Columbus, OH — Penn State’s season of misery continued at the hands of No. 1 Ohio State, which overcame a strong first-half effort from the Nittany Lions to surge to a 38–14 win. The loss marked Penn State’s fifth consecutive defeat — its first five-game losing streak since the 2020 season.
Penn State received the opening kickoff, and on the first play from scrimmage, running back Kaytron Allen broke free for a 26-yard gain, establishing early control at the line of scrimmage.
However, the drive stalled, and interim head coach Terry Smith made a questionable decision to punt on a fourth-and-short inside Ohio State territory. Smith wanted to test whether his defense could hold a potent Buckeye offense.
Ohio State responded immediately. On its opening possession, the Buckeyes marched 89 yards in 11 plays, capped by quarterback Julian Sayin — a perfect 6-for-6 on the drive — finding wide receiver Jeremiah Smith for a 14-yard touchdown.
After Ohio State kicker Jayden Fielding extended the lead to 10–0 with a 22-yard field goal, Penn State answered with a methodical 15-play, 75-yard drive that chewed up nearly eight minutes of game time. The drive was capped by a 3-yard touchdown run from Nick Singleton, cutting the deficit to 10–7.
Penn State appeared to have Ohio State stopped on the ensuing possession, but Sayin escaped pressure on a critical third down and connected with wide receiver Carnell Tate for a 45-yard touchdown to push the lead back to 10.
Looking to pull away, Ohio State instead faltered when running back C.J. Donaldson fumbled deep in Buckeye territory. Replay confirmed the turnover, and Penn State capitalized by driving to the one-yard line. Smith made a gutsy call to go for it on fourth-and-goal, and Allen rewarded him with a touchdown to trim the deficit to 17–14 at halftime.
In the second half, Ohio State took control through the air. Sayin connected again with Tate for a 57-yard completion, setting up a short Donaldson touchdown run to make it 24–14.
On the next Buckeye possession, Smith hauled in a 57-yard reception of his own, setting up a one-yard strike from Sayin to tight end Bennett Christian. From there, Penn State’s offense sputtered, as Ohio State outgained the Nittany Lions 179–18 in the third quarter.
In the fourth, following a 51-yard run by Bo Jackson, Sayin found Smith for his second touchdown of the day to extend the lead to 38–14.
Attendance at Ohio Stadium was announced at 105,517.
Penn State will look to snap its five-game skid next week when it returns to Beaver Stadium to face No. 2 Indiana, hoping to avoid its first six-game losing streak since 2004.
