Ohio State’s 42-19 win over Illinois was good enough to keep the Illibuck Trophy in Columbus, but it never felt as clean as the final margin suggests.
The Buckeyes handled business at home in their conference opener, yet Illinois spent long stretches making the afternoon messier than Ohio State probably wanted. The Illini even won the third quarter, which says plenty about how this one looked for most of the day.
The biggest problem for Ohio State was on the defensive side, where the run defense never really settled in. Illinois didn’t need anything fancy.
The Illini kept finding room, especially by working to the edges and getting into the second level of the defense. Ca’lil Valentine opened the day with a nine-yard run on Illinois’ first carry, Aidan Laughery ripped off 37 yards on the next possession, and Jordan Anderson later scored on a 22-yard run.
That pattern held after halftime, too. The first play of the second half went for another nine yards, and Illinois added an 11-yard run on its second drive after Ohio State had pushed the Illini back near their own goal line.
By the end of the day, Illinois had piled up 199 rushing yards. Laughery led the way with 113 yards and a 10.3-yard average per carry. Valentine averaged 4.7 yards per attempt, while Anderson averaged 10 yards on just two carries.
Ohio State also had trouble getting off the field on third down. Illinois converted 6 of 14 chances, good for 43 percent, and the Buckeyes even gave up a fourth-and-12 conversion. Devin Sanchez was flagged multiple times for pass interference, including one on a fourth-and-4 before Illinois scored a touchdown on the very next snap.
It was the kind of defensive day that made 19 points feel like a relatively modest return for Illinois. Even with the win, Ohio State’s defense did not look like the unit fans have come to expect over the last couple of seasons.
Jermaine Mathews Jr. had a quieter day overall, but two plays jumped out. He dropped an interception on Illinois’ first drive of the second half, and later slipped on a play that turned a second-and-20 into a first down for the Illini. The slip may have been bad luck, but the Buckeyes have been leaving interceptions on the field over the last couple of weeks.
Ohio State also kept shooting itself in the foot before the ball was even snapped. Jake Cook jumped early on second-and-4 in the first quarter, turning a chance at a manageable play into a five-yard setback. Jeremiah Smith erased that mistake with a 31-yard catch on the next snap.
There were more. Austin Siereveld’s false start turned a fourth-and-2 into a fourth-and-7, though Ohio State converted anyway when Nate Roberts made the catch to extend the drive. Roberts later drew a false start of his own, turning first-and-10 into first-and-15 after a good Ja’Kobi Jackson run in the third quarter.
Devin McCuin then dropped a pass that was right in his hands two plays later, and the drive eventually stalled. That series helped keep Illinois alive in the third quarter.
Even the special teams got dragged into the penalty parade. Connor Hawkins, who only sounds like country music’s brightest new star, started his kick approach early on the extra point after Julian Sayin’s rushing touchdown in the second quarter.
There was one especially frustrating moment before halftime when a holding call on Mason Williams wiped out a slick one-handed catch and run by Bo Jackson. Those were the kinds of plays that had the game feeling far more irritating than a 23-point win should.
Still, not everything was a headache. A lot of the best moments came from Smith and Sayin, who were outstanding.
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What followed was more revealing than the box score. Day publicly singled out sophomores Bo Jackson and Isaiah West, questioning their effort when compared with Ja'Kobi Jackson, and the backdrop here is not just one uneven afternoon but a position group dealing with injuries and inconsistent play. For Ohio State, the bigger concern is whether there is a reliable answer behind Ja'Kobi Jackson, because right now the depth chart looks far less settled than a contender would prefer. [Read more 🡒]