Field Level Media
Dec 19, 2020
Trey Sermon set Ohio State and Big Ten Championship Game records with 331 rushing yards as No. 4 Ohio State rallied to defeat No. 14 Northwestern 22-10 in Indianapolis on Saturday.
Ohio State (6-0) trailed 10-6 at the half but won its fourth straight conference title when Sermon had touchdown runs of 9 yards to take a 13-10 lead in the third quarter and 3 yards with four minutes left for the final margin against the Wildcats (6-2).
Eddie George ran for 314 yards for the Buckeyes against Illinois in 1995. The previous title game record was 220 yards by Ohio State's Ezekiel Elliott in 2014 versus Wisconsin.
"I was able to get in a groove and keep it rolling," Sermon said. "My teammates were there to support me. They made it easy."
With quarterback Justin Fields struggling, Sermon took over and rushed for 271 yards in the second half. He finished with 29 carries.
After a fumble by Northwestern quarterback Peyton Ramsey, the Buckeyes got a 26-yard field goal from Blake Haubeil to take a 16-10 lead with 12:07 to play.
The Wildcats, who were 20 1/2-point underdogs, led at halftime with a 9-yard touchdown run by Cam Porter on their first possession and Charlie Kuhbander's 47-yard field goal near the midpoint of the second quarter.
Ohio State drove to the Northwestern 25 or better three times in the first half but came away with field goals of 41 and 43 yards by Haubeil the first two times.
In the final seconds of the half, the Buckeyes were at the Wildcats' 9-yard line when Brandon Joseph made a one-handed interception of Fields in the end zone, Joseph's sixth pick of the season.
Fields completed 12 of 27 passes for 114 yards with two interceptions. Ramsey was 24-of-37 passing for 224 yards and two picks.
The Buckeyes were missing leading receiver Chris Olave, starting linebacker Baron Browning and first-team punter Drue Chrisman, who were among 22 players out because of possible COVID-19-related issues, other illnesses or injuries.
--Field Level Media