Ohio State at USC

Ohio State at USC

This is Missed It. Ohio State at USC, Saturday, October thirty-first, with the Trojans. 70 and overcast at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. You missed it? Here's the whole game, as it happened.

Pregame

Alright Trojans faithful, settle in. It's a big one tonight at the Coliseum. Ohio State Buckeyes come in at six and one, and we're sitting at six and two. This is the kind of game that defines a season, the kind of night that gets the blood pumping. We've got the ball first, and the energy in this place is electric. Let's get after it.

Q1

We take the field with the ball first, and we don't waste any time. First drive, third play of the game. Maiava drops back, and he finds Mosley over the middle. Mosley catches it at the 32, and he's off. Nobody's going to catch him. Sixty-nine yards, touchdown. Just like that, we're on the board. Seven to nothing, and the Coliseum is rocking. Ohio State answers with a drive of their own. They're methodical, moving the chains. Fahey hits Smith for seven yards on third down to keep it alive. Then Bell gets loose for 23 yards, and they're knocking on our door. But we hold. We force them into a field goal, and it's 7 to 3. They took their shot, and we bent but didn't break. We get the ball back, and we can't get anything going. Three plays, punt. Not the response we wanted. Ohio State takes over, and they're driving again. They get down to our 37, and then they shoot themselves in the foot. False start, five yards back. They can't recover, and we stop them on downs. Huge stand by our defense. Now it's our turn to answer. We take over, and we don't mess around. Jordan takes the handoff, cuts left, and he's gone. Nine yards into the end zone. Touchdown. Fourteen to three, and we are rolling. That's how you respond to a punch in the mouth.

The Sequence

This is where the game gets decided. Ohio State has the ball, and they need to answer. West rips off a 17-yard run, and they're moving. They chew up clock, they grind it out, and they settle for another field goal. It's 14 to 6, and we've got a lead, but they're hanging around. We take over, and Miller breaks loose for 21 yards. We're in their territory. We move the ball, we get down there, but we can't punch it in. We settle for three. Seventeen to six. We're building a cushion, but we need to keep our foot on the gas. Then it happens. Miller takes the handoff, he's fighting for yards, and the ball comes out. They recover it. Turnover. Our momentum, gone in an instant. Ohio State takes over, and they smell blood. They drive, they grind, they get a penalty that helps them out, and they kick another field goal. It's 17 to 9, and suddenly this feels a lot tighter than it should. We get the ball back with under two minutes. We need to answer. We move the ball, we get into field goal range, and we take the three. Twenty to nine at the half. It's a lead, but it should be more. That fumble is going to haunt us if we're not careful.

Halftime

Alright, let's take a breath. Twenty to nine at the half. We're up, and we're in control. But that fumble, that turnover right before the half, that's the play that's sticking in my craw. We had a chance to put this thing away, and we let them off the hook. They got three points out of it, and now they're going to come out with the ball to start the second half. We need to come out with fire, we need to come out with intensity, and we need to remind them who's in charge here.

Q3

Ohio State gets the ball to start the half, and we stop them. Three plays, punt. That's the response we needed. We take over, and we're moving. But then we stall out. Fourth down, we go for it, and we don't get it. Turnover on downs. We're giving them chances, and they're not taking them. Now it's their turn to make a mistake. Fahey drops back, he throws it to West, and West fumbles. We recover. Our ball, their territory. And we make them pay. Maiava drops back, and he finds Bowman over the middle. Bowman catches it at the 44, and he's off to the races. Seventy yards, down to the three. Miller punches it in from a yard out. Twenty-seven to nine. That's the knockout blow we've been looking for. Ohio State isn't done. They drive, they move the chains, Fahey hits Williams for 24 yards. They're in our territory. But then Shelby gets home. Sack, loss of seven. They're stalled, and they settle for a field goal. Twenty-seven to twelve. We're still in control, but they're hanging around.

Q4

We get the ball, and Jordan rips off a 20-yard run. We're moving. But we stall out, and we turn it over on downs. Not ideal. We're giving them life, and they're taking it. They drive, they move the chains, but we hold. Punt. We take over, and we can't get anything going. Punt right back. Now it's their turn. They've got the ball, they're down 15, and they need a touchdown. They drive, they grind, they chew up the clock. And then Fahey finds Smith for a touchdown. They go for two, and they miss. It's 27 to 18, and suddenly this is a one-score game. We need an answer. We take over, and we move the ball. We get into field goal range, and Chittenden knocks it through from 32 yards out. Thirty to eighteen. That's the dagger. They need two scores now, and there's no time left. They try. Fahey hits Henry for 39 yards. Then he hits Smith for 20 more. They're knocking on the door. But our defense stands tall. We stop them on downs. Game over. We win.

Wrap-up

Final score: Ohio State 18, USC 30. We win by 12. We're now seven and two, and Ohio State falls to six and two. That's a statement win, Trojans. That's a win that says we're for real. We took their best shot, and we answered every time. We're rolling, and we're not stopping. Fight on.

By the Numbers

The Trojans by the numbers. Final score, USC 30, Ohio State 18. 338 yards of offense to their 464, 222 through the air and 116 on the ground. 15 first downs. 4 of 10 on third down. 1 turnover for us, 1 for them. We held the ball for just under 21 minutes.

Outro

That was Ohio State at USC, from the Trojans side. This has been Missed It. Every game, both sides, at missed it dot net. Produced by James Barrett.