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| Ohio State star receiver Jeremiah Smith leaps over Tywan Cox for one of his four touchdowns on the day. (Photo: Ohio State Football) |
COLUMBUS, Ohio — The Buckeyes open up Big Ten play with a solid win over Illinois, 42-19, to move to 3-1 overall and 1-0 in conference play this season.
"I thought we had balance today; I thought the offensive line played well today," said Day.
And that win makes it the 10th consecutive time they have beaten Illinois dating back to 2008.
Jeremiah Smith had a field day on the Illinois defensive backs, amassing 217 total receiving yards and 4 touchdowns as he was Julian Sayin's main target; Sayin targeted him 16 times.
"I think our [him and Sayin] chemistry is definitely getting better; just being in the meetings with the quarterbacks and seeing what they're seeing out there helps a lot," said Smith.
Sayin also had a solid day throwing for 367 yards; this marks his second-best game from a yardage perspective in an Ohio State uniform, and having a receiver like Smith helps. "He keeps finding the end zone, but he is a very selfless player," said Sayin.
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| Jeremiah Smith (4) and Brandon Inniss celebrate after Smith scores a touchdown. (Ohio State Football) |
The Buckeyes continue to rotate their backfield with Bo Jackson, Ja'Kobi Jackson, and Isaiah West, which makes a lethal combination that totaled 127 yards against the Illini.
Illinois showed some solid plays early on in the game. They were only trailing by seven points when the first quarter ended. Then they put together an impressive 6-play drive that covered 75 yards, and running back Jordan Anderson scored a touchdown to help them get back in it.
They also showed some defense as they held the Buckeyes scoreless in the third quarter but it was all Ohio State for the remainder of the game. No one had an answer for Jeremiah Smith.
Ohio State will travel to Kinnick Stadium for a showdown with Iowa (4-0, 1-0) on October 3 for their next game.
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