East Lansing, MI - Troy Smith threw two touchdown passes to
lead top-ranked Ohio State to a 38-7 pounding of Michigan State at Spartan
Stadium.
Smith went 15-for-22 with 234 yards and Antonio Pittman and Chris Wells
added rushing touchdowns for the Buckeyes (7-0, 3-0 Big Ten), who have a
nation-best 14-game winning streak.
Drew Stanton went 8-for-16 with 54 yards and an interception and A.J.
Jimmerson had a rushing touchdown for the Spartans (3-4, 0-3), who have lost
their last four games after starting out the season with three straight wins.
After forcing the Spartans to punt on their first possession, the Buckeyes
marched the ball 75 yards in 12 plays and Pittman capped the drive with a two-
yard touchdown run with 6:12 left in the first quarter. The key play of the
drive was a 37-yard reception by Ted Ginn Jr. on a 3rd-and-5.
The scored remained that way for the opening 15 minutes, but Ohio State
grabbed a 10-0 lead on its first possession of the second quarter thanks to a
32-yard field goal by Aaron Pettrey. Smith connected with Anthony Gonzalez for
33 yards to help setup the field goal.
Ginn gave the Buckeyes a 17-0 lead as he fielded a punt at the Ohio State 40,
made a couple of tacklers miss and raced down the left sideline into the end
zone with 5:09 left in the first half.
On Michigan State's next possession Marcus Freeman picked off Stanton to give
Ohio State the ball around midfield. On a 3rd-and-10 play from the Spartan 12,
Smith found Gonzalez in the right corner of the end zone for a 24-0 lead
heading into the locker room.
Ohio State had 241 yards in the first half compared to 79 for the Spartans.
The Buckeyes continued to pour it on in the second half as they went on a
five-play, 53-yard scoring drive on their first possession that was capped off
when Smith found Brian Robiskie in the end zone from seven-yards out for a
31-0 lead less than five minutes in.
Wells' five-yard rushing touchdown early in the fourth quarter gave Ohio State
a 38-0 lead.
A six-yard touchdown run by Jimmerson with a little over one minute to play
helped the Spartans avoid a shutout.
Game Notes
Ohio State has won 25 of 37 matchups with Michigan State, including the last
five games.
The Buckeyes outgained the Spartans, 421-198.
Gonzalez finished
with seven catches for 118 yards and also had 29 yards rushing on one
carry.
Pittman had 48 yards on 18 carries and Wells had 53 yards on 12
carries.
© 2006 The Sports Network
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