Buckeyes Fill Highlight Reel In Expected Rout Of Ball State

Legend Bey wowed the crowd, his teammates and his coach with his package of shiftiness and explosiveness. (Press Pros Feature Photos by Angie Greenwood)From veteran superstar Jeremiah Smith to freshman phenom Legend Bey, No. 1 Ohio State made flashy plays, unexpected plays and explosive plays in their one-game prep for No. 5 Texas. 

Columbus, OH – The fun parts about games against teams like Ball State are the highlights. Because winning 56-3, as the Buckeyes did Saturday, covering the 49.5-point spread, and playing three quarterbacks have been the forgone conclusion since the schedule came out.

A 53-point margin can feel a little ho-hum. But not when you have a corner on some of the best offensive talent in the nation. They’re the primary reason Ohio State is ranked No. 1.

If your cable or internet stream failed you Saturday, watch the highlights.

Look for a one-handed, helmet-aided touchdown catch and a double toe-tap, back-of-the-end-zone touchdown catch, both by junior wide receiver Jeremiah Smith. He should be a Heisman Trophy candidate, and he made a little Heisman gesture after the second touchdown to make that point.

Watch two long touchdown runs of making wanna-be tacklers grab air and of breaking tackles, one by Bo Jackson and one by Ja’Kobi Jackson, known from now on as the Jackson Two. And don’t miss quarterback Julian Sayin, who was hesitant to run last year, take off for his first rushing touchdown.

Showstoppers all.

“There are times where I say the talent and the players sometimes overcome some of the coaching,” head Buckeye Ryan Day said.

And then there are moments when 100,000 in-person witnesses see something for the first time, creating a thirst for more of that. So, most of all, don’t miss the touchdown catch when a legend launched his gifts into the expectations of a fan base that expects greatness.

His name is Legend Bey – an athletic package of shiftiness and explosiveness – and he stole the show because we were seeing him for the first time. His touchdown was the seventh of the day and had no bearing on the outcome. But the freshman from Forney, Texas, caught a pass in the left flat from backup quarterback and fellow freshman Luke Fahey.

Pretty routine at the start, and he had some blockers downfield.

But the 25 yards Bey covered to the end zone was as much all him as it gets. He made multiple defenders miss as he worked laterally to the other side of the field and across the goal line, the roar of the crowd growing with each juke and separation.

Wow. That’s the only word for it.

Bey didn’t exactly walk on water as Day suggested about his interior line this week. He made some mistakes, too, choosing twice to bring a kickoff out of the end zone in the first half. He was tackled at the 16 and the 10.

“You obviously see what the talent is, and certainly what he can do with the ball in his hands,” Day said. “So it’s his job to continue to work to get better, build discipline, and trust in the coaching staff, and it’s our job as coaches to find ways to utilize his talents.”

Sayin saw Bey’s touchdown from the sideline. And the shiftiness and explosiveness of his six rushes for 37 yards, including one for 24.

“He’s obviously electric with the ball in his hands,” Sayin said. “That touchdown pass was fun to watch, and he’s going to continue to get better, continue to learn.”

Still, no playmaker could completely outshine Jeremiah Smith, who added to his legend. On his touchdown of 48 yards that began the scoring, he didn’t have to oversell an out route to the right sideline. He peaked at it, and it was enough to make the cornerback bite. Smith then turned up the sideline and made the kind of catch not many others can.

Sayin’s throw was a step underthrown, the DB closed and Smith got his sticky right hand on the ball, pinned it to his helmet, gained control and went to the end zone turf holding the ball high.

“He had leverage on him, and I felt like he was kind of flat-footed, and we were going to be able to run by him,” Sayin said. “And Jeremiah made a great catch and ran a great route.”

Smith put the Buckeyes up 28-3 with 10 seconds left in the first half on a play that displayed his growing communication and chemistry with Sayin. At the back of the end zone, Sayin threw to Smith’s back shoulder. Smith snatched the ball while turning and kept both feet inbounds.

“We knew what each other was thinking to go back shoulder,” Sayin said.

Smith caught eight passes for 151 yards and took the second half off. Sayin also showed chemistry with Texas-San Antonio transfer senior Devin McCuin. He caught six passes for 97 yards and a 17-yard touchdown.

“We’ve been building it a lot this offseason and through camp, and he creates a lot of confidence, a lot of trust,” Sayin said of McCuin. “It was awesome to see him score a touchdown.”

Sayin left in the third quarter with Heisman-type numbers: 21 of 25, 320 yards, three touchdowns. Equally impressive was his on-time decision to leave the pocket when no one was open and score a touchdown on a three-yard run.

“They ended up playing a zone where you weren’t really going to have much open,” Sayin said. “The offensive line did a good job with protection where I was able to have time to do that.”

The Buckeyes made a few more than a typical number of explosive plays – runs of 10 yards, passes of 15 yards – against a MAC opponent with 20. A good day for new offensive coordinator Arthur Smith, who was on the sideline instead of the booth as was the case with Brian Hartline and Chip Kelly.

“It was super smooth in terms of communication, and it was fun today to have him on the sidelines,” Sayin said.

While Sayin, Smith and McCuin were running up the score in the first through the air, the running game resembled last year’s Indiana and Miami losses last year. Through the first carry of the second half, the three veteran running backs – Jackson, Jackson and Isaiah West – were averaging 2.7 yards per carry.

Then Bo Jackson broke loose for a 65-yard touchdown run and a 35-3 lead. Three minutes later Ja’Kobi Jackson did the same for a 49-yard touchdown and a 42-3 lead.

There were no adjustments beyond tweaks, according to Day. As Ja’Kobi Jackson said: “We just keep pushing and know at some moment we’re going to pop one.”

In the end, the Buckeyes rushed for 237 yards for an 8.77 average to complement 434 passing yards. Numbers you expect against Ball State. The key for the running game, though, against challenging opponents won’t just be popping big runs. It will be more four- and five-yard runs to make drives less dependent on Sayin’s passing.

The other offensive freshmen of intrigue also made plays. Wide receiver Chris Henry Jr. dropped the first pass thrown to him, but he caught a 15-yard touchdown from Tavien St. Clair to close the scoring. And Brock Boyd caught a 22-yard pass. Both made key blocks downfield to help the long touchdown runs.

Day won’t differentiate between backup QBs Fahey and St. Clair but said they both played well. Fahey played first and was 5-of-6 for 62 yards. St. Clair was 5-of-6 for 52 yards.

The defense did its part, too, holding the Cardinals to 165 yards and no touchdowns. They are a bit of a no-name bunch for now, but the results were reminiscent of last year’s star-studded unit.

The biggest task was getting 5-foot-10, 250-pound quarterback Keldric Luster on the ground. Tackling him was like tackling a truck. A calf-roping drill in practice last week would have been a good idea.

The big play belonged to sophomore linebacker T.J. Alford with help from freshman end Khary Wilder. Wilder chased Luster out of the pocket, where he threw one up for grabs. Alford made the interception on the first play of the second quarter at the Ball State 28 to set up Sayin’s touchdown scramble.

Overall, the defense played a lot of new transfers and freshmen, including nickel back Jay Timmons. He made a couple big hits to back up the big impressions he’s made in camp.

Linebacker Riley Pettyjohn led with six tackles and Alford made five. The rolling of John Walker, Eddrick Houston, James Smith and Will Smith Jr. at the tackle spots kept fresh legs on the field, Luster on the run and running backs bottled up.

“They were great,” Alford said of the front line. “Just doing big things.”

All 22, and then some, doing big things next Saturday night at No. 5 Texas will be a must. The Buckeyes have consecutive wins over the Longhorns in the playoff semifinals two years ago and in last year’s season opener at home.

The game is important for an abundance of reasons. But if the Buckeyes lose, that will be three losses in four games. That’s not normal, nor acceptable. And it would keep Day from his 84^th victory at Ohio State and from surpassing Urban Meyer to be fourth all-time.

“I gave them about 15 minutes to enjoy this in the locker room,” Day said. “And then it’s on in Texas.”

And, they hope, a lot more fun highlights.