THE RUNNING START
When: Saturday, October 24, 2015
Where: Piscataway, NJ // High Point Solutions Stadium
TV: 8:00 // ABC
Announcers: Chris Fowler // Kirk Herbstreit // Heather Cox
This will be the second game between Ohio State and Rutgers. Ohio State leads the series 1-0.
Below you will find some interesting facts about the teams, key offensive player stats, coach information, and team stats.
THE LAST TIME...
- Ohio State played Rutgers the Buckeyes won 56-17 in Columbus.
- Michael Thomas did not catch a pass in a game was against Michigan State in the 2013 B1G Championship
- The Buckeyes lost to a B1G opponent is Columbus was November 19, 2011 against Penn State (14-20).
- OSU did not score at least 20 points was 2012 in a 17-16 win at No. 20 Michigan State.
- Ezekiel Elliott did not rush for 100 yards was against Minnesota in 2014 (91 yards).
ON THE HORIZON
- Ezekiel Elliott is 12 yards away from 1,000 yards for the 2015 season.
- Ohio state currently has a 27-game B1G regular season winning streak. The Buckeyes are two wins away from tying Florida State's record of 29 consecutive regular season conference games.
- With the win against Penn State, Urban Meyer became the first coach to have four 20-game winning streaks.
- Cameron Johnston is second all-time at Ohio State with 71 punts downed inside the 20 yard line. Johnston is 7 away from tying the Ohio State record.
- In the history of the AP Poll Ohio State has been ranked No. 1 for 103 weeks. That puts the Buckeyes in first place. Oklahoma (101) is now second.
- Braxton Miller is seven rushing touchdowns away from becoming the ninth player in D-I with 40 rushing and 40 passing touchdowns.
-
Ohio State is one shutout away from having two shutouts in a season for three consecutive years.
Piscataway, NJ.
GET TO KNOW RUTGERS
- Rutgers is located in Piscataway, NJ.
- Rutgers was established in 1766.
- The Scarlet Knights are 3-3 this season.
- Rutgers is 23-14 (.622) since 2012.
- Last week Rutgers beat Indiana (55-52).
TODAY'S TRIVIA QUESTIONS:
-
Ezekiel Elliott has 11 touchdowns in 2015. What is his yards per score average this year?
-
Can you name the Buckeye who has the record for the most rushing yards in a half at Ohio State?
- Who leads the 2015 Buckeyes with the most career starts?
Answers at the bottom of today's article.
RUTGERS' INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
PASSING
| STATS | PASSING | % | YARDS | TDS | INTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| LAST GAME | 28/42 | .667 | 386 | 3 | 1 |
| 2015 | 115/166 | .693 | 1,388 | 12 | 6 |
| CAREER | 126/194 | .649 | 1,495 | 12 | 7 |
RUSHING
| STATS | YARDS | YPC | TDS |
|---|---|---|---|
| LAST GAME | 124 | 7.3 | 3 |
| 2015 | 437 | 6.2 | 4 |
| CAREER | 871 | 5.5 | 11 |
RECEIVING
| STATS | YARDS | YPR | TDS |
|---|---|---|---|
| LAST GAME | 157 | 22.4 | 3 |
| 2015 | 472 | 22.5 | 9 |
| CAREER | 2,036 | 19.6 | 28 |
| STATS | YARDS | YPR | TDS |
|---|---|---|---|
| LAST GAME | 89 | 14.8 | 0 |
| 2015 | 274 | 14.4 | 0 |
| CAREER | 546 | 13.0 | 4 |
OHIO STATE'S INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
PASSING
| STATS | PASSING | % | YARDS | TDS | INTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| LAST GAME | 9/15 | .600 | 84 | 0 | 0 |
| 2015 | 92/148 | .622 | 1,241 | 7 | 5 |
| CAREER | 149/242 | .616 | 2,104 | 14 | 7 |
| STATS | PASSING | % | YARDS | TDS | INTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| LAST GAME | 4/4 | 1.00 | 30 | 2 | 0 |
| 2015 | 27/44 | .614 | 249 | 4 | 2 |
| CAREER | 230/358 | .642 | 3,083 | 38 | 12 |
RUSHING
| STATS | YARDS | YPC | TDS |
|---|---|---|---|
| LAST GAME | 153 | 5.7 | 1 |
| 2015 | 988 | 6.7 | 11 |
| CAREER | 3,128 | 6.9 | 31 |
| STATS | YARDS | YPC | TDS |
|---|---|---|---|
| LAST GAME | 102 | 9.3 | 2 |
| 2015 | 228 | 7.9 | 5 |
| CAREER | 1,166 | 5.8 | 16 |
RECEIVING
| STATS | YARDS | YPR | TDS |
|---|---|---|---|
| LAST GAME | 34 | 11.3 | 1 |
| 2015 | 433 | 14.4 | 5 |
| CAREER | 1,254 | 14.4 | 14 |
THE RUNOFF
Urban Meyer
45-3 (.938) at Ohio State (4th year)
149-26 (.851) overall (14th year)
Meyer is 1-0 against Rutgers.
Kyle Flood
26-19 (.578) at Rutgers (4th year)
26-19 (.578) overall (4th year)
This is Kyle Flood's first head coaching job.
CLIFF CLAVEN'S LITTLE KNOWN FACTS CORNER
- Ohio State is officially 48-23 (.676) in games starting after 5 p.m. local time.
- The Buckeyes are 73-12-1 when ranked No. 1 and are 56-4 against unranked opponents when ranked first.
- Ezekiel Elliott has 12-straight games of at least 100-yards rushing.
- In those games he is averaging 159.3 yards per game and 7.5 ypc.
- Ohio State has the most all-time appearances in the AP Poll with 846.
- The Buckeyes are first in the B1G in rushing yards per game (242.1).
- Ohio State has won a nation's best 15 consecutive road games.
- Urban Meyer has the best winning percentage (.851) of active coaches.
- Joey Bosa is tied for first in the nation among active players with 23.5 career sacks.
- Michael Thomas has caught a pass in 23-straight games.
- Ohio State has won a nation’s best 20 consecutive games.
- The Buckeyes lead the B1G in rushing and scoring offense.
- Ohio State also leads the B1G in net punting, kickoff coverage and pass defense.
- Braxton Miller owns Ohio State's all-time record with 88 career touchdowns.
- Tyvis Powell's blocked field goal against WMU was Ohio State's first since 2012.
LITTLE KNOWN FACTS BUSTED
The Buckeyes' defense has not allowed a rush of 20+ yards this season. Diamont scored on a 79-yard touchdown run.
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 |
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| 2015 STATS | RANK | CATEGORY | 2015 STATS | RANK |
| 37.0 | 24th | Points For | 34.3 | 40th |
| 16.3 | 13th | Points Against | 29.2 | 84th |
| OFFENSE | ||||
| 242.1 | 13th | Rushing Offense | 199.2 | 32nd |
| 213.4 | 79th | Passing Offense | 249.7 | 48th |
| 455.6 | 30th | Total Offense | 448.8 | 34th |
| DEFENSE | ||||
| 158.7 | 60th | Rushing Defense | 126.2 | 30th |
| 143.6 | 4th | Pass Defense | 321.2 | 124th |
| 302.3 | 19th | Total Defense | 447.3 | 105th |
| OFF. MISC. | ||||
| .375 | 80th | 3rd Down Conv. | .487 | 10th |
| .857 | 48th | Red Zone | .850 | 58th |
| 12.5 | 35th | Punt Return | 10.0 | 48th |
| 23.9 | 30th | Kickoff Return | 24.8 | 22nd |
| DEF. MISC. | ||||
| .313 | 23rd | 3rd Down Conv. | .385 | 66th |
| .824 | 60th | Red Zone | .800 | 42nd |
| 94.5 | 6th | Pass Eff. Def. | 149.6 | 112th |
| 42.2 | 5th | Net Punting | 37.0 | 81st |
| MISC. | ||||
| - 0.1 | 79th | Turnover Margin | + 1.3 | 8th |
| 7.3 | 88th | Penalties Per Game | 5.3 | 34th |
| Total: 11 | THE EDGE | Total: 7 |
TODAY'S TRIVIA ANSWERS:
Ezekiel Elliott has 11 touchdowns in 2015. What is his yards per score average this year?
Answer: 28.5 yards per score.
| LENGTH | 80 | 75 | 65 | 55 | 16 | 10 | 6 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 1 |
| TOTAL YARDS | 314 | ||||||||||
| AVERAGE | 28.5 |
Can you name the Buckeye who has the record for the most rushing yards in a half at Ohio State?
Answer: 243 yards. Ezekiel Elliott set the record against Indiana.
| PLAYER | YARDS | HALF | YEAR |
|---|---|---|---|
| EZEKIEL ELLIOTT | 243 | 2nd | 2015 |
| KEITH BYARS | 195 | 2nd | 1984 |
| MAURICE CLARETT | 194 | 2nd | 2002 |
| CARLOS HYDE | 186 | 2nd | 2013 |
| EDDIE GEORGE | 180 | 1st | 1995 |
Who leads the 2015 Buckeyes with the most career starts?
Answer: Braxton Miller with 38.
| PLAYER | STARTS |
|---|---|
| Braxton Miller | 38 |
| Taylor Decker | 36 |
| Joey Bosa | 31 |
| Joshua Perry | 31 |
| Tyvis Powell | 27 |
Sources
ohiostatebuckeyes.com
stats.ncaa.org
sportsreference.com
