Ohio State Hits the Road to Take on Illinois – Ohio State Buckeyes
11/9/2015 12:00:00 AM | Football
Nov. 9, 2015
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#3 Ohio State at Illinois
Saturday, November 14, 2015, 12:00 p.m. ET
Memorial Stadium (60,670), Champaign, Ill.
TV: ABC, Watch ESPN
Sean McDonough (play-by-play)
Chris Spielman (analyst)
Todd McShay (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 and XM channels 84.
FIRST AND 10
- Ohio State enters the game having won 22 in a row overall, the longest active streak in the nation.
- Ohio State has won a Big Ten-record 29 regular season conference games in a row.
- Ohio State leads the Big Ten in scoring (37.3), rushing (240.6) and punting (40.8) and are second in total offense (454.8), pass efficiency (146.0) and fewest first downs allowed (15.6).
- Running back Ezekiel Elliott leads the Big Ten and is No. 7 in the NCAA in rushing (138.2 ypg). He has an FBS-leading streak of 14 consecutive games with at least 100 yards rushing.
- Elliott is the first Ohio State running back to rush for 1,000 yards in consecutive seasons since Chris “Beanie” Wells in 2007-08.
- Wide receiver Michael Thomas has caught a pass in 25 consecutive games. He leads the team with 39 catches for 575 yards and seven TDs.
- Defensive end Joey Bosa ranks second in the Big Ten with 9.5 TFL in Big Ten play.
- Urban Meyer has the highest winning percentage (.853) among active coaches with at least 10 years of coaching experience. He picked up career win No. 150 at Rutgers Oct. 24.
- Meyer is riding a 20-plus game win streak for the fourth time in his career.
- Meyer is a perfect 27-0 in games played in October (14-0) and November (13-0) at Ohio State.
SETTING THE STAGE
No. 3 Ohio State (9-0, 5-0 Big Ten) hits the road this Saturday when it travels to Champaign, Ill., to take on its second consecutive cross-division foe at Illinois (5-4, 2-3). Kickoff is scheduled for Noon ET and will be televised on ABC and Watch ESPN with Sean McDonough, Chris Spielman and Todd McShay on the call.
The Buckeyes are coming off a 28-14 win over Minnesota, its 29th Big Ten conference regular season victory in a row, while the Illini picked up a 48-14 victory on the road at Purdue last Saturday, snapping a three-game losing skid.
SCOUTING ILLINOIS
Illinois is 5-4 on the year and 2-3 in the Big Ten West division. They are under the direction of interim head coach Bill Cubit, who took over the for the Illini just before the start of the season.
The Illini are averaging 25.8 points per game and giving up 21.7 while averaging 144.3 yards per game on the ground and 240 through the air. In the win at Purdue, the Illini rushed for 382 yards (9.3 ypc) and threw for 213 yards for a total of 595 yards of total offense.
Freshman running back Ke’Shawn Vaughn, who leads the team with 665 yards on the ground with six TDs, ran for 180 yards and 2 TDs while Josh Ferguson added 133 on the ground at Purdue. Wes Lunt passed for 169 yards and three TDs and leads the team with 2,000 yards passing (12 TDs, 4 INTs).
Defensively, Illinois ranks second in the Big Ten with 11 interceptions, with a team-high four by junior DB Taylor Barton and three from senior DB Eaton Spence. Junior DB Clayton Fejedelem, who has two INTs, is second in the Big Ten with 100 tackles on the year.
ROAD WIN STREAK TOPS IN THE NCAA
Ohio State has won 16 consecutive true road games (games on an opponents home field), the longest such streak in the nation. The Buckeyes are undefeated, a perfect 16-0, in road games under head coach Urban Meyer, or since the start of the 2012 season.
BELL NAMED BIG TEN DEFENSIVE POW
Junior Vonn Bell was named the Big Ten’s defensive player of the week Nov. 9 in recognition of his performance vs. Minnesota. Bell made the game-changing play, intercepting a Mitch Leiner pass and scoring from 16 yards out to break a scoreless tie late in the first half. Bell slipped inside of TE AJ Maye to record the interception and then outran a host of tacklers to score, giving the Buckeyes a 7-0 lead with 4:53 to play in the first half. The play sparked the Buckeyes, who scored on their next possession for a 14-0 halftime lead in a game they would ultimately win, 28-14. The return marked the second score of the year for Bell after a 14-yard fumble return for a touchdown against Hawaii. Bell also tied his career-best with 10 tackles.
D-LINE DOMINATES CHAMPIONS VS. GOPHERS
Ohio State’s defensive line produced six of the team’s champions in the win over Minnesota, including coplayer of the game Joey Bosa plus Joel Hale, Michael Hill, Tyquan Lewis, Adolphus Washington and Sam Hubbard. Vonn Bell was also named a co-player of the game on defense and Darron Lee, Joshua Perry and Eli Apple were also honored this week. Offensive champions included co-players of the game Ezekiel Elliott and Pat Elflein along with Jalin Marshall, Michael Thomas, Billy Price, Taylor Decker and Nick Vannett. Special teams player of the game was Denzel Ward and the scout team players of the week were OL Aaron Parry and LB Justin Hilliard.
MORE NOTABLES FROM THE MINNESOTA WIN
- The attendance of 108,075 marked the fourthlargest in Ohio Stadium history.
- The Buckeyes notched their 50th all-time win in a night game and their 14th at home.
- Meyer improved to 42-3 in games in which he has more than one week to prepare for an opponent and is a perfect 27-0 in games played in October and November at Ohio State.
- Vonn Bell’s second-quarter interception was his second of the season and ninth of his career. It marked his first interception return for a touchdown and the Buckeyes’ first since Adolphus Washington returned an interception 20 yards for a score against Western Michigan Sept. 26.
- Bell also recorded a career-high tying 10 tackles which matched his total from the Northern Illinois game earlier this season.
- The 16-yard interception return marked the second score of the year for Bell after a 14-yard fumble return for a touchdown against Hawaii.
- Elliott topped the 100-yard mark for the 14thstraight game, finishing with 114 yards on 26 carries. He is now fourth in school history with 3,384 career rushing yards, passing Chris Wells who had 3,382 yards from 2006-08.
- Michael Thomas’ six-yard touchdown catch in the third quarter marked his team-high seventh TD reception of the season and 16th of his career.
- Cardale Jones’ 38-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter was the longest rush of his career. It was the fourth rushing touchdown of his career and his first since the opening game of the year against Virginia Tech.
- The Buckeyes limited Minnesota to just 33 yards rushing marking the lowest total an opponent has gained on the ground all year. It was the fewest since Ohio State allowed just 16 yards on the ground to Penn State last year on Oct. 25.
- Senior Joshua Perry recorded 10 tackles in the game which was his third game this season of 10 or more tackles and his first since the Western Michigan game in September. Perry now has six games of 10 or more tackles in his career.
- Joey Bosa recorded a TFL in his fifth-straight game, giving him a team-high 12 for the season.
