Junior cornerback Davison Igbinosun (1) lifts senior cornerback Jordan Hancock (7) after a play in No. 2 Ohio State’s 31-7 victory over Northwestern Saturday at Wrigley Field. Credit: Carly Damon | Asst. Photo Editor
A 24-point scoring margin might suggest the Buckeyes dominated the Wildcats in an end-to-end victory.
The Ohio State defense, however, came out flat-footed — a recurring trend that’s been the Buckeyes’ M.O. throughout the 2024-25 season.
The Buckeyes nearly gave up a touchdown on Northwestern’s first drive, after the Wildcats marched down the field on an 11-play, 59-yard drive.
But with the Wildcats posing a threat in the red zone, Ohio State’s defense stepped up when it mattered.
Defensive end Jack Sawyer stripped Northwestern quarterback Jack Lausch, before cornerback Davison Igbinosun picked up the fumble to secure the turnover.
On the ensuing drive, the Buckeyes punted the ball after forcing the turnover, but Northwestern didn’t make the same mistake. It drove 85 yards over 12 plays, recording four plays of 10-plus yards and culminating in a rushing touchdown from Lausch.
Ohio State struggled to get off the field, as Northwestern converted on third down twice on each of its first two drives.
Day said this struggle was perhaps the biggest factor in Ohio State’s initial setbacks against the Wildcats.
“We struggled getting off the field,” Day said. “On third down on that first drive, I think it was third and 10, 11 or 12; it was third extra long, so they ran it for a first down, then converted on a couple third downs, and then we settled down a little bit.”
Then, the Buckeyes woke up and never looked back.
Following Lausch’s score, Northwestern had seven total drives. On these drives, the Buckeyes forced a punt, three separate three-and-outs, and turned the Wildcats over on downs twice.
Day said he knew Northwestern would attempt to get an early jump on the Buckeyes, but was nevertheless impressed by his team’s emphatic response.
“[Northwestern] really controlled the first quarter of the game. I thought about taking the ball early in this game because I knew that would be their plan and decided to continue with what we’ve been doing,” Day said. “I thought we did a nice job at the end of the first half going into the third quarter, where it’s very important to play that way.”
Cornerback Jordan Hancock said the Buckeyes defense felt frustrated by the Wildcats’ early score, but quickly bounced back as one cohesive unit to reclaim the game’s momentum.
“We didn’t like them scoring. It was a long drive too, it wasn’t, like, a one-play touchdown,” Hancock said. “It definitely tested our manhood for real, so it’s good we went out there, got those stops and [they] didn’t score any from there.”
