Ohio State coach Urban Meyer hasn’t hesitated to talk about the Buckeyes’ problems on kickoffs this season.
His defeated and disgusted expressions on the sideline after a kickoff gone wrong, which typically draw the attention of the TV cameras, often tell a thousand words more.
Kickoffs were the one subject Meyer did not want to talk about, however, after Ohio State’s 39-38 win over Penn State on Saturday.
Ohio State had major issues in kickoff coverage on Saturday, starting with the first play of the game, when Saquon Barkley returned the opening kickoff 97 yards for a touchdown. The Buckeyes proceeded to squib kick the ball for the rest of the game, consistently giving the Nittany Lions good field position just to avoid the threat of another Barkley game-breaker, but even that didn’t prevent Penn State from getting another long return later in the game, when linebacker Koa Farmer took a short kick 59 yards to set the Nittany Lions up in the red zone for what would be another touchdown drive.
Meyer acknowledged after Saturday’s game that kickoffs continued to be a problem for the Buckeyes, but on a night where his team made an epic fourth-quarter comeback to win its biggest game of the year, he expressed his desire to leave it that.
"Our kickoff coverage, I'm not even going to take questions on that," Meyer said in his postgame press conference. "We're going to have to just make some serious changes on personnel and everything else. That was a comedy."
When one reporter ignored that request, however, and decided to ask Meyer about the kickoff issues anyway, Ohio State’s coach gave a deadpan response.
"J.T. is a great leader and he's a guy I love to death," Meyer said, referencing Ohio State quarterback J.T. Barrett while diverting completely away from the question and eliciting laughter from the room.
Meyer preferred, understandably, to focus on the positives after Saturday’s game, in which the Buckeyes defeated a team that was ranked No. 2 in the country, propelling Ohio State (7-1, 5-0 Big Ten) back to the top of the Big Ten’s hierarchy and back into the national championship conversation.
One of the positives from Saturday’s game was the play of Demetrius Knox, who acquitted himself well in his second career start at right guard and continued to take advantage of his opportunity to replace the injured Branden Bowen at the position.
Ohio State left tackle Jamarco Jones, who said he loves Knox like a brother, said he was proud of the way Knox stepped in and performed for a second consecutive game.
"When Branden went down, it was unfortunate, but to have somebody who can step up and play well, it just speaks to our unit and our team," Jones said. "The next man has to step in, we play for each other, so it’s just great to see him doing well and getting the shot now. It’s unfortunate what caused it, but to see somebody step up like that and play well, I couldn’t be more proud of him."
Another positive from Saturday’s game was the play of Ohio State’s defensive line, which led the way as the Buckeyes recorded 13 tackles for loss. One specific tackle for loss that stood out among them, though, was the play made by Ohio State defensive end Sam Hubbard on Penn State’s second-to-last possession of the game, when Hubbard wrapped up Barkley and Penn State quarterback Trace McSorley simultaneously on a burst into the backfield.
It’s not often that a defender is seen tackling two players at once in a football game – especially two players of the caliber of Barkley and McSorley – but Hubbard credited his preparation and his effort for making that play possible.
"It meant the world to me," Hubbard said. "I wanted more than anything in the world to make a play like that. I’ve been waiting my whole life for a moment like that. And for it to finally happen, it was really emotional."
Hubbard’s play wasn’t the first famous one-on-two tackle against Penn State in recent memory; Joey Bosa made one in 2014, when he pushed Penn State running back Akeel Lynch into then-Nittany Lions quarterback Christian Hackenberg for a fourth-down, overtime, game-ending sack. So it was only natural, after Hubbard’s spectacular and key fourth-quarter play of his own, that he would be asked whose double tackle against the Nittany Lions was better: his or Bosa’s?
Hubbard said he had to defer to his elder, but he was honored to make a play that made that question even worth asking.
"I wish that was 4th-and-10, last play of the game to close it off, but it wasn’t, so I’m going to have to give it to him," Hubbard said. "I’m just happy to be in the same conversation as that play."
The player who drew more praise than anyone from Saturday night’s game, however, was Barrett. After completing 33 of 39 passing attempts for 328 yards and four touchdowns and running 17 times for an additional 95 yards, Barrett was heaped with praise not only by his teammates and Meyer, but also by the game’s opposing coach, James Franklin.
"What I saw tonight is you got a veteran quarterback who’s being protected extremely well and they got really good skill players," Franklin said. "He’s a damn good quarterback, and we weren’t able to make him uncomfortable in the pocket tonight at all."
Ohio State’s offense received more praise from Farmer, who made it clear that he was impressed with the way the Buckeyes prepared to face Penn State’s defense.
"They just made more plays. Their concepts were pretty good," Farmer said. "The plays they were running and their game plan against us was really well done."
Numerous Penn State players, including Barkley and safety Marcus Allen, also took to Twitter after Saturday’s game to congratulate Barrett and Buckeye running backs J.K. Dobbins and Mike Weber on a job well done.
Dobbins and Weber responded to those messages to give Barkley and Allen credit for the way they played in a hard-fought loss.