Ohio State vs. Michigan State: 5 crazy stats from the Buckeyes’ halftime break against Sparta
Ohio State put together one of the most impressive offensive performances of the season against No.7 Michigan State on Saturday – and only needed half to do it.
The fourth-placed Buckeyes wasted no time against Sparta, scoring in each of their first seven offensive games. The only shot without a score was at the end of the round, in which the Buckeyes received the ball in their 19th minute with 30 seconds remaining. The score was 49-0 – yes, you read that right – Ryan Day and Co decided to kneel and see off the game at halftime.
THAN: Ohio State vs. Michigan State
The Buckeyes’ attack is also multifaceted: CJ Stroud’s quarterback (29/31 passes, 393 yards, six touches), TreVeyon Henderson (nine dashes, 63 yards), Chris Olave (seven catches, 146 yards, two touches), Garrett Wilson (seven catches, 120 metres, two touches), Jaxon Smith-Njigba (eight catches, 76 metres, one touch) all had great days. .
The game is basically over since the first quarter, which shows how impressive this performance is, especially against a team in the top 10. In fact, so impressive, Sporting News decided was about to break down some of the craziest stats from the Buckeyes’ mid-half run against Sparta:
500 yards
That’s the number of yards the Buckeyes spent against Michigan State in one round. Ohio State has been the best offensive line in the country, leading all of college football in total fouls (5,500 yards) and yards per game (550). The team needed just 50 yards in the second half to reach the average.
Ohio State also had more passes (393) than Michigan State had total fouls (116). It nearly eclipses that total with just its dash, growing 107 yards in half. Olave and Wilson also beat Michigan State by 146 and 120 yards, respectively.
Seven touches the ground
Ohio State leads the nation in offense points, averaging 46.3 points per game. They eclipsed that total with 49 points after halftime. The Buckeyes scored touchdowns in each of their first seven drives, finishing with scores of 23, 77, 43, 4, 1, 12 and 5 yards, respectively. Six of them flew through the air as Stroud cut and cut Sparta’s secondary nucleus. In addition to five touchdowns with Olave, Wilson and Smith-Njigba, he also threw a 4-yard touchdown for Julian Fleming.
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Two unfinished things
Stroud’s ridiculous stats of 393 yards and six touchdowns alone are impressive enough, but it’s even more impressive how efficiently he hits those numbers. He completed 29 of 31 passes during halftime, completing 93.5% of his ridiculous passes. He clearly prioritized Olave, Wilson, and Smith-Njigba as his preferred targets, but hit eight different receivers during his passage through his clinic.
Five TD drives under 3 minutes
Ohio State doesn’t simply knock Michigan State out (though that could easily happen). The Buckeyes attacked at lightning speed for most of the first half, scoring five goals that lasted three minutes or less. They also had three dribbles that didn’t hit the 2-minute mark, thanks in part to goals from 23, 77 and 43 yards (all of which were touches from Stroud). That was exemplified by the fact that the Buckeyes only faced two third-place drops in the entire inning (switching both).
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One negative play
Ohio State’s first drive starts with a 5 yard wrong departure penalty. Following that, the Buckeyes had only one negative play for the rest of the half: an 8-yard Stroud pitch by Michigan State’s Maverick Hansen. It happened during the Buckeyes’ last real drive of the inning; six innings later, Stroud threw a 5-yard touchdown to Smith-Njigba with 1:37 remaining before halftime.
Technically, the Buckeyes had a negative play to end the first half on one knee, although that felt as if it shouldn’t count.
