Mitch Stacy, Associated Press 6:19 a.m. EDT October 30, 2016
Quarterback J.T. Barrett of the Ohio State Buckeyes is brought down by Godwin Igwebuike of the Northwestern Wildcats.(Photo: Jamie Sabau / Getty Images)
Columbus, Ohio The problems that have bogged down Ohio States offense put the Buckeyes in a bind again. J.T. Barrett and Ohio State did enough in the fourth quarter against Northwestern to avoid a second consecutive upset loss.
Curtis Samuel ran for a 3-yard touchdown with 9:43 left to give No. 6 Ohio State a lead, and Barrett converted two third downs on the game-sealing drive in a 24-20 victory Saturday.
After the Buckeyes were upset by Penn State last week, their offense struggled against another multi-touchdown underdog. Ohio State (7-1, 4-1 Big Ten) punted on five straight drives in one stretch, but responded to Northwestern, tying it at 17 with a touchdown drive capped by Samuels run.
Northwestern (4-4, 3-2) then got to the Ohio State 3, but settled for a 33-yard Jack Mitchell field goal to close to 24-20 with 3:31 left. The Buckeyes mounted a final clock-eating drive. Barrett hit Noah Brown for 16 yards on third-and-8 and then took off on a 35-yard run to convert a third-and-10 and put the Buckeyes in the clear.
It was a pretty good chess match back and forth, and I just loved the way we finished it off, Ohio State coach Urban Meyer said.
Barrett, who has struggled finding open receivers and whose offensive line had difficulty protecting him last week, was 21 for 32 for 223 yards, but he didnt complete a pass over 19 yards until the fourth quarter when K.J. Hill turned a sideline completion into a 34-yard gain.
Im comfortable where were at, Barrett said. I know theres things we can absolutely be better at as far as our offense. Were executing.
Mike Weber rushed 14 times for 87 yards and two touchdowns, the first coming on Ohio States opening drive. He found the end zone again in the second quarter, chugging around the right end for a 23-yard score.
Samuel ran the ball seven times and caught seven passes for 99 total yards.
Clayton Thorson was 25 for 42 for 256 yards with a touchdown and a first-quarter interception for Northwestern. Austin Carr, the Big Tens leading receiver, caught eight passes for 158 yards.
It obviously didnt start the way we wanted it to, spotting them a couple scores, but the guys didnt flinch and kept swinging, Northwestern coach Pat Fitzgerald said. And, you know, we ended up one punch short.
Ohio State Buckeyes at Wisconsin Badgers in 30 Minutes - 10/15/16
Clemson took the lead with Watsons strike to Scott. Edmond then reached high to grab a long throw down the middle from Ryan Finley of the Wolfpack, and the Tigers escaped with their goals of the A.C.C. title game and the College Football Playoff intact.
ARKANSAS 34, MISSISSIPPI 30 Jared Cornelius scored on a 6-yard touchdown run late in the fourth quarter to lift No. 22 Arkansas (5-2, 1-2 Southeastern Conference) over No. 12 Mississippi (3-3, 1-2).
The junior Austin Allen went 19 of 32 for 229 yards and three touchdowns for the Razorbacks. Arkansass Rawleigh Williams added a career-high 180 yards rushing on 27 carries.
SYRACUSE 31, VA. TECH 17 Eric Dungey accounted for 417 yards and two touchdowns, and host Syracuse (3-4, 1-2 A.C.C.) stunned No. 17 Virginia Tech (4-2, 2-1) for its first victory over a ranked opponent since 2012.
Fans stormed the field and carried Dungey off after he passed for 311 yards and ran for 106. He scored on a 1-yard sneak to give the Orange a 24-17 lead with 7 minutes 56 seconds to go.
ALABAMA 49, TENNESSEE 10 Jalen Hurts and Bo Scarbrough each rushed for more than 100 yards, and No. 1 Alabama (7-0, 4-0 SEC) again got points from its defense and special teams in a blowout at No. 9 Tennessee (5-2, 2-2).
Hurts, the Crimson Tides freshman quarterback, ran for 132 yards and three touchdowns as Alabama outrushed the Volunteers, 438 yards to 32. Scarbrough rushed for 109 yards on five carries, including an 85-yard touchdown.
NEBRASKA 27, INDIANA 22 Terrell Newby ran for one score, Tommy Armstrong Jr. hooked up with Stanley Morgan Jr. on a 72-yard touchdown pass with 9:57 to play, and No. 10 Nebraska (6-0, 3-0 Big Ten) held off host Indiana (3-3, 1-2).
The Cornhuskers won their seventh straight game over all and their fifth in a row in the series, the last one played in 1978. It was also the first time that Nebraska has won its first six games since 2001.
BAYLOR 49, KANSAS 7 Seth Russell threw two touchdown passes and ran for two more while playing only in the first half, Ryan Reid returned the first of his two interceptions for a score, and No. 11 Baylor (6-0, 3-0 Big 12) routed Kansas (1-5, 0-3) in Waco, Tex.
HOUSTON 38, TULSA 31 Emeke Egbule returned a fumble 24 yards for a touchdown with 1:21 remaining to allow No. 13 Houston (6-1, 3-1 American Athletic Conference) to survive host Tulsa (4-2, 1-1).
FLORIDA ST. 17, WAKE FOREST 6 Travis Rudolph had a career-high 13 receptions for 238 yards as No. 14 Florida State (5-2, 2-2 A.C.C.) overcame three turnovers to defeat visiting Wake Forest (5-2, 2-2).
N. CAROLINA 20, MIAMI 13 Mitch Trubisky threw two touchdown passes, Malik Carney forced a turnover with 1:31 left to thwart Miamis final chance, and visiting North Carolina (5-2, 3-1 A.C.C.) upset the No. 16 Hurricanes (4-2, 1-2).
FLORIDA 40, MISSOURI 14 Jalen Tabor and Quincy Wilson returned interceptions for touchdowns, helping No. 18 Florida (5-1, 3-1 SEC) pound visiting Missouri (2-4, 0-3) to move into first place in the conferences Eastern Division.
OKLAHOMA 38, KANSAS ST. 17 Baker Mayfield completed 25 of 31 passes for 346 yards and four touchdowns, Dede Westbrook had nine receptions for 184 yards and three scores, and No. 19 Oklahoma (5-2, 3-0 Big 12) pulled away from visiting Kansas State (3-3, 1-2).
W. VIRGINIA 48, TEXAS TECH 17 Skyler Howard ran for two touchdowns and threw for a third to lead No. 20 West Virginia (5-0, 2-0 Big 12) past host Texas Tech (3-3, 1-2) and keep the Mountaineers in the hunt for the conference title.
UTAH 19, OREGON ST. 14 Joe Williams, who left the team after the second game of the season because of injuries, returned and had a 5-yard first-quarter touchdown run for No. 21 Utah (6-1, 3-1 Pacific-12) as the Utes topped host Oregon State (2-4, 1-2).
W. MICHIGAN 41, AKRON 0 Jarvion Franklin rushed for a team-record 281 yards, Zach Terrell threw for two scores and ran for two more, and No. 24 Western Michigan (7-0, 2-0 Mid-American Conference) ranked in the top 25 for the first time in team history pounded host Akron (4-3, 2-1).
EAST
ILLINOIS 24, RUTGERS 7 Kendrick Foster scored two touchdowns, Darius Mosely returned an interception 75 yards for a touchdown, and Illinois (2-4, 1-2 Big Ten) halted a four-game losing streak with a win at Rutgers (2-5, 0-4).
S. FLORIDA 42, UCONN 27 Quinton Flowers passed for two touchdowns and ran for three more, and South Florida (6-1, 3-0 American) finished with 316 yards rushing in its win over Connecticut (3-4, 1-3) in Tampa, Fla.
SACRED HEART 31, CORNELL 24 Nate Chavious ran for two touchdowns, R. J. Noel threw for two more even as he was picked off four times, and visiting Sacred Heart (5-1) held off Cornell (3-2).
PRINCETON 31, BROWN 7 John Lovett threw two touchdown passes and ran for a third to lead Princeton (4-1, 2-0 Ivy League) past visiting Brown (1-4, 0-2).
HOLY CROSS 27, HARVARD 17 Geoff Wade threw for two touchdowns as Holy Cross (3-4) handed visiting Harvard (4-1) its first loss of the season.
FORDHAM 44, YALE 37 Kevin Anderson went 18 of 27 for 270 yards and five touchdowns four in the first half and host Fordham (4-2) edged Yale (1-4).
DARTMOUTH 20, TOWSON 17 Charlie Miller and Jeremiah Douchee blocked field-goal attempts in the final three minutes, and host Dartmouth (3-2) held on against Towson (1-5).
PENN 35, COLUMBIA 10 Alek Torgersen threw three touchdown passes to help Pennsylvania (3-2, 2-0 Ivy) trounce Columbia (1-4, 0-1) in Philadelphia.
STONY BROOK 14, RHODE ISLAND 3 Stacey Bedell and Jordan Gowins, who each ran for more than 100 yards, punched in back-to-back fourth-quarter touchdowns to lead host Stony Brook (4-2, 3-0 Colonial) over Rhode Island (1-6, 0-4).
MARIST 44, MOREHEAD ST. 41 Mike White passed for 377 yards and five touchdowns, Juston Christian caught six passes for 217 yards and three scores, and the two hooked up for a 32-yard game winner in overtime as visiting Marist (3-3, 3-0 Pioneer League) outlasted Morehead State (2-5, 1-3).
WAGNER 25, C.C.S.U. 21 Matthias McKinnons 1-yard touchdown run with 1:06 left capped a 15-point fourth quarter, and visiting Wagner (4-2, 2-0 Northeast Conference) rallied to beat Central Connecticut State (1-5, 0-2).
She said shed get tipped off by his aunt or uncle. Sometimes it would be a cousin, a neighbor or even his old high school coach and each time shed get into her car and go out and find her son.
When shed spot him walking, she said shed pull up alongside him, roll down the window and give him the same command.
Id say Get in this car now! Angela Dennis said with a smile. Id tell him, You are going back there Period!
They say it takes a village to raise a child, but in this case it took one to thwart a kid, as well.
Ohio State offense leads charge over Bowling Green
As Ohio State coach Urban Meyer revealed Saturday, Buckeyes safety Malik Hooker tried to quit the team seven or eight times his first year in Columbus.
Hooker had been a star athlete since he was a young kid growing up in New Castle, Pa. His mom remembered him once scoring nine touchdowns in a seventh-grade game. He was even better in basketball and by the time he was a senior in high school, hed won all-state honors in both sports and drew Division I offers to play each in college.
He came to Ohio State as a safety and immediately found himself buried on the depth chart. The Bucks had several veterans, including future NFL players Vonn Bell and Tyvis Powell. So Hooker redshirted in 2014.
Last year he played sparingly in 13 games and finished with 10 tackles total on the season.
I had started to doubt myself a lot, he said. I started to think this wasnt the place for me because I just didnt fit in.
He sought refuge in the one place he felt comfortable.
He came home every weekend and didnt want to go back, Angela said. He would go off on long walks and not come back when he was supposed to. Wed have to go out and find him so we could take him back.
Malik remembers those times too: I was like, Man, Im not going back. Id try to sneak out and my uncle would come find me. Id try to go to my cousins house and my aunt would end up calling my mom or my sister. I tried so many things.
He said underneath he was disappointed in himself, too: Im not known as a quitting type of dude.
Thats what his high school basketball coach Ralph Blundo reminded him of and, back in Columbus, defensive coaches Chris Ash and Luke Fickell did all they could to get him to believe in himself and the program.
But all say the person most involved in keeping Malik a Buckeye was his mom.
Her exact words were, I dont know what youre gonna do, but youre not coming back here, he said. She told me Youre gonna stick it out and it will end up working out.
Mom was right.
Saturday it did.
While there were lots of stars in the Buckeyes season-opening 77-10 romp over Bowling Green at Ohio Stadium especially quarterback J.T. Barrett, who threw for the OSU-record six touchdowns and ran for another score and H-back Curtis Samuel, who had a combined 261 yards and three TDs there was no performance more heartwarming than that of Malik Hooker.
The redshirt sophomore intercepted two Bowling Green passes, including one with a highlight reel, one-handed tip and grab while he was falling.
After the game I went over to him in the locker room and said, You better make sure you give your mother a call, Fickell said. He said, Shes here, and I said, Then, you better go find her now.
Unwavering support from Mom
Angela Dennis said she had her first child at age 17. Malik was the second and after that she had three more.
I raised all five pretty much on my own, she said. I had a rough home life growing up, Both of my parents were addicts. Growing up I was a kid who didnt know what to do. I had no adult supervision.
But I promised myself I wouldnt let my kids be like me when I was their age. I didnt have a lot of options, but I was going to do everything I could to make sure they did.
With Malik, I wanted him to reach heights I didnt get a chance to. I knew he had a great opportunity and thats why I was going to make sure he didnt ruin it.
She did that in a variety of ways Malik said:
There were times I needed her to tell me to quit being a crybaby and she did that. And there were other times she comforted me. She supported me every way she could.
After Saturdays game Fickell talked about what Angela had done:
Ive got my own kids and Im sure there are times when (we) might be a little easier on them sometimes when times are tough.
No one likes to see their child suffer and thats how it was with him. I had warned his mom this might happen, but fir her to trust us and she did. She stayed string and helped Malik through it and now its paying off.
Mom holds court
Meyer was so moved by the story of Malik and his mom that he coaxed the Buckeyes sports information folks to invite Angela into the media room after the game.
And so for a while, at opposite ends of the room and in a postgame first for the Bucks, a mother and her son were holding court.
Im not worried about what shes saying, Malik grinned. Probably 95 percent of the stuff shes saying is true.
Angela not only talked about her boys rediscovered backbone, but about those skills she knew never had left him. She said over the years shed seen him make spectacular plays like he did Saturday maybe 1,000 times.
Malik said Saturday he drew on fundamentals and technique to get himself in position to make the picks and when he saw the ball in the air he felt an electricity come through his body.
It was, Yeah, this is this the play, he said. I knew it was my moment.
Its really a blessing what happened today. Not many people get to make their first start and make the plays I did out there. But I know I had a lot of help in this. A lot of people helped get me here.
And no one more so than his mom, who told him time and again:
