Kyle McCord connected with Marvin Harrison Jr. on two touchdown passes as No. 3 Ohio State remained undefeated with a 24-10 victory over Wisconsin in a Big Ten matchup in Madison, Wis., on Saturday night.
Ohio State (8-0, 5-0 Big Ten), which avoided a letdown after last week’s victory over previously unbeaten Penn State, moved into a tie atop the Big Ten East with second-ranked Michigan, which was idle this week.
Wisconsin (5-3, 3-2) dropped into a four-way tie atop the Big Ten West with Iowa, Minnesota and Nebraska.
The Buckeyes gained control on TreVeyon Henderson’s 33-yard touchdown run to make it 24-10 with 5:15 remaining in the game.
Ohio State went in front 17-10 on a 19-yard touchdown pass from McCord to Harrison midway through the third quarter.
McCord completed 17 of 26 passes for 226 yards with the two touchdowns and two first-half interceptions. Harrison had six catches for 123 yards, and Henderson finished with 162 yards on 24 carries.
The Buckeyes, who entered Saturday ranked fifth in the nation in total defense at 260.1 yards allowed per game, held Wisconsin to 259 yards.
Wisconsin erased a 10-0 deficit with scores on each side of halftime.
The Badgers tied it 10-10 with a seven-play, 75-yard scoring drive to open the third quarter. Redshirt freshman quarterback Braedyn Locke started the drive with a 27-yard completion to Bryson Green, gained 29 yards on a scramble and hit Will Pauling with a 13-yard touchdown pass.
Wisconsin had a first-and-goal from the Ohio State 1 on the final possession of the first half, but it settled for Nathanial Vakos’ 19-yard field goal on the final play.
Wisconsin’s leading rusher Braelon Allen, who had 50 yards on 10 carries on Saturday, suffered what the team announced as a left leg injury on the final series of the first half and did not return.
Locke, making his second start in place of injured Tanner Mordecai, completed 18 of 39 passes for 165 yards and the score.
The Buckeyes turned an Allen fumble on Wisconsin’s first possession into a 27-yard field goal by Jayden Fielding. They extended the lead to 10-0 on McCord’s 16-yard scoring toss to Harrison.
–Field Level Media