After Ja’Kobi Jackson picked up 5 yards on second down to get the offense back on track, Sayin and Brock Boyd were not on the same page, and the drive headed toward fourth down.
Ohio State kept the offense on the field and gave Sayin another shot to cash in from the red zone. That chance went nowhere too. He took a coverage sack even though the offensive line handled the blitz, failing to step up in the pocket while Brandon Inniss sat open in the back of the end zone, practically begging for the throw.
So instead of turning ideal field position into points, the Buckeyes walked away empty.
That was the kind of sequence that mattered more than the easy completions to Smith. The first-half goal was to make Sayin as comfortable as possible with the rest of the receiving group, and that part still needs work.
There were good moments mixed in. Inniss got the first two targets of the day and finished the first half by hauling in a 49-yard Hail Mary to send Ohio State into the break up 35-0.
Devin McCuin caught two passes for 29 yards before moving to a stationary bike for the rest of the half. Nate Roberts scored the first touchdown of his career.
Boyd and Phillip Bell each added a catch.
Still, the passing game wasn’t clean for long stretches. Sayin opened by hitting his first 11 throws, then finished the half by connecting on only three of his final six.
That’s the heart of the problem for Ohio State right now. The offense is supposed to be built around the passing game, and the passing game is supposed to be the team’s best weapon in 2026. But at the moment, it’s mostly the Sayin-Smith connection carrying the load.
As the Texas loss showed, that alone is not enough.
If the Buckeyes want this offense to reach its ceiling, they have to turn that two-man act into something bigger. The pieces were there against Kent State. The chemistry just wasn’t fully there yet.
In Other News...
Ohio States Easy Win Couldnt Quiet One Big Concern
Ohio State handled Kent State 59-3 and put the game away early, taking a 35-0 lead into halftime and never letting the outcome feel in doubt. The Buckeyes still found enough balance to lean on the run, finishing with 145 rushing yards on 38 attempts, with Bo Jackson leading the way with 73 yards and a touchdown.
Even in a blowout, though, the ground game remains a point worth watching. Ohio States rushing offense is still inconsistent overall, sitting 79th nationally at just under 159 yards per game, and that leaves a gap between what this roster can be and what it has shown so far. The schedule will get less forgiving from here, and the Buckeyes will need more than a comfortable win to answer that concern. [Read more 🡒]
Ohio State Just Got A Clear Warning About Illinois Saturday
Illinois followed its loss to Duke with a much cleaner performance against Southern Illinois, and the part that should have Ohio State paying attention is how much more settled the Illini looked at the line of scrimmage. The offensive line showed progress, the run defense was sturdier, and the overall operation came across as a team that had already made some useful corrections before the matchup in Columbus.
Katin Houser also gave Illinois a steadier passing game by spreading the ball around, which matters because it hints at a more functional offense than the one that stumbled a week earlier. The defense, meanwhile, flashed enough improvement against the run to suggest this is not a team the Buckeyes can afford to overlook, even if the bigger question still hangs over whether those adjustments travel against a much faster and more talented opponent. [Read more 🡒]
Ohio State Fans Got A Big Noon Reminder Nobody Wanted
A rout should have sounded like a showcase, but Ohio States 59-3 win over Kent State came with a broadcast that drew as much attention as the score. FOX Sports announcer Gus Johnson delivered the game in a flat, muted tone, and he also made a factual mistake while discussing a players touchdown history, a rough combination in a matchup that was already struggling to hold viewers attention.
The bigger issue is one college football keeps circling back to every fall: games like this are increasingly hard to sell, even for a blueblood with a massive fan base. Ohio State can only do so much when the opponent is overmatched, and the broadcast only amplified the sense that fans, and maybe networks, would rather see a more competitive nonconference slate than another predictable Saturday afternoon tune-up. [Read more 🡒]