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Ohio State football's freshman WR Jeremiah Smith stars as Buckeyes pull away to beat Akron
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- Ohio State football's freshman WR Jeremiah Smith stars as Buckeyes pull away to beat Akron
With a loaded, mostly experienced roster and a 48-point underdog on the other sideline, Ohio State might have expected to escape the hiccups typical of a season-opener.
But those expecting the No. 2 Buckeyes to be a juggernaut from the start needed to wait until the second half for the Buckeyes to overwhelm Akron on Saturday in their 52-6 victory.
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Ohio State actually trailed after a jittery start and led only 17-3 at halftime.
The highlight until the second half was Buckeye legend Archie Griffin dotting the "i" to cap "Script Ohio" at halftime, drawing a loud ovation from the Ohio Stadium crowd of 102,011.
Then the Buckeyes took care of business in the second half, outscoring the Zips 35-3.
"I thought we were a little uptight early on," said Ohio State coach Ryan Day, whose team was without middle linebacker Cody Simon and All-Big Ten left guard Donovan Jackson . "We can't play like that. We've got to come out of the gates playing loose. But I get it. For a lot of these guys, it was their first start."
Aug 31, 2024; Columbus, OH, USA; Ohio State Buckeyes running back TreVeyon Henderson (32) leaps over Akron Zips cornerback Devonte Golden-Nelson (3) during the first half of the NCAA football game at Ohio Stadium.
Kansas State transfer Will Howard played solidly in his Buckeye debut at quarterback. He was composed and made plays with both his arm and occasionally his feet. Howard finished 17 of 28 for 228 yards and three touchdown passes.
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Freshman receiver Jeremiah Smith shook off a shaky start to show why he is a phenom by catching Ohio State's first two touchdowns. He caught six passes for 92 yards.
The Buckeyes' defense mostly lived up to its billing. After Akron drove 47 yards for a field goal on its opening drive, the Zips gained only 130 yards. Ohio State yielded only 2.8 per play.
"We wanted to be able to destroy them in the first half, but it's the first game," said senior cornerback Denzel Burke , who had the first of Ohio State's two interceptions by wresting the ball from a Zips receiver. "We had to get those little jitters out. We adjusted in the second half and took over."
Aug 31, 2024; Columbus, OH, USA; Ohio State Buckeyes quarterback Will Howard (18) throws a pass over Akron Zips defensive lineman Kam Cheatom (22) during the first half of the NCAA football game at Ohio Stadium.
Ohio State's start was shaky
The Buckeyes had their struggles to start the game. On their second snap, Smith dropped a short pass from Howard and then had a false-start penalty on a three-and-out.
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On Akron's first offensive play after a Buckeyes punt, cornerback Davison Igbinosun drew a late-hit penalty for a hit on sliding quarterback Ben Finley . Igbinosun was originally called for targeting, which was overturned on replay review. Finley would be in and out of the game after that.
August 31, 2024; Columbus, Ohio, USA; Ohio State Buckeyes wide receiver Jeremiah Smith (4) celebrates after scoring a touchdown during the first half of Saturday’s NCAA Division I football game against the Akron Zips at Ohio Stadium.
That jump-started a Zips drive that moved the ball to the OSU 23. A loss after a bad snap and a J.T. Tuimoloau sack made it third-and-28. But Akron gained 10 yards on third down and kicked a 48-yard field goal to take the lead.
After Ohio State took a 7-3 lead, its next possession ended on an incompletion on fourth-and-5 at the Akron 25.
Aug 31, 2024; Columbus, OH, USA; Ohio State Buckeyes wide receiver Brandon Inniss (11) celebrates a touchdown catch by wide receiver Jeremiah Smith (4) during the first half of the NCAA football game against the Akron Zips at Ohio Stadium.
Will Howard's connection with Jeremiah Smith begins
Howard is a fifth-year starter making his 29thcareer start. Smith is believed to be the first Buckeye receiver to open his career as a starter since Gary Williams in 1979. The veteran and the kid look poised to create plenty of magic.
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It didn't take long for Smith, the No. 1 player nationally in the 2024 recruiting class, to brush off his slow start.
Aug 31, 2024; Columbus, OH, USA; Ohio State Buckeyes cornerback Denzel Burke (10) celebrates an interception with safety Sonny Styles (6) and safety Lathan Ransom (8) during the first half of the NCAA football game against the Akron Zips at Ohio Stadium.
He made a nice catch on a curl pattern for a first down on third-and-10 to spark Ohio State's first touchdown drive, which he completed with a catch he grabbed barely inbounds for a 16-yard score.
Smith caught the Buckeyes' second touchdown on a 9-yard slant thrown nicely by Howard into tight coverage.
"He's a dude, man," Howard said of Smith. "If you get him in 1-on-1 coverage, he's going to win."
Howard and Smith connected again on Ohio State's first possession of the third quarter. Smith was in tight coverage against safety David Daymon when he made a diving catch of a perfectly thrown Howard pass for a 45-yard gain to the Akron 2.
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That set up running back Quinshon Judkins ' first touchdown as a Buckeye on the next play for a 24-3 lead.
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Ohio State's defense creates havoc
The Buckeyes were No. 2 nationally last year in scoring defense and No. 4 in yardage allowed, but they were mediocre in creating turnovers and sacks.
Changing the latter has been a point of emphasis this season, and they did Saturday.
Playing without middle linebacker and captain Cody Simon, the Buckeyes got four sacks in the first half. Defensive end J.T. Tuimoloau had 1½ sacks and safety Lathan Ransom had two tackles for losses. Defensive end Jack Sawyer applied pressure repeatedly.
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Ohio State had 10 tackles for loss.
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Best of all for the Buckeyes, their defense scored twice. In the third quarter, defensive end Caden Curry jarred the ball loose from quarterback Tahj Bullock. Safety Lathan Ransom retrieved the ball and ran 27 yards for a touchdown.
The defense capped the scoring late in the fourth quarter when linebacker Gabe Powers caught a pass deflected by freshman defensive end Eddrick Houston and ran 25 yards for the touchdown.
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This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Jeremiah Smith stars as Ohio State football pulls away to beat Akron
