8:30 pm. Ready to roll. Captains come out for the coin toss. Big XII officiating crew.

Oregon wins coin toss, elects to receive ball first.

8:34 Kickoff. Touchback.

13:16 1Q (game clock)

FUMBLE!

Ball comes loose after Marcus Mariota‘s first run, refs rule Ohio State recovered. Play under review.

After review, Mariota’s knee ruled down. Oregon ball.

12:22 TOUCHDOWN, Oregon!

Mariota to Keanon Lowe in the end zone. Drive took all of 11 plays, 75 yards, 2:39 off the clock.

11:23 Ohio State, who had a lot of success on 3rd down in the Sugar Bowl, converts on 3rd-and-4 from their own 31. Cardale Jones is met by 2 Oregon linebackers at the first down line, but lunges forward to move the chains.

9:10 Ohio State forced to punt. Oregon calls fair catch on their own 10.

8:05 After a long completion to get near midfield, Oregon fails to convert a 3rd-and-3 after a dropped pass and are forced to punt. A great special teams play saves the punt from ending up in the endzone, and is downed at the Ohio State 2.

7:11 Jones narrowly avoids going down in the end zone for a safety on 2nd down, and converts on 3rd-and-long at the Ohio State 31.

6:40 Jalin Marshall makes a leaping catch on 1st down to bring Ohio State into Oregon’s half.

5:09 Ohio State goes for it on 4th-and-3. Marshall goes in motion, takes the snap, and gets the first down by about a ball’s length.

TOUCHDOWN, Ohio State!

Ezekiel Elliott rumbles home from 33 yards. What a drive for Ohio State. 97 yards, 4:36 remaining in 1Q.

Marshall is almost leveled while fielding an Oregon punt after a quick 3-and-out but makes a nifty return to take the ball into the Oregon half.

TOUCHDOWN, Ohio State!

1:08 1Q, 14-7 Ohio State. Another powerful Elliott run takes the ball down to the 1-yard line, and Jones connects with tight end Nick Vannett in the front corner of the end zone.

0:18 1Q Oregon forced to punt yet again. Momentum is very clearly on Ohio State’s side at the moment.

END FIRST QUARTER: OHIO STATE 14, OREGON 7

Stat of the Quarter: The 14 points Oregon gave up ties for the most they have given up in an opening quarter in 4 years.

2Q 11:28: Oregon goes for it on 4th-and-goal from the 4, and Ohio State stops them short. A personal foul penalty after the play backs Ohio State up to the half-yard line, but Elliott takes the ball out to the 27-yard line on first down.

8:46 FUMBLE! Ohio State has an impressive-looking drive, but a 50-yard completion from Jones to Corey Smith is fumbled. Oregon ball at their own 9-yard line.

7:18 Oregon is now 0-for-5 on 3rd downs. Ohio State takes over inside the Oregon half at the 49.

6:25 Facing 3rd-and-12 from midfield, Jones completes a 45-yarder to Devin Smith.

4:55 Jones takes direct snaps on first and second down from the 5. The 2nd down play is ruled a touchdown, but after review, is ruled down at the 1.

TOUCHDOWN, Ohio State!

4:49 Make that 21 straight for Ohio State, as Jones spins and dives in off right guard to make it 21-7. Stat of the Night so far: Mariota has never had to come back from a 14-point deficit. The last time Oregon came back from the same deficit was in 2010.

FIELD GOAL, Oregon!

0:50 After a 12-play, 66-yard drive, Oregon is held to a field goal, and Aidan Schneider boots it through the uprights to make it 21-10.

0:09 Oregon forces a 3-and-out and takes over inside their own half. An attempted hook-and-ladder play to end the half is broken up by Joey Bosa.

HALFTIME: Ohio State 21, Oregon 10

Halftime analysis: Statistically, this game could be a close one, as Oregon’s 3rd-down inefficiency (2-8) has been offset by the 2 Ohio State turnovers. However, Ohio State’s eye-popping 6 yards per rushing attempt is a huge difference so far. Oregon has looked rattled at times, and the fact that they have never had to play from this position in a while is beginning to show in their body language. Ohio State, in contrast, is looking more confident and their offense has been playing with more rhythm.

Oregon HC Mark Helfrich will have his hands full making adjustments to try and get Oregon’s ground game going. Ohio State’s front 7 has been able to get into the Oregon backfield numerous times to catch Thomas Tyner for a loss, and Mariota has been restricted to east-west running.

The game plan for Ohio State at this point is fairly simple: don’t fix what isn’t broken. Based on first half play, it would be almost worth the gamble to dare Mariota to beat them with his arm.

Stat of the Half, per ESPN: Ohio State is 90-1 when leading by at least 14 points in a game over the last 10 seasons. eith the last loss coming in 2011 to Nebraska.

2nd Half

First play from scrimmage: Elliott carries for 22 yards.

13:20 3Q Jones unleashes a deep ball to Smith in the corner of the endzone, but Smith is unable to get a foot in bounds after the catch.

12:12 4th-and-1 from the 32, Jones is stood up at the line but he turns and scrambles left before leaping forward for a first down.

TOUCHDOWN, Oregon!

11:23 Mariota capitalizes on the 3rd Ohio State turnover and completes a 70-yard pass to Byron Marshall for the touchdown. Play is reviewed as Marshall appeared to drop the ball before getting into the end zone, but the call stands. 21-17.

8:55 Jones hands off to Elliott on 4th-and-1 at midfield for a first down.

8:21 FUMBLE! Jones tries to keep a play alive, and fumbles the ball in a play that is eerily similar to the now-infamous Jameis Winston fumble in the Rose Bowl.  Oregon ball.

 

FIELD GOAL, Oregon!

6:39 The Ohio State defense holds Oregon in the red zone and limits them to a field goal. 21-20, Ohio State clinging to the lead. For all of Ohio State’s dominance on the ground tonight (185 yards, 5.1 yards per carry to 116 yards, 3.9), the 4 turnovers (2 in Ohio State’s first 2 2nd-half possessions) have tilted the momentum in Oregon’s favor so far in the 2nd half.

4:36 Ohio State driving, now inside Oregon half. Key word for the Buckeyes here is “Composure.” Elliott is showing no signs whatsoever of slowing down, and the more he can power forward for yards, the more Jones will keep Oregon’s defense honest to open up passing options.

1:30 Jones drops back, then steps up in the pocket and runs forward on 3rd-and-3 for the first down. In the process, he stands up and knocks over Alex Balducci, Oregon’s 297-lb nose guard.

 

TOUCHDOWN, Ohio State!

End 3Q: On the final play of the quarter, Elliott takes the handoff from Jones and scores his 2nd touchdown of the night. Elliott is now up to 203 yards rushing tonight. Two. Hundred. And. Three.

TOUCHDOWN, Ohio State!

10:04 4Q Stop me if you’ve heard this one before. Ezekiel Elliott to the end zone. 35-20 Ohio State.

9:50 Mariota is driven into the ground after being pursued by Bosa. Jeff Lockie takes over under center for a couple of snaps, but Oregon fails to get the first down.

4:23 Ohio State drives 20 yards entirely on the ground (285 rushing yards for the night now) before punting the ball away to the Oregon 15-yard line.

2:45 Mariota airmails one over his receiver’s head on 4th down. Ohio State takes over on downs, and this one is essentially over. The Heisman Trophy winner’s line on the night: 22/34, 310 yards, 2 TDs. On a normal day, this would be a good day’s work for a QB, but tonight, Oregon’s defense and inability to convert red zone opportunities (1 TD, 2 FGs, 1 turnover on downs) have put paid to their hopes.

TOUCHDOWN, Ohio State!

0:28 Exclamation point. Ezekiel Elliott takes it in for a 1-yard touchdown. 42-20. In case there was still any doubt whatsoever about the MVP of this game, that’s 36 carries for 246 yards and 4 touchdowns. 6.8 yards per carry. The tackles broken and yards after contact statistics will be similarly impressive.

0:25 Urban Meyer gets the Gatorade shower.

0:07 Mariota scrambles on the final play of the game and throws an interception deep in the Ohio State half.

FINAL: OHIO STATE are your national champions, defeating Oregon 42-20.