Ohio State Defeats the Golden Gophers 52-10

On a traditional night for trickery, there was nothing tricky about Ohio State's 42 point victory over the Minnesota Golden Gophers. After a brief scare on Minnesota's first drive, when the Golden Gophers tied the game up at seven, it was smooth sailing the rest of the way for the Buckeyes. Quarterback Terrelle Pryor was deadly efficient, going 18/22 (82%) for 222 yards and two touchdowns passing. His one blip came on a poor decision on the 2 yard line, where he threw the ball late to fullback Zach Boren and was intercepted by Minnesota cornerback Ryan Collado. Other than that one ill-advised pass, Pryor ran the offense spectacularly en route to the blowout victory over the beleaguered Gophers.

The rest of the offense performed in a similarly great manner, with tailback Boom Herron leading the team in rushing with 114 yards on 17 carries. Herron added another touchdown to his season tally as he continues to impress, bringing his total to eleven on the year. Pryor chipped in 55 yards rushing on five carries, scoring once on a quarterback sneak, as well.

Receivers DeVier Posey and Dane Sanzenbacher remain the clear top targets for Pryor, with Posey leading the unit on the day with 115 yards and a touchdown on six receptions. Sanzenbacher added 67 yards on five catches.

The Silver Bullet defense picked up right where they left off against Purdue last weekend, holding the Golden Gophers to 232 yards on 51 plays (4.54 yards per play.) Minnesota quarterback Adam Weber had some initial success on downfield play-action passes, but Ohio State adjusted by playing more two deep coverage as it became apparent that Minnesota could not run the ball. Weber also had difficulty completing any throws that were not deep vertical strikes, and as such, the Gopher intermediate passing game was nonexistent.  Complicating matters, Weber's offensive line had trouble keeping him upright from the second drive on. After being brutally hit on two separate occasions, Weber fumbled both times, with the second leading to a 30 yard return from a touchdown by Ohio State defensive tackle John Simon.

Ohio State avoided two potentially devastating defensive injuries when middle linebacker Brian Rolle and cornerback Devon Torrence returned to the game after leaving earlier. Rolle's brief absence on Minnesota's first drive was immediately noticeable as it was Minnesota's only touchdown drive of the day.

Of course, no game recap could be complete without mention of the fine job turned in by Ohio State's special teams units. Punt returner Jordan Hall played Houdini and returned a punt 70 yards to the Golden Gophers' two yard line. That impressive event was later upstaged by a blocked punt by linebacker Johnathan Newsome. Coming off the edge untouched, Newsome took a great angle and knocked down punter Dan Orseske's kick, and fullback Adam Homan batted it into the endzone while trying to recover it. Safety Zach Domicone recovered it for the score.

The only thing marring the day for special teams was kicker Devin Barclay's missed chip shot in the 3rd quarter.

Ohio State went to frigid Minneapolis, Minnesota and took care of business before their bye week, and that bye week will be important for team health. As Ohio State gears up for an end of the year run against Penn State (November 13th), Iowa (November 20th), and Michigan (November 27th), resting sore bodies and getting injured players healthy may be the most important thing to be gained.

Enjoy your Halloween, and Go Bucks!