College Football

Buckeyes Roar Past Nittany Lions

Updated Oct. 31, 2020 11:39 p.m. ET

Despite claiming an early 14-0 lead, nothing came easy for the No. 3 Ohio State Buckeyes in their 38-25 win over the No. 18 Penn State Nittany Lions on Saturday.

Starting quarterbacks Justin Fields and Sean Clifford combined for nearly 700 passing yards and seven passing touchdowns, but Ohio State's defense and ground game (208 total rushing yards) made the difference in the Buckeyes victory.

Here are three takeaways from this big-time Week 9 matchup in the Big Ten.

1. Having a Fields day

With eleven minutes remaining in the fourth quarter and Ohio State up 31-19, the Buckeyes faced fourth down deep in Penn State territory. Rather than kick a field goal or try to grind out the necessary yard, Fields took the snap, dropped back and fired a dart for the first-down and then some.

It wasn't the biggest play of the day for Fields and his Ohio State offense, but it was emblematic of just how in control the Buckeyes signal-caller was throughout the night.

He finished with 318 yards on 28-for-34 passing, four touchdowns and zero interceptions. And through two games, he and the Ohio State receivers have found another level of chemistry.

The only negative for Fields on the night? He increased his total incompletions on the season by 600%, seeing as he only had one missed pass in Ohio State's season opener.

There's always room for improvement, right?

2. Capitalizing on confusion

No game comes down to a single possession, especially when that play comes late in the first half. That said, Penn State probably wants this one back.

The Nittany Lions had a chance to hold Ohio State to a field goal with two minutes remaining in the second quarter. Instead, Penn State seemed to have issues with defensive communication as they ran a player onto the field late, and Justin Fields made the most of the confusion.

That wasn't the only befuddlement at the end of the first half, though. The Buckeyes attempted to kneel out the clock on fourth down with just seconds remaining, but Fields apparently took a knee before the clock hit all zeroes.

So with both teams headed to the locker room, the officials went to replay, and gave Penn State the ball, allowing the Nittany Lions kicked a field goal to narrow the gap to 21-6 at half.

In a game decided by just 13 points, each of those scores loomed large.

3. The circus was in town for both teams

Although each defense had its shining moments, and the Ohio State defensive line in particular controlled the line of scrimmage throughout the night, there's no question both the Buckeys and Nittany Lions showed out on offense.

The most spectacular moments of the game belonged to Penn State wide receiver Jahan Dotson, who came down with back-to-back bonkers, one-handed catches – one cleanly with his right, the other off a bobble and secured against his helmet with his left – that helped keep Penn State close in the second half.

Fields, meanwhile, decided that gravity is just a polite suggestion as he somehow kept his balance and found his receiver on this stumbling, bumbling throw.

Next up for Ohio State is a date with Rutgers – and in case you missed it, you'll want to check out our top college football plays of the day to see the madness the Scarlet Knights nearly pulled off vs. Indiana.