Top-ranked Ohio State looks to continue rolling along when it hosts reeling Penn State

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Penn State thought it finally got a leg up on Ohio State back in January when defensive coordinator Jim Knowles left Columbus for Happy Valley to become the highest-paid assistant coach in college football.

It ended up being a temporary setback, and in the long run made the Buckeyes better.

Matt Patricia has made Ohio State's defense even more formidable despite returning only three starters at the beginning of the season. The top-ranked Buckeyes have already posted two shutouts and only allowed four touchdowns in their first seven games.

“Like any relationship, when it breaks off, sometimes it’s good, sometimes it’s bad,” coach Ryan Day said of Knowles. “But there really hasn’t been much communication. He did a great job when he was here, helped us win a national championship and kind of left it at that."

Knowles return to Ohio Stadium on Saturday is one of the few remaining interesting storylines from a matchup many thought two months ago would be between the top two teams in the Big Ten.

Ohio State (7-0, 4-0 Big Ten) has kept up its end, but Penn State's season imploded with four straight losses, beginning with a 30-24 double overtime setback against then-No. 6 Oregon.

Two weeks later, coach James Franklin was fired after losses to unranked UCLA and Northwestern. Terry Smith is 0-1 as the interim coach after a 25-24 loss to Iowa on Oct. 18.

Ohio State and Penn State (3-4, 0-4) both had byes last week.

The Buckeyes have won their last eight over the Nittany Lions, but the average margin of victory has been 6.75 points, including four one-score games. Not many are expecting a close game this time with Ohio State listed as a 20 1/2 point favorite, according to BetMGM Sportsbook.

“Obviously, no one is giving us a chance. I’m going to re-emphasize that to our team. I don’t think we ever been 20-point underdogs since I’ve been here. But it’s motivation,” Smith said. “No one believes in us and we’re going to come out and fight like we did at Iowa. We’re going to fight a little harder.”

Day still has belief in Penn State, especially considering how everyone has written them off.

“They really have a nothing-to-lose mentality. We have to be at high alert," Day said.

Ohio State has given up only 41 points, the least allowed by a Football Bowl Subdivision team through seven games since Florida State allowed 38 in 1993.

The Buckeyes also lead the nation in total defense (216.9 yards per game), red zone defense and third-down defense.

Ohio State will look to contain a Penn State run game powered by Kaytron Allen, who is fifth in the Big Ten with 612 rushing yards along with nine touchdowns.

“I think their offensive line. They’re very violent. They go hard, they put guys on their backs. They’re chasing people downfield trying to find someone to hit," Ohio State linebacker Sonny Styles said. “And their running backs, they run hard, run physical. Especially when they get downfield.”

Buckeyes sophomore QB Julian Sayin has three games this season where he has thrown for at least 300 yards, multiple TDs and completed at least 85% of his passes.

He comes into Saturday's game leading the nation with an 80% completion rate.

“I would say they have a lot of different dropback schemes that are going to be difficult for our secondary. They got gifted receivers, but they’re a complete team and they run a lot of simple stuff to keep people honest,” Penn State linebacker Amare Campbell said of the Buckeyes offense.

Since he became the team’s interim coach earlier this month, Smith has encouraged coordinator Andy Kotelnicki to find another gear on offense.

At Iowa, Kotelnicki went back to a trick he used last season, deploying two quarterbacks simultaneously. Sophomore Jaxon Smolik joined Ethan Grunkemeyer and earned his first career touches, carrying the ball four times for three yards. Smolik suffered an apparent left arm injury, however, and his status is questionable for Saturday.

The good news? Penn State recently welcomed true freshman Bekkem Kritza back after missing all of spring practice, training camp and the first nine weeks of the season with an unspecified injury. Smith confirmed earlier this week that Kritza would be active this weekend while offering no update on Smolik.

This is the 33rd consecutive season Ohio State and Penn State have met, the longest active streak for the Buckeyes against an opponent since Ohio State and Michigan did not meet during the 2020 COVID-shortened season.

With the Big Ten's expansion though, that streak ends after this year. The next meeting between the two schools won't be until 2028 at Penn State.

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Freelance reporters Travis Johnson in State College, Pennsylvania, and Marcus Hartman in Columbus, Ohio, contributed to this story.

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