Ohio State finishes another memorable season with a 13-1 record and secured their eighth Rose Bowl win in school history with a 28-23 victory over Washington on Monday in Pasadena.
Behind another standout effort from Heisman Trophy candidate quarterback Dwayne Haskins, Ohio State controlled the first half and jumped out to a 21-3 advantage. The Buckeyes increased their lead to 28-3 in the third quarter with a seven-play, 80-yard drive that was capped off with a three-yard TD run from J.K. Dobbins. The Huskies battled back with a 20-point fourth quarter but the Ohio State defense held firm.
The Buckeyes send off head coach Urban Meyer with a victory in the The Granddaddy of Them All.
Ohio State 7, Washington 3
Ohio State’s second possession of the game resulted in the Buckeyes’ first score, as Parris Campbell caught a 12-yard touchdown pass from Dwayne Haskins to complete a 11-play, 77-yard drive. Running back Mike Weber ran four times for 52 yards of the drive, including a 19-yard scamper on fourth-and-one from Washington’s 31 yard line. Weber had runs of 19, 14 and 10 yards on the drive. Campbell’s TD reception also put him over 1,000 receiving yards for the season. He’s just the fifth Ohio State wide receiver to eclipse the 1,000 yard mark.
Peyton Henry converted on a 38-yard field goal with 1:19 to play in the opening quarter that capped off a 11-play, 55-yard drive over 4:57. Washington quarterback Jake Browning completed all five of his passes on the drive, including a eight-yard strike to Andre Baccellia on third-and-10 that set up the field goal. Browning also rushed for 22 yards on the drive.
For the quarter, Ohio State outgained Washington 120-82 with Haskins completing five-of-nine passes for 54 yards and one touchdown. Campbell, Weber and Terry McLaurin all caught passes.
Ohio State 21, Washington 3
No. 6 Ohio State leads No. 9 Washington, 21-3, at halftime of the 105th Rose Bowl Game presented by Northwestern Mutual. A balanced offensive attack features 163 passing yards and three touchdowns by Dwayne Haskins and 86 rushing yards from Mike Weber.
Haskins added to his first-quarter TD pass to Parris Campbell by hitting Johnnie Dixon on a 19-yard strike to cap a 10-play, 75-yard drive and give the Buckeyes a 14-3 lead. And just before the end of the quarter, Haskins found Rashod Berry from the 1 to cap a 5-play, 57-yard drive. Haskins now has 50 touchdown passes on the season and is only the sixth player in NCAA FBS history to reach the mark.
Campbell has broken David Boston’s 1998 single season record for receptions with seven catches so far, giving him 86 for the season. Boston had 85. Campbell also has topped 1,000 receiving yards for the season to become only the fifth receiver in school history to top 1,000 yards for a season, joining Boston, Terry Glenn, Cris Carter and Michael Jenkins.
Defensively, Ohio State has limited talented running back Miles Gaskin to just 24 rushing yards and the Huskies to 151 yards.
Ohio State 28, Washington 3
Washington moved the ball on its opening possession of the third quarter, getting inside the Ohio State 30 yard line thanks to a pair of runs of over 10 yards by Gaskin. A sack by Jashon Cornell and a tackle for loss by Davon Hamilton, however, thwarted the Huskie drive.
The Buckeyes increased their lead to 28-3 at the 8:23 mark of the third quarter with a seven-play, 80-yard drive that was capped off with a three-yard TD run from J.K. Dobbins. Haskins completed all five of his passes on the drive, including a 34-yard connection with K.J. Hill that set up Dobbins’ TD run. Three of Haskins’ five completions went to Campbell, who set Ohio State’s Rose Bowl Game record for receptions (10), topping the previous mark of nine by Cris Carter in 1985.
Haskins finished three quarters with 238 yards passing and three touchdowns, while Weber was Ohio State’s leading rusher with 92 yards on 13 carries. The Buckeyes outgained Washington 349-274 through three quarters and had five total TFLs on defense for minus 24 yards.
Ohio State 28, Washington 23
Ohio State opened the quarter with aspirations to extend its lead, but the Huskies offense came to life, scoring 20 points in the fourth quarter.
After a failed two-point conversion by the Huskies in the final minutes of the game, the Buckeyes held on to their victory and claimed their eighth Rose Bowl win in school history.
The Buckeyes’ 2018 Rose Bowl appearance was the first appearance in Pasadena for head coach Urban Meyer, who is now 12-3 over his career in bowl games. The victory also marks his last career win as leader of the Ohio State football program.
