COLUMBUS, Ohio - Ohio State turned out another dominant win in their 34-10 victory over Michigan State. The offense had an incredible final three quarters going for 529 total yards of offense and the defense was able to stifle the Spartans on the ground and through the air, only allowing 10 points that all came in the second quarter.
Against a top 25 team, this was the best win and first test of Ohio State's 2019 campaign, and they passed with flying colors. Despite the team effort that led to the win, how did the rushing game, Garrett Wilson and Justin Fields turn out during Saturday's game? Find out in the Sunday portion of Five Questions.
Can the rushing game continue their dominance against Michigan State? Â
In a word, yes.
323 rushing yards against one of the best rushing defenses in the nation may be the best performance by any of Ohio State's units this season. J.K. Dobbins went for 172 yards on 24 carries and Master Teague III rushed for 90 yards on 14 carries. Throw in Justin Fields' 11 carries for 61 yards, and the Buckeyes averaged 6.6 yards per carry, a much improved mark over the 0.9 yards per carry the Spartans had been allowing coming into the game.
Michigan State, who was tied for number one in the nation in yards per carry and fourth in the nation in yards per game (56.4), has now dropped to 26th in yards per carry and 22nd in yards per game. Ohio State's dominant performance raised Michigan State's rushing yards allowed per game by almost 50.
There are more numbers I could rattle off to emphasize how big this performance was, but to sum it up, Dobbins and Teague were able to take over this Michigan State defensive line which had been bullying opposing rushers up to this point.
I said this may be their worst game of the season against a top rushing team, but much like the Buckeyes have responded to adversity this season, it turned out to be their best.
Answer: Yes