Ohio State’s undefeated season rolls on, though it was not without some difficulty as the Buckeyes left Rutgers’ SHI Stadium on Saturday with a 35-16 win over the Scarlet Knights, one of the closest contests ever between these teams.
Coming out of the win, here are picks from the Buckeye Sports Bulletin staff for players worthy of receiving Buckeye Leaves.
Patrick Engels: Ohio State’s defensive performance wasn’t always pretty against Rutgers, but they did get a monster performance from safety Josh Proctor. The longtime Buckeye was all over the field for Jim Knowles’ unit, serving as a major run-stopper in the red zone when the team needed a stop most.
Proctor’s physicality was most felt at the end of the first half, where he came through in the clutch on consecutive plays at the goal line. With Rutgers at the Buckeyes 2-yard line, Proctor burst through the middle of the field to stop Gavin Wimsatt for a huge loss of 1. He followed up that play with another bruising tackle on the Scarlet Knights’ quarterback to keep them out of the end zone and force a field goal.
Proctor’s efforts were most felt on arguably the biggest play of the game, though, when he provided the key hit on Kyle Monangai that led to the eventual pick-six by Jordan Hancock. He would sustain what looked like a head injury on that play that would force him out of the game, but that play, and his overall performance, would help lead the Buckeyes to a gutsy win in Piscataway, N.J.
Braden Moles: Look no further than TreVeyon Henderson for the reason Ohio State was able to escape from New Jersey.
It was the third-consecutive 100-yard rushing performance for Henderson, who finished with 128 yards and a touchdown on 22 carries, averaging 5.8 yards per attempt. He also led Ohio State in receiving, hauling in five receptions for 80 yards, including a 65-yard catch-and-run in the fourth.
He has ran hard ever since returning from injury last week against Wisconsin and has not shown any signs of slowing down as the season enters the home stretch.
Greg Wilson: My Buckeye Leaf goes to cornerback Jordan Hancock, who had one of the biggest plays of the game with a 93-yard pick six. It came on the Rutgers first drive of the second half, which they entered with a 9-7 lead.
The Scarlet Knights were driving down the field with help from penalties on the Buckeyes secondary, and running back Kyle Monangai. On a pass to the middle of the field, safety Josh Proctor hit Monangai, who was targeted on Gavin Wimsatt’s pass and the ball bounced off Proctor into Hancock’s hands. He took the ball back down the sideline for a defensive touchdown to get the lead back for Ohio State.
The momentum flipped back into the Buckeyes hands, helping the, take a two-score lead and ultimately win the game. Hancock finished with five tackles and the interception, which was the first of his career.
