Inspired Sermon
Backup leads as Buckeyes take Big Ten title
INDIANAPOLIS — Ohio State running back Trey Sermon got the message.
Sermon listened to coach Ryan Day preach about everything the Buckeyes had overcome to reach Saturday’s Big Ten championship game. He also heard Day urging his players to overcome more obstacles in the second half against Northwestern.
So Sermon delivered — with a record-breaking performance.
The senior ran for 331 yards and scored two touchdowns, both of them after halftime, to help Ohio State rally past the Wildcats for a 22-10 win at Lucas Oil Stadium, the program’s fourth straight league title and a likely spot in the College Football Playoff.
The Buckeyes (6-0), fourth in the CPF rankings released Tuesday, will find out this afternoon if they’ll be part of the four-team playoff for the fourth time since the format debuted in the 2014 season.
“I’m aware of my ability, and I know I’m more than capable of playing my game, which is making guys miss and playing at the second level,” said Sermon, who was named MVP of the Big Ten championship game. “When I’m in the zone, I feel like the game just really slows down and I can see everything develop, make the right reads and make the right cuts.”
The 6-foot-1, 215-pound graduate transfer from Marietta, Georgia — a former Sprayberry High School standout, Sermon spent his first three college seasons at Oklahoma — used the combination of vision and speed to average 11.4 yards on 29 carries against one of the nation’s top defenses. In the process, he broke Eddie George’s single-game program record and the Big Ten championship game mark.
Sermon did it all when the Buckeyes needed him most, too. Quarterback Justin Fields said he couldn’t throw the ball late in the game because of a sprained right thumb, starting running back Master Teague left in the first half with an undisclosed injury, and star receiver Chris Olave was inactive and didn’t make the trip.
With Ohio State struggling and down 10-6 at halftime, it had a familiar feel to Day.
“This game was a microcosm of what this whole season has been,” Day said. “These guys, they’ve been gritty, they’re tough. They’ve been through so much and they just don’t flinch.”
For Northwestern (6-2, No. 14 CFP), it was agonizing. The Wildcats led from the moment Cam Porter scored on a 9-yard with 4:03 left in the first quarter until the moment Sermon answered with a 9-yard run to give the Buckeyes a 13-10 lead with 2:41 left in the third.
In between, Northwestern settled for a field goal on one drive and blew another scoring chance when Peyton Ramsey was picked off in the end zone to open the second half. Ramsey was 24-of-37 passing for 224 yards and ran effectively, too, but he threw two interceptions and lost a fumble — and all three turnovers were in the final two quarters.
“I’m just hurting for our seniors,” coach Pat Fitzgerald said. “We didn’t come down here to play hard, we came down here to win, and not to get the job done is bitterly disappointing.”
Ohio State added a 26-yard field goal early in the fourth quarter, and Sermon, fittingly, sealed the win with a 3-yard scoring run with 4:03 to go.
“We wanted to throw early, wear them out and run in the second half,” Day said. “That’s how it kind of played out.”
The Buckeyes were assured of their spot in Saturday’s game only after Big Ten officials waived the league’s six-game eligibility requirement enacted amid the COVID-19 pandemic, and Ohio State took full advantage of its chance by adding another win even if didn’t come with the so-called style points that might impress those who decide the four-team playoff’s field.
However, the CFP selection committee might want some answers from the Buckeyes before releasing the brackets. They had nearly two dozen players on their inactive list for the second straight game, and Olave wasn’t the only big name missing. Linebacker Baron Browning, defensive end Tyler Friday and punter Drue Chrisman were inactive, too.
Day said only “a few” of Saturday’s inactive players might have to sit out the mandated 21 days for testing positive for COVID-19. Starting safety Marcus Hooker didn’t dress, either, and injuries to Fields and Teague could further complicate matters.
Fitzgerald still believes the Buckeyes belong.
“No. 1, they’re undefeated,” he said. “No. 2, they have an incredibly talented team. They’ve overcome a bunch of adversity through COVID and run the gamut of the Big Ten season. With the ups and downs, I don’t think everyone understands the emotion that goes into the challenges they’ve been through.”