AUSTIN — Well, that sucked. There’s not much more to add as I’m still in a state of slack-jawed bewilderment, but I’ll do my best.
Let’s take a look at the good, the bad and the ugly from Ohio State’s loss at the hands of the Texas Longhorns.
The Good: Jeremiah Smith
Arguably the best player in college football tried his best to end the argument once and for all, dominating the Texas Longhorns for much of the night. Smith finished with eight receptions for 164 yards and a touchdown.
The strength of his hands when he comes down with the ball is incredible to watch—and that’s only one of the many attributes that make Jeremiah a literal freak doing freakish things in real time, right in front of us.
It’s a shame that he and Julian Sayin couldn’t connect more often in the fourth quarter. Otherwise, the outcome might have been different. Even though Ohio State lost tonight, I have a hard time believing many teams will be able to stop him with any regularity.
The Bad: Red-Zone Offense
Ohio State, which struggled in the red zone during its two losses last season, advanced inside the Texas 20-yard line four times before late in the second quarter. The Buckeyes scored one touchdown, kicked two field goals and turned the ball over on downs.
Only a touchdown pass from Sayin to Smith just before halftime made Ohio State’s first-half red-zone numbers look better than its performance actually was.
The Buckeyes have to improve in this department if they have any aspirations of winning meaningful hardware this season. It is maddening that this team cannot consistently punch the rock into the end zone.
Perhaps settling for field goals on the previous red-zone possessions made Ryan Day more inclined to go for it on fourth down. I’m sure he’s as sick of watching this offense fail to finish drives as the rest of us.
Either way, goodness—they have to be better.
The Ugly: A 20-Point Fourth-Quarter Collapse
None of us has ever experienced this before. Seriously.
Ohio State’s improbable collapse on the road in Austin was the largest blown lead in program history. The Buckeyes entered the game having won 115 consecutive times after building a lead of at least 20 points.
Want some more firsts? This may be the ugliest “Ugly” segment we ever produce.
This loss marked:
- The first time an Ohio State team lost after leading by at least 17 points at halftime. The Buckeyes are now 309-1 in those games.
- The first time an Ohio State team lost after leading by at least 20 points entering the fourth quarter. They are now 365-1 in those games.
- The largest comeback victory in Texas football history.
- The largest fourth-quarter comeback ever completed against an AP No. 1 team.
