Ohio State Rolls Past Michigan State to Bolster Playoff Hopes

EAST LANSING, Mich. - The players and coaches of No. 8 Michigan State and No. 14 Ohio State, speaking before Saturday's game, described their teams as mirror images.

Each had a 7-1 record over all, each was 4-0 in the Big Ten, and each shared the lead of the conference's East Division. Both teams relied on physical, stingy defenses and on offenses that scored seemingly at will.

The parallels appeared everywhere on paper, but they disappeared in the chilly and damp atmosphere of Spartan Stadium.

Ohio State displayed offensive variety and precision off the poised passing performance of the freshman quarterback J. T. Barrett on the way to a dominating 49-37 victory.

Barrett, who was the third-string quarterback during spring practice, threw for three touchdowns, ran for two and passed for 300 yards. Ohio State rolled up 568 yards of offense, smashing a previously stalwart Michigan State defense.

The Spartans had held opponents an average to 20.2 points and 279.4 yards of offense.

'We will never forget tonight,' Ohio State Coach Urban Meyer said in a postgame interview with ABC. 'The future is bright at Ohio State. A young team just played a pretty veteran team and came out on top.'

The Buckeyes have not lost in Spartan Stadium since 1999 and have defeated Michigan State four times in the past six games.

The win puts wrinkles in the futures of the Buckeyes and the Spartans.

Ohio State assumes sole possession of the East Division lead and the inside track for another trip to the Big Ten championship game, in Indianapolis on Dec. 6. The Buckeyes will move up in the polls and are likely to improve their stock with the College Football Playoff selection committee.

Michigan State's hopes for reaching the Big Ten championship game, and of being in the conversation for the national title playoff, are shattered.

Each team has three games remaining in the season. Ohio State next faces Minnesota on the road and then has Indiana and Michigan at home. Michigan State has one home game left, against Rutgers, and two away, at Maryland and Penn State.

This was the first meeting of the teams as East Division foes after the realignment of the Big Ten to welcome Rutgers and Maryland and the creation of new divisions.

Michigan State's only loss entering Saturday's game had been in the second week of the season against No. 3 Oregon in Eugene.

The Michigan State-Ohio State rivalry has ratcheted up in intensity the past few years as the Spartans have moved into the Big Ten elite. The debate this week, in East Lansing and in Columbus, was over whether the rivalry had reached the heated level of that between Michigan and Ohio State.

Neither team would go that far, but members of both said that this game was an eagerly anticipated rematch of the 2013 Big Ten championship. Michigan State won the title, and a trip to the Rose Bowl, with a 34-24 comeback win in Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis. The Buckeyes said they had not forgotten that Michigan State ended their Bowl Championship Subdivision title chances.

The title game provided a big-stage confidence boost for quarterback Connor Cook, a sophomore at the time.

This renewal of the rivalry was again decided by a quarterback, but not Cook. He had a quiet night, with 358 yards passing and two touchdowns. Jeremy Langford, a senior running back scored three touchdowns for Michigan State and rushed for 137 yards.

Barrett, who was thrust into the starting role for the Buckeyes when the senior quarterback Braxton Miller was lost to a right shoulder injury before the season started, looked unflappable.

The freshman showed the poise of an upperclassman, threw comfortably all game, aided by a rock-solid Ohio State offensive line.

The Buckeyes came out passing, going to the air seven times in their first series of the game. Barrett rushed for two touchdowns and threw for two in the first half.

As the game wore on, and the Michigan State defense was unable to penetrate with its usually effective pass rush, Barrett grew more confident in picking apart the secondary.

In particular, the Buckeyes, targeted the one-on-one protection of the sophomore cornerback Darian Hicks and the junior safety R J Williamson, often leading to big gains.

Ohio State took a 28-21 lead after two quarters, the first time Michigan State had been behind at halftime all season.

The Buckeyes unleashed more offense, in the form of Barrett's running and passing, in the second half. Barrett continued to throw to his favorite targets, receivers Devin Smith and Michael Thomas, and the sophomore running back Ezekiel Elliott sliced through widening holes in the Spartan defense.

The lead grew to 49-31 midway in the fourth quarter, and some of the 76,409 bundled-up fans began to leave.

But Michigan State found a second wind, enough to keep Ohio State from feeling comfortable. The Spartans scored two touchdowns in the fourth quarter, cutting Ohio State's margin to 12.

The game was not a complete showcase for the Buckeyes, who had two special-teams fumbles in the first half.

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