No. 1 Ohio State is on track to spend a fifth straight week at the top of the AP rankings.
The defending national champions claimed a 42-3 blowout win over visiting Minnesota on Saturday night to improve to 5-0 to start the 2025 season.
Quarterback Julian Sayin impressed fans by going 23-for-27 with 326 passing yards and three passing touchdowns to lead Ohio State to the win.
Sayin’s success came in part to due to wide receivers Carnell Tate and Jeremiah Smith, who combined for 16 catches, 250 receiving yards and three touchdowns.
Minnesota scored first on Saturday with an opening-drive field goal, and briefly held onto the lead as Ohio State kicker Jayden Fielding missed a 53-yard field goal attempt.
The Buckeyes responded by scoring three straight touchdowns while keeping the Golden Gophers off the scoreboard for the rest of the first half.
Smith started out the second quarter by dancing past his defender to grab his first touchdown catch of the night.
The Buckeyes’ next touchdown drive took just a single play thanks to a 44-yard touchdown pass from Sayin to Tate.
Tate finished the first half with 163 receiving yards, the most by any Ohio State player in a single half since Jaxon Smith-Njigba in 2022, per the Big Ten.
The Buckeyes continued dominating in the third quarter, even gaining 36 yards on a punt return trick play.
Sayin added another touchdown pass to Smith in the fourth quarter before he was replaced by backup quarterback Lincoln Kienholz, who ran in a touchdown to cap off the victory.
The Buckeyes will look to improve to 6-0 next Saturday during a trip to take on No. 22 Illinois, which will mark Ohio State’s first ranked opponent since a season-opening win over Texas.
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