COLUMBUS, Ohio — There might never have been any real drama on the scoreboard, but Ohio State stirred up a little more with its quarterback situation.
Sleepwalking early against overmatched Hawaii, thanks in part to a short week of preparation, the Buckeyes tried to jumpstart a stagnant offense by pulling Cardale Jones midway through the second quarter in favor of J.T. Barrett.
When that didn’t jolt Ohio State to its electrifying potential, Jones returned and continued to fuel speculation about how coach Urban Meyer will handle his decorated passers as the season progresses. Neither one was really in position to succeed with the Buckeyes uncharacteristically struggling on the offensive line, with everything from errant snaps to penalties and blown assignments making life difficult for both Jones and Barrett.
Either way, a dominant defense was there as a safety net for the nation’s top-ranked team in shutting out Hawaii 38-0 on Saturday at Ohio Stadium.
Joey Bosa returned to Ohio State after serving a one-game suspension and helped the Buckeyes pitch a shutout. Greg Bartram/USA TODAY Sports
What the win means for Ohio State: The Buckeyes can catch up on their rest without having to worry about costing themselves any ground in the race for the College Football Playoff. Maybe the bigger benefit for Meyer in the short term is that he’ll be able to get the attention off his team by pointing to some offensive errors that cost the Buckeyes chances to put up points, with his attention likely to be focused on the offensive line.
What the loss means for Hawaii: The Warriors came a long way for what was expected to be a walkover by the Buckeyes, and they stood toe-to-toe with the defending national champions for three quarters. The offense certainly struggled for Hawaii, but the defense was able to slow down Ezekiel Elliott and Ohio State’s vaunted ground game for a while. That’s an encouraging sign for the program down the road.
Player of the game: Vonn Bell. The star safety could have turned in a truly epic performance if he had held on to a few interceptions that slipped through his hands. That said, his grip was still strong enough to nab one pick, and he had no problem scooping up a loose ball in the fourth quarter and cruising into the end zone for a touchdown that sealed the blowout. Bell’s reputation as a playmaker continues to grow seemingly every week, and with three passes broken up and three tackles to add to those turnovers, his all-around outing was obviously strong enough to make up for those bobbles.
How the game was won: Superior, albeit sleepy, talent. The Buckeyes came into the game already concerned about the short turnaround from Monday night’s win on the road against Virginia Tech, and they looked sloppy even without measuring themselves against Meyer’s high standards. But Ohio State is too loaded on defense, it still had Elliott to pound in a few touchdowns, and there was never any real threat the Buckeyes would lose, even if it looked like they needed a nap.
