THE RUNNING START
When: Saturday, October 22, 2016
Where: University Park, PA, Beaver Stadium
TV: 8:00, ABC
Announcers: Chris Fowler, Kirk Herbstreit and Sam Ponder
This is the 32nd game between Ohio State and Penn State in football and the Buckeyes lead the series 18–13.
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 Penn State was last year, the Buckeyes won 38-10 in Columbus.
- Penn State defeated Ohio State in Beaver Stadium was Oct. 8, 2005. Joe Paterno's 16th-ranked team defeated No. 6 OSU and Jim Tressel 17-10 in the first regular season night game between the programs..
- The Buckeyes played the Nittany Lions in University Park was 2014, OSU won 31-24 in double OT.
- Ohio State won on October 22nd was 2005 when the 13th-ranked Buckeyes defeated Indiana 41-10 in Bloomington.
- A Buckeye recorded 3 interceptions in a game was 1996. Damon Moore picked off 3 passes against No. 20 Iowa as the second-ranked Buckeyes won 38-26 in Kinnick Stadium.
- Penn State scored more than 24 points against Ohio State was 2001.
ON THE HORIZON
- The Buckeyes currently have a school-record true road game winning streak. A win over Penn State will give OSU 21 road wins in a row and pass the 20 straight won by Miami between 1984-1988.
- Urban Meyer earned his 160th career victory when the Buckeyes defeated Wisconsin. Meyer tied Bob Stoops for the most wins by a coach in his first 15 seasons. A win over Penn State will give Meyer the outright record.
- J.T. Barrett (89) is first on Ohio State's all-time touchdowns responsible for list. Barrett took the all-time lead with his game-winning touchdown pass to Noah Brown against Wisconsin.
- This will be the third time Urban Meyer and James Franklin face each other as head coaches. Meyer is 5–0 against Penn State and 2–0 against Franklin.
- J.T. Barrett has 5,033 career passing yards and is 57 yards away from passing Jim Karsatos for 9th on the all-time career passing list. Barrett is 260 yards away from bumping Braxton Miller for 8th.
- Ohio State currently has an eight-game winning streak in night games on the road.
- Urban Meyer has had three winning streaks of at least 12 games during his time in Columbus. The Buckeyes have currently won eight consecutive games.
- Cameron Johnston has downed an Ohio State record 95 punts inside the opponent's 20 yard line and is averaging 50.8 yards per punt.
University Park, Pennsylvania
GET TO KNOW PENN STATE
- Penn State University is located in University Park, PA.
- The university was established in 1855.
- The Nittany Lions are 4–2 this season.
- Penn State is 33–23 (.589) since 2012.
- James Franklin's team beat Maryland 38-14 in their last game on October 8th.
- The Nittany Lions are 4–3 (.571) against Ohio State in Beaver Stadium.
TODAY'S TRIVIA QUESTIONS:
- How many times has Ohio State eclipsed 400 rushing yards in a game with Urban Meyer as head coach?
- Since 2013 only one team from the Power 5 has averaged more rushing yards per game than Ohio State. Can you name the that has "wrecked" the Buckeyes shot at the top spot?
- Through six games, Ohio State has had 15 rushing plays gain 20 or more yards. Who has the Buckeyes' longest run from scrimmage in 2016? Hint, it was recorded against Rutgers.
Answers at the bottom of today's article.
PENN STATE'S INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
PASSING
| STATS | PASSING | % | YARDS | TDS | INTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| LAST GAME | 10/19 | .530 | 152 | 2 | 0 |
| 2016 | 103/177 | .582 | 1,436 | 8 | 3 |
| CAREER | 123/217 | .567 | 1,621 | 10 | 3 |
RUSHING
| STATS | YARDS | YPC | TDS |
|---|---|---|---|
| LAST GAME | 202 | 6.5 | 1 |
| 2016 | 582 | 5.0 | 8 |
| CAREER | 1,658 | 5.5 | 15 |
RECEIVING
| STATS | YARDS | YPR | TDS |
|---|---|---|---|
| LAST GAME | 91 | 22.8 | 1 |
| 2016 | 328 | 18.2 | 1 |
| CAREER | 361 | 17.2 | 1 |
| STATS | YARDS | YPR | TDS |
|---|---|---|---|
| LAST GAME | 26 | 6.5 | 1 |
| 2016 | 277 | 12.0 | 2 |
| CAREER | 516 | 11.0 | 3 |
OHIO STATE'S INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
PASSING
| STATS | PASSING | % | YARDS | TDS | INTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| LAST GAME | 17/29 | .590 | 226 | 1 | 1 |
| 2016 | 96/152 | .632 | 1,207 | 16 | 4 |
| CAREER | 392/613 | .639 | 5,033 | 61 | 18 |
RUSHING
| STATS | YARDS | YPC | TDS |
|---|---|---|---|
| LAST GAME | 46 | 4.2 | 0 |
| 2016 | 612 | 6.5 | 4 |
| CAREER | 612 | 6.5 | 4 |
| STATS | YARDS | YPC | TDS |
|---|---|---|---|
| LAST GAME | 46 | 3.8 | 0 |
| 2016 | 456 | 7.4 | 3 |
| CAREER | 971 | 7.1 | 10 |
RECEIVING
| STATS | YARDS | YPR | TDS |
|---|---|---|---|
| LAST GAME | 58 | 9.7 | 0 |
| 2016 | 403 | 13.9 | 3 |
| CAREER | 787 | 12.7 | 5 |
| STATS | YARDS | YPR | TDS |
|---|---|---|---|
| LAST GAME | 48 | 12.0 | 1 |
| 2016 | 213 | 13.3 | 6 |
| CAREER | 222 | 13.1 | 6 |
THE RUNOFF
Urban Meyer
56–4 (.930) at Ohio State (5th year)
160–27 (.860) overall (15th year)
Meyer is 5–0 against Penn State and is 2–0 when facing James Franklin.
James Franklin
18–14 (.563) at Penn State (3rd year)
42–29 (.592 ) overall as a college coach (6th year)
Franklin is 0–2 (.000) against Ohio State as a head coach.
CLIFF CLAVEN'S LITTLE KNOWN FACTS CORNER
- Ohio State has a record of 351–80–9 (.808) when ranked in the Top 10 of the AP Poll.
- The 296 points Ohio State has scored in 2016 is the most the Buckeyes have ever scored in the first six games of a season.
- The Buckeyes' defense leads the nation in red zone defense. The Silver Bullets have limited opponents to a scoring percentage of .625 inside the red zone.
- As head coach of Ohio State, Urban Meyer is 17–0 during the month of October.
- Tyler Durbin is 8-for-8 on field goals in 2016. He leads the Big Ten in scoring and kicking scoring.
- J.T. Barrett racked up 318 total yards of offense against Wisconsin. That was the 13th time in Barrett's career that he gained at least 300 total yards.
- The Buckeyes lead the Big Ten in 15 different team and individual statistical categories.
- Jerome Baker leads the defense with 39 tackles.
- Urban Meyer is 4–0 in OT games as Ohio State's head coach and 7–0 for his career.
- In 2016, OSU's defense has only allowed one rushing touchdown and is tied for first with four pick-sixes.
- Ohio State's defense had a season high four sacks against Wisconsin. The defense has recorded 15 sacks in 2016.
- Since 2012, the Buckeyes (.933) have the highest winning percentage in the FBS. Alabama is second at .905.
- The Ohio State single season record for interception returns for touchdowns is four, set in 1996 and 1987.
- 2016 Buckeyes from Pennsylvania: One. Malik Hooker of New Castle, Pa.
- Ohio State has been ranked in the AP Poll a record 861 times.
- The Buckeyes have also earned the No. 1 ranking in the AP Poll a record 105 times.
- Mike Weber is averaging 102.0 rushing yards per game for his short career. Archie Griffin averaged 121.5 yards per game over his 46 game career.
- The Ohio State record for team sacks is 12. The mark was set against Michigan State in 2005. The Buckeyes won 35-24.
- Ohio State is 96–24–3 (.793) in the seventh game of the season and is 39–12 (.764) as the away team.
- Ohio State is 13–2–2 on October 22nd and 4–0 when the second game of the season is played on the 22nd of October.
- The four victories were against Indiana (2005), Minnesota (1988), Michigan State (1983) and Northwestern (1977) are the other occasions Ohio State has played the 7th game of the season on this date.
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| OFFENSE | ||||
| 49.3 | 4th | POINTS FOR | 30.5 | 61st |
| 300.5 | 4th | RUSHING OFFENSE | 152.2 | 88th |
| 216.0 | 83rd | PASSING OFFENSE | 239.3 | 53rd |
| 516.5 | 12th | TOTAL OFFENSE | 391.5 | 82nd |
| .506 | 8th | 3rd DOWNS | .274 | 123rd |
| .886 | 38th | RED ZONE | .840 | 65th |
| DEFENSE | ||||
| 12.8 | 3rd | POINTS ALLOWED | 28.5 | 73rd |
| 120.8 | 20th | RUSH DEFENSE | 208.8 | 103rd |
| 159.5 | 6th | PASS DEFENSE | 172.7 | 13th |
| 89.4 | 4th | PASS EFFICIENCY DEFENSE | 118.2 | 39th |
| 280.3 | 6th | TOTAL DEFENSE | 381.5 | 52nd |
| .308 | 17th | 3rd DOWNS | .375 | 58th |
| .625 | 1st | RED ZONE | .885 | 90th |
| SPECIAL TEAMS | ||||
| 6.5 | 82nd | PUNT RETURN | 5.8 | 86th |
| 27.4 | 8th | KICKOFF RETURN | 20.2 | 78th |
| 46.9 | 2nd | NET PUNTING | 35.2 | 107th |
| MISCELLANEOUS | ||||
| + 1.3 | 4th | TURNOVER MARGIN | -0.3 | 89th |
| 8.0 | 107th | PENALTIES | 5.0 | 22nd |
| 16 | EDGE | 2 | ||
TODAY'S TRIVIA ANSWERS
How many times has Ohio State eclipsed 400 rushing yards in a game with Urban Meyer as head coach?
Answer: Three. 441 yards at Illinois in 2013, 410 yards against Rutgers in 2016 and 408 yards against Penn State in 2013.
Since 2013 only one team from the Power 5 has averaged more rushing yards per game than Ohio State. Can you name the that has "wrecked" the Buckeyes shot at the top spot?
Answer: Georgia Tech. Since 2013, the Yellow Jackets have averaged 291.2 rushing ypg. Ohio State is second with an average of 276.6 ypg.
Through six games, Ohio State has had 15 rushing plays gain 20 or more yards. Who has the Buckeyes' longest run from scrimmage in 2016? Hint, it was recorded against Rutgers.
Answer: Mike Weber's 49-yard run against Rutgers is the longest run recorded by an Ohio State player in 2016. The Buckeyes had five rushes of 20 or more yards against the Scarlet Knights.
If you missed it:
2017 Big Ten Recruiting Rankings
2017 Power Five Recruiting Rankings
