Were you expecting a blowout?
After No. 4 Ohio State won its last four games by at least 40 points each, a matchup against No. 25 Michigan State might have led some to believe the score would be close, or closer than the Buckeyes' previous margins of victory.
However, they cruised to a 34-10 win to move to 6-0 on the season.
The loss, another daunting one for the Spartans, will likely send Michigan State out of the Top 25 as lands it at 4-2.
Three takeaways from No. 4 Ohio State's dominant win
No one can stop Ohio State
Did the win propel Ohio State to the No. 1 ranking in the country? We'll see, but what we know now is that no one can stop this team. Michigan State presented the first big challenge for Fields and company and the Buckeyes passed with flying colors.
Despite very rare mistakes like quarterback Justin Fields throwing the first interception of his college career after 175 pass attempts, the Buckeyes looked nearly as good as they have all season. They came back after a mere three-point first quarter and made the proper adjustments to put up 24 more points before halftime.
After they cemented their lead over the first two quarters, they didn't need to score a point in the third — and surprisingly didn't — but still rode to a commanding win. In total, the offense put up 529 total yards (compared to Michigan State's 285) with Fields accounting for 206 yards through the air (two touchdowns and the lone interception) himself on 17-of-25 passing. He also rushed for 61 yards and a touchdown.
If the Spartans couldn't tame Justin Fields, they needed to contain the run
Fields has been impressive, that's more than clear at this point, but if Michigan State wanted a chance it had to focus its efforts on containing the run. Well, you can guess how well that turned out.
J.K. Dobbins ran up, down, across and through the Spartans all night long. The junior rusher, who will likely have a spot waiting for him in the NFL, continued to dominate on the ground. It's quite the one-two punch from Fields and Dobbins and again, Michigan State had no answer.
Ohio State is averaging a whopping 281 rushing yards, mostly from the efforts of Dobbins, who entered the game second in the nation in rushing yards. He added 172 to that total Saturday, including a 67-yard touchdown.
J.K. DOBBINS RUNS IT 67 YARDS TO THE 🏠 pic.twitter.com/lN9XZdYo44
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) October 6, 2019
By the end of the matchup, it wasn't a matter of when the Buckeyes would score but who would do the scoring: Fields or Dobbins.
When will Michigan State's offense find its footing?
The Spartans have been anything but consistent offensively. Their last three games before Saturday's contest include a head-scratching 10-7 loss to Arizona State at home and then two consecutive wins, over Northwestern and Indiana, by a combined 71 points.
We just want it to make sense and Saturday it didn't.
Michigan State tried to cut its deficit, but Ohio State's explosive second quarter kept the Spartans far out of reach.
Brian Lewerke put up some impressive numbers himself. He finished 20-of-38 passing for 218 yards and one touchdown but he couldn't finish drives against a tough Buckeyes defense.
He also finished the game with one interception.