Ohio State Wins Rose Bowl in the Final Game of the Urban Meyer Era

Ohio State coach Urban Meyer’s seven-year tenure with the Buckeyes ended on Tuesday night with a 28-23 win over No. 9 Washington in the Rose Bowl Game. Led by Heisman Trophy finalist Dwayne Haskins, who completed 25-of-37 passes for 251 yards and three touchdowns to give him 50 touchdown passes on the season, the sixth-ranked Buckeyes stormed out to a 28-3 lead and held on in the fourth quarter.

After opening the game with a three-and-out, Ohio State marched 77 yards on its second drive. Junior running back Mike Weber gashed Washington repeatedly as OSU’s offensive line opened huge running lanes for the NFL-bound back.

In the span of four plays, Weber ran for nine, 14 and 10 yards, then he added a 19-yard scamper on 4th & 1 later in the drive. He finished with 15 carries for a team-high 96 rushing yards.

Haskins found a wide-open Parris Campbell on a play-action fake for the game’s first touchdown.

Campbell was Haskins’ favorite target with a team-high 11 receptions for 71 yards and a touchdown. Ohio State’s redshirt sophomore signal-caller found nine different receivers in the game.

Despite having a defense that ranks third nationally in Football Outsiders’ S&P+ rankings, Washington struggled to apply pressure on Haskins. The Huskies’ first sack came with 2:37 left in the third quarter.

The third-place finisher in this year’s Heisman voting was perfect on Ohio State’s first drive after halftime. He completed all five of his passes as the Buckeyes went 80 yards in just over two minutes. Running back J.K. Dobbins waltzed into the end zone from three yards out to put Ohio State ahead 28-3.

The Buckeyes picked up four first downs on the drive and only faced third down once.

Ohio State actually struggled on third down all evening, converting just 3-of-13 opportunities.

But it ultimately didn’t matter as the 25-point cushion and clock worked in the Buckeyes’ favor.

Washington outscored Ohio State 20-0 in the fourth quarter, starting with a jump pass on 4th & Goal from running back Myles Gaskin, who received a direct snap and found Drew Sample in the end zone.

But too often the Huskies couldn’t extend and capitalize on drives when they needed to.

Ohio State cornerback Jeffrey Okudah ended a 12-play Washington drive when he recovered to deflect a pass from Browning to Aaron Fuller on 4th & 4 late in the third quarter. Fuller ran an out route and would have moved the chains with a reception, but Browning held on to the ball too long.

Washington again turned the ball over on downs two possessions later when Ohio State safety Brendon White knocked a ball out of Sample’s hands for an incompletion on 3rd & 6. On 4th down, Ohio State’s pass rush forced Browning into a rushed throw that defensive end Chase Young deflected at the line of scrimmage.

After blocking an Ohio State punt, Washington drove down the field to cut Ohio State’s lead to 28-17 as Gaskin took a pitch into the end zone from one yard out. He finished with 121 rushing yards and two touchdowns on 24 carries, plus the passing touchdown.

Washington forced another punt on Ohio State’s next possession, but Ohio State punter Drue Chrisman pinned the Huskies inside their own 15 as Terry McLaurin tackled Fuller almost immediately after he caught the ball.

Despite three previous fourth down attempts in the game, Washington coach Chris Petersen made the decision to punt on 4th & 8 from Washington’s 17-yard line with his team down 11 with 3:49 left in the game.

The Huskies forced Ohio State into a three-and-out on the ensuing possession and they responded with a 10-play, 71-yard scoring drive that was capped off by Gaskin’s second rushing touchdown inside the 5-yard line. On the two-point conversion attempt, which would have made it a three-point game if successful, Ohio State’s Brendon White intercepted Browning in the back of the end zone and returned it across midfield as Ohio State nearly added two points of its own on the play.

Ohio State recovered Washington’s onside kick, then lined up in victory formation to seal the Rose Bowl win.

It’s the third time under Meyer that Ohio State has lost only one game and ended the season with a bowl victory, joining the Buckeyes’ national championship season in 2014 and their 2015 campaign that was capped off with a Fiesta Bowl win. It’ll likely be the sixth time in seven seasons that Ohio State finishes in the top five of the AP Top 25 Poll, meaning Ryan Day, who will become Ohio State’s head coach starting Wednesday, will take over a program with extraordinary expectations among its fans.

Washington’s loss dropped the Pac-12’s bowl record to 3-4 this season and it was a fitting end for the Huskies, who won the Pac-12 Championship but lost four games this season – three against ranked opponents and all four away from home – by a combined 15 points.