COLUMBUS — No. 2 Ohio State fell behind early against No. 5 Indiana but pulled away to win, 38-15, Saturday afternoon in Columbus.
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Will Howard passed for 201 yards and two scores. Caleb Downs returned a punt 79 yards for a touchdown in the third quarter to help break the game open.
The Buckeyes sacked Hoosier quarterback Kurtis Rourke five times.
Ohio State improves 10-1 overall, and 7-1 in the Big Ten.
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Indiana jumped out to a 7-0 lead as Ty Son Lawton’s two-yard touchdown run capped an 11-play, 70-yard scoring drive in the first quarter.
The Buckeyes drove to IU’s two-yard line but were stopped on fourth and one to turn it over on downs.
After forcing a punt, Ohio State took over at the Hoosier 44-yard line. Five plays later, Howard found Emeka Egbuka for an 11-yard touchdown pass to tie the game at 7-7.
The Buckeyes forced a punt with 1:41 left but the snap was muffed, and OSU took over at the IU seven-yard-line. Three plays later, TreVeyon Henderson’s four-yard touchdown put Ohio State ahead, 14-7, at halftime.
Ohio State’s defense forced a three-and-out to force a punt. After a 52-yard punt, Downs gathered the ball on a bounce at the OSU 21-yard line and returned it 79 yards for a score to increase it to 21-7.
On OSU’s second series of the third quarter, they drove 75 yards on 10 plays that Jelani Thurman capped with a one-yard touchdown catch to expand it to 28-7 after three quarters.
Jayden Fielding’s 45-yard-field goal with 8:56 left gave Ohio State a 31-7 advantage. Lawton scored his second touchdown, and the Hoosiers made the two-point conversion to cut it to 31-15.
Ohio State recovered the onside kick and Howard capped the scoring with a one-yard touchdown run.
The Buckeyes’ next game is on Nov. 30 when they host Michigan at noon at Ohio Stadium in Columbus.
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