Ohio State Defense Takes Over With Takeaways At Illinois

Kayden McDonald and Jermaine Mathews Jr. celebrateTwelve.

That was the number of touchdown passes Illinois quarterback Luke Altmyer had thrown in the 2025 season without tossing a single interception. But Ohio State cornerback Jermaine Mathews Jr. knew that would change on Saturday.

“I knew he was going to come in and throw one. I knew he was going to throw one on us,” Mathews said with a smile after telling reporters of his “Defense crazy ain’t it. Defense crazy.”

Ohio State’s defense is indeed crazy, Mr. Mathews. But it was crazy in a whole new way vs. the No. 17 Fighting Illini. The Buckeyes allowed 16 points to Illinois – six coming after the game was well in hand – which is still a good…