No. 1 Ohio State Takes 20-Game Win Streak to Rutgers – Ohio State Buckeyes
10/19/2015 12:00:00 AM | Football
Oct. 19, 2015
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#1 Ohio State at Rutgers
Saturday, October 24, 2015, 8:00 p.m. ET
High Point Solutions Stadium (52,454), Piscataway, NJ
TV: ABC
Chris Fowler (play-by-play)
Kirk Herbstreit (analyst)
Heather Cox (sideline)
Radio: WBNS FM (97.1 The Fan) The Urban Meyer pregame show airs 30 minutes prior to kickoff. Paul Keels will call the action with former Buckeye Jim Lachey and Marty Bannister on the sidelines. The game can also be heard nationally on Sirius 135 and XM channel 195.
FIRST AND 10
- Ohio State enters the game having won 20 in a row overall, the longest active streak in the nation.
- Ohio State has won 27 Big Ten regular season games in a row, going 8-0 in each of the past three seasons and 3-0 this year. The streak is a Big Ten record. The NCAA record is 29 by Florida State.
- Ohio State has won 15 consecutive true road games, the longest such streak in the nation.
- Ohio State leads the Big Ten in scoring (37.0), rushing (242.1) and pass defense (143.6) and is second in total offense (455.6) and interceptions (8).
- Running back Ezekiel Elliott leads the Big Ten and is No. 5 in the NCAA in rushing at 141.1 ypg. He has an FBS-leading streak of 12 consecutive games with at least 100 yards rushing.
- Wide receiver Michael Thomas has caught a pass in 23 consecutive games. He leads the team with 30 catches for 433 yards and a Big Ten-best five TDs.
- Defensive ends Joey Bosa and Tyquan Lewis rank in the Top 10 Big Ten in TFL with 9.0 each.
- Urban Meyer has the highest winning percentage (.851) among active coaches and is going for career win No. 150 Saturday at Rutgers.
- Meyer is riding a 20-game win streak for the fourth time in his career. No other FBS coach has accomplished that feat more than twice.
- Meyer is tied with FSU’s Jimbo Fisher with the best winning percentage since 2012 (45-3; .937). Meyer is undefeated in games played in October (13-0) and November (12-0) at Ohio State.
SETTING THE STAGE
No. 1 Ohio State (7-0, 3-0 Big Ten) hits the road for the third time this season when it travels to Piscataway, N.J., for a Big Ten East showdown with Rutgers (3-3, 1-2) under the lights in prime time. Kickoff is scheduled for 8:12 p.m. ET and the game will be televised on ABC with Chris Fowler, Kirk Herbstreit and Heather Cox on the call.
The Buckeyes are coming off a 38-10 win over Penn State at home last Saturday while Rutgers defeated Indiana on the road in Bloomington, 55-52. Saturday is the second meeting between the two schools after Ohio State won the first meeting in 2014, 56-17, in Columbus.
BOSA, BARRETT, DECKER & JOHNSTON PLAYERS OF THE GAME VS. PENN STATE
Ohio State’s best performance of the season on Saturday, a 38-10 win over a Penn State team that had won five straight and that boasted a Top 10 defense, resulted in a bunch of team champions with player of the game honors being awarded to Joey Bosa, J.T. Barrett, Taylor Decker and Cameron Johnston. Champions vs. the Nittany Lions also included Tommy Schutt, Adolphus Washington, Darron Lee and Vonn Bell on defense; and Michael Thomas, Jalin Marshall, Curtis Samuel, Braxton Miller, Pat Elflein, Jacoby Boren, Billy Price, Nick Vannette, Marcus Baugh and Ezekiel Elliott on defense.
OHIO STATE AT NIGHT
Ohio State is officially 48-23 in night games (those starting after 5 p.m. local time), including records of 35-19 in road (23-10) or neutral (12-9) night games. Last season Ohio State played in a school-record eight night games. The Buckeyes are playing in their third night game of the season after opening the year with a 42-24 win at Virginia Tech and posting a 38-10 win vs. Penn State last Saturday.
BUCKEYES AT NO. 1
Ohio State holds an all-time record of 73-12-1 as a No. 1-ranked team and a 56-4 record as a No. 1 team against unranked opponents. Ohio State has now been ranked No. 1 in the Associated Press poll a total of 103 times, the most of any school.
All-Time Appearances at No. 1 in the Associated Press Poll
| Rk. | School | Times |
| 1. | Ohio State | 103 |
| 2. | Oklahoma | 101 |
| 3. | Notre Dame | 98 |
| 4. | USC | 91 |
| 5. | Alabama | 73 |
27 AND COUNTING
Ohio State has another impressive streak going with a record 27 consecutive Big Ten regular season victories.
By finishing 8-0 in conference play in 2014, Ohio State became the first Big Ten team since the Minnesota teams from 1933-35 to go undefeated in regularseason conference play three consecutive years. The Buckeyes also became the first Big Ten team to win every game (undefeated and untied) in Big Ten regular season games three consecutive years.
The FBS record for most conference victories is 29, set by the Florida State teams from 1992-95. The current FSU team also has a 28-game ACC win streak.
Most Consecutive Victories, Conference Games
| 29 | Florida State | ACC | 1992-95 |
| 28 | Florida State | ACC | 2012-present |
| 27 | Ohio State | Big Ten | 2012-present |
| 27 | Alabama | SEC | 1976-80 |
| 27 | Miami (Fla.) | Big East | 1999-2003 |
| 24 | Florida | SEC | 1994-97 |
| 24 | Florida State | ACC | 1998-2001 |
| 24 | TCU | MWC | 2008-11 |
| 24 | Northern Illinois | MAC | 2011-14 |
| 23 | Georgia | SEC | 1980-83 |
| 22 | California | Pac-12 | 1947-50 |
| 21 | Kansas State | Big 12 | 1997-99 |
Big Ten Win Streaks (Conference Games)
| 27 | Ohio State | 2012-current |
| 20 | Ohio State | 2005-07 |
| 19 | Michigan | 1990-92 |
| 17 | Ohio State | 1974-76 |
| 17 | Ohio State | 1967-69 |
| 17 | Ohio State | 1954-56 |
