Ohio St. starts slow but wallops Indiana
TOP 25/BIG TEN NO. 2 OHIO STATE 49, INDIANA 21
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. — J.K. Dobbins broke Ohio State’s freshman record by rushing for 181 yards in his college debut, J.T. Barrett threw three touchdown passes and the second-ranked Buckeyes pulled away to beat Indiana 49-21 on Thursday night.
With Mike Weber, Ohio State’s top runner in 2016, out with a hamstring injury, Dobbins stepped in and surpassed Maurice Clarett’s previous debut record of 175 yards set in 2002 against Texas Tech.
Barrett overcame a slow start to finish 20 of 35 for 304 yards. He added 61 yards rushing and another score to move within two touchdowns of matching Drew Brees’ Big Ten career record of 106 total touchdowns.
They didn’t reach the end zone until Antonio Williams’ 1-yard plunge with 5:17 left in the first half. They finally retook the lead on Barrett’s 2-yard scoring run midway through the third quarter and pulled away after Parris Campbell hauled in a 74-yard TD pass to make it 27-21 with 4:38 left in the third.
In other games Thursday, Mason
Rudolph threw for 303 yards and three touchdowns and ran for another score to help No. 10 Oklahoma State beat Tulsa 59-24. … Hayden Moore had touchdown passes to Thomas Geddis, Kahill Lewis and Tyler Cogswell in Cincinnati’s 2614 victory over Austin Peay. … Tyler Johnson had a 61-yard touchdown reception from Conor Rhoda in the first quarter to give Minnesota a spark, and the Gophers ground out a 17-7 victory over Buffalo. … Diontae Johnson returned the second-half kickoff 99 yards to break open a close game and Toledo opened the season with a 47-13 victory over Elon. … Devon Spalding scored from 4 yards out in the third overtime to lift Central Michigan to a 30-27 victory over Rhode Island. … McKenzie Milton threw for four touchdowns and 360 yards, and Central Florida routed Florida International 61-17 to spoil Coach Butch Davis’ return to the field. … John Wolford threw for three touchdowns and ran for another, and Wake Forest opened its season by routing Presbyterian 517. … Utah quarterback Tyler Huntley threw for 227 yards, rushed for 70 and accounted for three touchdowns as the Utes overwhelmed FCS North Dakota 37-16. … Fifth-year senior Bryant Shirreffs came off the bench to lead Connecticut on three second-half scoring drives and the Huskies came from behind to beat Holy Cross 27-20 in Randy Edsall’s return as head coach.