Indiana line sets up Ramsey for career passing day

The bulkhead in front of Indiana quarterback Peyton Ramsey held strong.

Facing wave upon wave of pressure from Ohio State on Saturday, an Indiana offensive line with no one shorter than 6 feet 3 and no one less than 306 pounds kept one of the nation's toughest defensive lines from engulfing Ramsey.

With the time given to him throughout much of the Buckeyes’ 49-26 victory, Ramsey set career highs with 322 passing yards and 49 attempts. He also matched a career high with three touchdown passes.

“They did a great job blocking and holding their own against a really good D-line, and just allowing us to make plays,” Hoosiers receiver Nick Westbrook said.

Still, the waves kept crashing. And by the second half, they started to roll into the backfield.

Indiana’s first drive of the half lost a yard, with a rush for 1 yard, an incomplete pass that was disrupted by sophomore defensive end Chase Young and the first Ohio State sack with sophomore linebacker Pete Werner crashing into Ramsey.

The Hoosiers’ next drive lasted longer but ended worse. Indiana picked up two first downs only to see the drive end in a strip-sack by Ohio State's Dre'Mont Jones, who recovered the fumble.

The result was an offense that began to struggle. Ramsey threw for 239 yards in the first half and the offense registered 317 yards, scoring 20 points. In the second half, the offense had 89 yards, a touchdown and a failed two-point conversion. Ramsey had 83 yards passing.

The strong pressure continued, and coach Tom Allen said Ohio State went with less man coverage in the second half, which proved effective.

Campbell’s breakout catch

Indiana came into the second half with momentum, having closed its deficit to 28-20 with a field goal on its final drive of the first half.

But that momentum quickly went by the wayside in the first minute of the third quarter when Ohio State's Parris Campbell caught a pass at the 34-yard line and converted into a 71-yard touchdown reception.

“You wanted to call timeout right when you saw it happen because you knew it was a touchdown,” Allen said.