INDIANAPOLIS – It wasn’t pretty, but Ohio State won its fourth straight Big Ten championship on Saturday.
Ohio State needed a second-half comeback to beat Northwestern after failing to score a first-half touchdown for the first time since its 2018 loss at Purdue, and its passing offense never got going. But thanks to a record-breaking day running the ball by Trey Sermon and three takeaways on defense, Ohio State was able to defeat Northwestern, 22-10, to win the Big Ten title for the fourth year in a row.
Ohio State’s opening drive of the game was its most time-consuming drive of the season to date, as the Buckeyes took eight minutes and 26 seconds off the clock on a 16-play possession, but they were forced to settle for a 41-yard field goal attempt – which Blake Haubeil made – after Justin Fields was sacked for a 15-yard loss on 3rd-and-goal from the 9-yard line.