Ohio State Football: 3 Takeaways from home win against Penn State

By Dante Pryor | Oct 21, 2023

Oct 29, 2022; University Park, Pennsylvania, USA; Penn State Nittany Lions head coach James Franklin (right) shakes hands with Ohio State Buckeyes head coach Ryan Day (left) following the completion of the game against the Penn State Nittany Lions at Beaver Stadium. Ohio State defeated Penn State 44-31. Mandatory Credit: Matthew OHaren-USA TODAY Sports /

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21, 2023; Columbus, Ohio, USA; Ohio State Buckeyes quarterback Kyle McCord (6) drops back to throw against Penn State Nittany Lions linebacker Kobe King (41) during the first quarter at Ohio Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Joseph Maiorana-USA TODAY Sports /

Ohio State football offensive takeaways:

It took some time for the Buckeyes’ offense to get going, but they could still lean on All-American wide receiver Marvin Harrison, Jr., who had 11 receptions, 162 yards, and a touchdown. Quarterback Kyle McCord wasn’t in rhythm most of the game, completing 22 passes for 286 yards and a touchdown.

However, as did the Buckeyes offense, McCord found his groove in the fourth quarter. More specifically, he began to see Harrison more often. The most crucial thing McCord did was not put the ball in danger while they had the lead and took advantage of the opportunity to extend it.

Penn State offensive takeaways

Conversely, the Nittany Lions got nothing going. Late in the fourth quarter, Penn State had six second-half yards on offense. Quarterback Drew Allar never got going in this game. Some of that was due to the pressure Ohio State’s front generated. Some of that was the lack of a running game for Penn State.

Nicholas Singleton and Kaytron Allen had 74 rushing yards in this game; 20 came on one run by Singleton. Allar averaged 4.5 yards per pass attempt. That’s not going to get it done.

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