By james art 
Different slide … Will Howard slid in for a first down with 1:07 left to kill Penn State’s chances of a comeback. (Press Professionals feature photos by Scott Stewart)
No. 4 Ohio State worked to overcome first-half mistakes with a fourth-quarter goal-line stand and a last-ditch clock-killing drive of 11 straight games to hold No. 3 Penn State to its first loss.
State College, Pennsylvania – The last time Will Howard slid to the turf with a clock winding down, he didn’t have time to do anything about his team’s one-point deficit. And the Buckeyes lost at Oregon.
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On Saturday in front of the largest crowd (111,030) in Beaver Stadium history — the field the Pennsylvania native grew up wanting to play home games — Howard slid in emphatic for a first down with 1:07 left.
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Then he stood up, twirled his arms, signaled for first down, and understood what it all meant. Then kneel down. And this time the clock ticked harmlessly in his favor.
The No. 4 Ohio State Buckeyes (7-1, 4-1 Big Ten) had come to Happy Valley with a rebuilt and underperforming offensive line, a defensive front facing its own questions and a head coach in desperate need of a shut-down his critics. And on a perfectly blue-sky fall afternoon, in the shadow of Mount Nittany, enough went right to Ohio State.
The Buckeyes didn’t play a perfect game. Two Howard misses hurt them. But the offensive and defensive lines made game-winning plays in the fourth quarter and celebrated a 20-13 victory over No. 3 Penn State (7-1, 4-1).
TreVeyon Henderson ran for a yard during Saturday’s 20-13 win over Penn State.
“It doesn’t feel like it,” Howard said. “It wasn’t pretty. I probably played my worst game of the year… right now, the feeling coming off the field, we wanted this game. We talked about it at the beginning of the week and said that we will have to try to win this game. And that was the way we played.”
The Buckeyes had to dig deep for will and crucial plays to defeat Penn State and head coach James Franklin for the eighth straight season and keep their goals alive. They continue to strive to play in the Big Ten Championship game, earn a first-round bye in the playoffs and ultimately play for a national championship.
The importance of the result – more than just getting a win – was obvious to Day. He, his players, his coaches and his family have all heard the latest criticism that questions him and his players. That’s not unusual at Ohio State, but the cacophony of doubt that followed the loss at Oregon and the uninspiring performance against Nebraska last week has tested this team’s resolve.
Also, there are natural difficulties playing in one of the toughest environments in the country against a good team. But the Buckeyes didn’t bend and found their way through this season’s crossroads.
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“It’s fair to say we were at a crossroads,” Day said. “It was a big game for us. We didn’t want to say it publicly, but we said it behind closed doors. It’s going to be a long road for our guys to get that win. Guys came back on this team for a reason, to win the rivalry, to win the Big 10 championship and to win the national championship.”
For those life chances, a moment of redemption seemed inevitable in a game and series known for big moments, crazy moments and clutch moments. THE MOMENT came in the fourth quarter after Penn State tight end Tyler Warren, the highly touted playmaker who didn’t do much, took a direct hit, ran around left end and down the sideline for 33 yards before Denzel Burke pushed him in bounds of the three.
Ohio State’s Emuka Egbuka runs through a Penn State defender’s one-shot attempt during Saturday’s win over the Nittany Lions.
The Nittany Lions were poised to tie the score at 20, but the Buckeyes said not so quickly. And Penn State’s callers play oblige.
Kytron Allen drove to the line three straight times. The first time he got nothing was when he ran into Cody Simon and Lathan Ransom. The next time he went one yard before Jack Sawyer and Ty Hamilton stopped him. Then Hamilton and Hero Canu stopped Allen at this one.
Drew Aller tried to throw a touchdown pass on fourth down, but the receivers were covered, the pass landed harmlessly in the end zone, and the Buckeyes had key goal-line position for the second straight week. The Buckeyes had pulled off their second shutout of the Lions within five of the day, a fact Penn State may never overcome.
“It shows you he’s got grit, he’s got toughness, he’s got a never-give-up mentality, give me an inch, I’ll protect it type of mentality,” said Day, whose team rushed for 176 yards in a week after picking up 64.
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The offensive line, with Donovan Jackson moving to left tackle and Carson Hintzman taking Jackson’s spot at left guard, had 5:13 to go to win the game. That unit, even at full strength earlier this season with Josh Simmons at left tackle and Jackson at guard, hadn’t imposed its will the way it did Saturday. Day said Hinzman, last year’s starting center, got the call as a starter because of his experience.
The clinch started with Howard creeping up one to five. Quinshon Judkins gained nine, six and 15 yards on the next three plays. TreVeyon Henderson picked up seven more on first down to reach the two-minute timeout. Then Henderson for two more, Henderson for zero and Howard to keeper around the left end for seven, the final first down and the moment victory was assured.
Ohio State’s Tlieke Williams pressures Penn State quarterback Drew Allar.
“To finish that drive the way we did, it’s just going to boost our physicality and stamina as we head into the back half of the season,” Day said.
The ensuing celebration carried over to the locker room as well.
“Probably the busiest locker room I’ve been in in a long time,” Day said. “Now what are we going to do with him going forward? But we’re going to enjoy it tonight.”
Before the Buckeyes could come up with game-winning plays in the second half, they had to endure a first half with as many twists and turns as the roads leading to Happy Valley. Ohio State led 14-10 at the end of the game. But they could have been up 21-3 or 28-3. Or they could have fallen behind 17-14. Or was leading 14-13.
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Howard made the first mistake when his interception was returned 31 yards for a touchdown by Zion Tracy for an early 10-0 Lions lead. Tracy skipped a slant route to Jeremiah Smith on third-and-five and could have run to the end zone.
“Attitudes can’t be changed,” Howard said. “If you let this game affect the next game, it’s going to become a problem.”
The Buckeyes responded with one of their most important hits of the season. Howard kept the ball away from the Lions and hit a wide open Emeka Egbuka for a 25-yard touchdown. Egbuka lined up tight to the left, fought off the movement to the right, as tight ends often do, and scored easily.
Penn State’s mental mistakes helped Ohio State’s next drive. An ambush on third-and-2 and an unsportsmanlike conduct flag for taunting after third-and-10 went short kept the ball away from the Lions.
Then the Buckeyes broke the trend with three second-team receivers — Brandon Innis, Bryson Rogers and Jayden Ballard — on the field. On the first play they ran away. The next play looked like a run to the right, but Innis broke free, coming under second down the left and scoring easily on a 21-yard play for a 14-10 lead three minutes into the second quarter.
Quarterback Will Howard connects with Buckeyes tight end Gee Scott.
The Buckeyes drove again and Howard appeared to score a touchdown on a 13-yard run. But the replay overturned the score when it showed Zekey Whitley knocking the ball out of Howard’s hands at the two. The ball bounced off Howard’s leg, over the pylon and out of the end zone to turn the ball over to the Lions for a touchdown.
“If you take away the pick and the turnover in the end zone, it’s probably 28-3 going into the half,” Howard said. “But we wanted to win this game. I can’t give my teammates enough credit. They saved me.
Penn State got a short field at the end of the half thanks to a third down sack. But on a disappearing route to Harrison Wallace from the three, cornerback Davison Igbinosun made a stunning interception with 11 seconds left in the half. After Wallace put his hand in Igbinosun’s face, the ball bounced off Wallace into Igbinosun’s hands. He went down on one foot and snuffed out a chance for the Lions to take the lead or at least kick a field goal.
Buckeyes’ TJ Tuimoloau celebrates the sack of Penn State linebacker Drew Allar.
“I was just trying to play with his hands and the ball popped out at me,” Igbinosun said. “It was God who put the ball in my hands. I didn’t really do much to be honest.”
Howard is grateful Day put the ball in his hands this season after transferring from Kansas State. He came to Ohio State for games like this.
After the Nebraska game, Howard said playing at Penn State would mean a lot to him because Franklin didn’t offer him a scholarship. Howard’s last words of the day: “They didn’t think I was good enough, but I guess next week we’ll see if I was.”
So when the Buckeyes took the field with 5:13 left on their 1-yard line, Howard knew now was the time to prove he and his teammates were good enough. He challenged his team with the same message Day often repeated about the fourth-quarter field goal.
“Let’s win this game,” Howard said when asked what he said in the huddle as he left the interview room. “We did.”
Then, when Day sat down to answer questions, he let everyone in for just a little while.
“That was the G version of it.”
And it helped set up a version of victory that will always mean to Howard that he – and most importantly his team – had the will to be more than good enough.
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