COLUMBUS, Ohio - It was a tough and gritty game as it usually is between these two teams, but for the third consecutive season, Ohio State found a way to come out on top, this time by a score of 28-17.

Ohio State got off to an early lead but some self-inflicted wounds by the offense helped the Nittany Lions back into the game. Despite the mistakes, the Buckeyes were still able to expose Penn State's rushing defense to claim the Big Ten East title and punch their ticket to the Big Ten Championship Game. There was a lot that happened in Ohio State's biggest game of the season, so find out what we learned from Ohio State's 28-17 win over Penn State.

This is the third time this season that Ohio State has gone against the top rushing defense in the Big Ten. Previously it was Michigan State and then after that Wisconsin, and now the Buckeyes had an opportunity to assert their dominance again against Penn State's rushing defense which was only allowing 2.2 yards per carry going into the game.

Ohio State got the running game going early with 91 yards on 12 rushing attempts on their first drive of the game. Justin Fields threw the ball only once on that drive but ran for 35 yards on four carries while J.K. Dobbins went for 56 yards on eight carries. With the Nittany Lions only allowing 75.9 yards per game heading into the contest, the Buckeyes made it clear that they weren't afraid of going against Penn State's rushing defense.

The running attack slowed down a bit in the second quarter with the Buckeyes only averaging 3.1 yards per carry, but things kicked back into gear in the second half as Ohio State tried to run things out. Overall, the Buckeyes finished with 213 yards and averaged 3.7 yards per carry, both highs against the Nittany Lions this season. With three strong performances against three good rushing defenses, Ohio State has made it clear that Dobbins and company can compete effectively against any rushing defense in the country.

Early in the game, James Franklin was faced with a major decision. The Nittany Lions found themselves facing 4th and 4 at the Ohio State 40 yard line, and he opted to punt the ball away. The Buckeyes then scored on the ensuing drive. Later, in the second quarter, Franklin faced a similar decision with a 4th and 7 at the Ohio State 36-yard line and he again decided to punt the ball away.

Penn State's defense held on the ensuing drive, but it spoke to a larger issue of the way the fourth down calls decided this game for the Nittany Lions. While Penn State decided not to go for it twice, Ohio State went for it fourth down on two separate occasions during their second quarter drive in which they scored to take a 14-0 lead. Given the later issues the Buckeyes had with ball security, it absolutely could have been a game for the Nittany Lions had they gambled and tried for some points early in the game.

The willingness to go for it on fourth down speaks to the aggression Ryan Day has brought up all season and how the Buckeyes never want to let their opponents off the hook. The fourth down decisions made by Day reflected that attitude like calling timeouts up against Rutgers or pulling off an onside kick against Maryland, but this time it was against a big opponent, and those fourth down decisions by Day helped to ice the game for Ohio State.

For much of this season, the talk has been how efficiently Ohio State has been able to execute on both offense and defense. Early on in the game, things seemed to be running as they have in Ohio State's other 10 wins this season, but things soon began to derail. Fields fumbled the ball at the goal line, turning what would have been a 14-0 game into a much closer affair. Penn State couldn't capitalize on that drive, but things took a sharp turn in the second half.

Ohio State scored on their first drive in the second half to take a seemingly insurmountable 21-0 lead against the Nittany Lions, but fumbles on consecutive drives by Dobbins and Fields gave Penn State great field position and a chance to make things close again. Even with Sean Clifford out due to injury, backup Will Levis was still able to do work with the short field which resulted in 10 points on the two drives to cut the lead to just four.

Ohio State was able to regain a significant lead off an impressive touchdown grab from Chris Olave and eventually ice the Nittany Lions, but the Buckeyes showed some uncharacteristic mistakes against Penn State that left the outcome of the game in question in the fourth quarter for the first time this season. As the season progresses and the opponents become more challenging for Ohio State, limited those self-inflicted wounds will be a focus when looking back at this week's film.

For the third consecutive season and the fifth time in the last seven seasons, Ohio State will be returning in two weeks to the Big Ten Championship Game in Indianapolis.

Ryan Day's football team has run roughshod over the Big Ten this season, outscoring conference opponents 352-72 en route to an 8-0 conference record in his first full season as head coach. It's normal to expect some sort of dropoff when transitioning to a new coach, especially so when the former coach is Urban Meyer, but Day has exceeded expectations in his first year with a team that has fired on all cylinders in every game this season.

The Game obviously remains next week for Day to cap off a perfect regular season, but regardless of the turnout of that game or how the rest of the season plays out beyond the Big Ten Championship, Day has shown Ohio State fans that they have a lot to be excited about in the future.