No. 2 Ohio State clinches Big Ten East title with defeat of No. 9 Penn State

George Schroeder | USA TODAY

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COLUMBUS, Ohio – For long stretches, it seemed safe to declare No. 2 Ohio State – well, possibly the nation’s best team, but at least the most complete – the Buckeyes then went shaky for a few minutes. Ahead by two touchdowns in the third quarter, Ohio State coughed up consecutive fumbles, and nearly the entirety of a lead that was once 21-0, before reestablishing control in a 28-17 win against No. 9 Penn State.

In the end, though, Ohio State was too much, for too long. Look at it this way: Ohio State flirted with dominance, lost three fumbles for the first time since 2009, and still won by 11. The Buckeyes’ defense stuffed Penn State in the first half, then sealed things with Justin Hilliard’s fourth-quarter interception.

Here are four takeaways from Ohio State’s win against Penn State:

- Ohio State threatened a blowout, but was slowed by its own mistakes. Justin Fields fumbled going into the end zone, and another promising possession was derailed by a holding penalty. But with the Buckeyes’ defense, it didn’t really matter. Penn State finished the first half with 64 total yards on 25 plays, a 2.6-yard average.

Ohio State’s 14-0 halftime lead felt much, much larger. Then the Buckeyes took the third-quarter kickoff and rolled 75 yards in 10 plays – it was mostly J.K. Dobbins before a perfectly feathered pass from Fields to K.J. Hill for a 24-yard touchdown connection. It seemed insurmountable – but Penn State drove for a touchdown, and then the Buckeyes started fumbling – one by Dobbins, another by Fields – that led to 10 quick points and turned a laugher into something more tense.

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- The talent of Fields is undeniable, but his inexperience was also apparent at times against a good Penn State defense. The sophomore quarterback occasionally held the ball too long, leading to sacks, at times made the wrong decision on zone reads and lost two fumbles.

Not that it mattered too much. In the first half, Fields was 10 of 14 for 108 yards and ran for 59 yards on 11 carries, too. Even with flaws – which seemed mostly like the kinds of things that get smoothed out with time – Fields’ ability takes Ohio State’s offense from good to great.

- Penn State lost quarterback Sean Clifford to injury early in the third quarter, but redshirt freshman Will Levis was more than adequate. Levis showed off a big arm and running ability – at 6-3, 229 pounds, he’s hard to bring down – and more important, seemed unfazed at being thrust into the cauldron of Ohio Stadium, leading the Nittany Lions to 17 points in the third quarter.

But early in the fourth, with Penn State on the move again, Levis threw a bad interception over the middle into a pile of bodies; Hilliard emerge with the ball and a chance to make it a one-score game was gone.

- By winning, the Buckeyes clinched the Big Ten East. We bring this up because it means Ohio State could lose next week in Ann Arbor – we know, but Michigan’s playing much better, it’s a rivalry game, and go with us – and yet would still be a shoo-in for the College Football Playoff if it won the Big Ten championship game (in which it would be a heavy favorite).