No. 1 Buckeyes 'want to be great,' cruise to 5-0

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. -- Ohio State had 14 players from its nationalist title squad selected successful the NFL draft, which tied the squad grounds and raised morganatic questions astir who would capable the holes.

Rebuilding years don't hap astatine Ohio State, but the Buckeyes projected arsenic a squad that mightiness germinate implicit time. Halfway done the regular season, the Buckeyes' maturation spurt has already come, and the squad looks afloat susceptible of defending its title. Top-ranked Ohio State improved to 6-0 Saturday with a mostly stress-free 34-16 win astatine No. 17 Illinois, bolstered by a mostly new-look defence that continues to flex contempt allowing a season-high points total.

"The guys who we didn't cognize astir going into the season, they've present proven that they belong," manager Ryan Day said. "They're competitive, they're edgy, they similar these types of environments, and they privation to beryllium great, they expect to beryllium great, expect to triumph each the time."

"As overmuch arsenic I was connected them astir increasing up and maturing, you are seeing a beauteous mature group."

Ohio State inactive features stars from the title team, similar information Caleb Downs, linebacker Sonny Styles and wide receiver Jeremiah Smith, who had 5 receptions and a touchdown Saturday. But Saturday's triumph was fueled mostly by caller contributors, including cornerback Jermaine Mathews Jr. and antiaircraft lineman Kayden McDonald, who forced 3 takeaways that turned into 21 Buckeyes points. Other emerging antiaircraft stars similar linebacker Arvel Reese and extremity Kenyatta Jackson Jr. combined for 2 sacks and 3 tackles for loss.

McDonald, a reserve his archetypal 2 seasons, ripped the shot distant from Illinois' Ca'Lil Valentine precocious successful the archetypal half, mounting up an Ohio State touchdown walk from 2 caller contributors, backmost Julian Sayin and moving backmost Bo Jackson.

"We've shown that we tin play," McDonald said. "It doesn't substance if radical spell to the NFL oregon older guys, we've got to measurement up. That's what we did."

Mathews deflected a Luke Altmyer walk connected Illinois' archetypal possession, mounting up an casual interception for linebacker Payton Pierce, different caller starter. Altmyer came successful not having thrown an interception successful 148 walk attempts and Ohio State's defense, portion utterly ascendant done 5 games with lone 25 full points allowed, had lone 2 interceptions.

"I knew helium was going to propulsion 1 connected us," said Mathews, who besides forced an Altmyer fumble connected a blitz. "This defence is crazy, ain't it?"

Ohio State's defence had not allowed much than 9 points successful a crippled earlier Saturday, and Day said the squad "took our ft disconnected the pedal a small bit" aft gathering a 34-10 pb aboriginal successful the 4th quarter.

"It's a bully motion erstwhile you person to spell into a locker country aft a triumph similar this and benignant of marque definite everybody understands what a large triumph it was, due to the fact that I deliberation we each felt similar we near a small spot connected the field," Day said.

Sayin, a first-year starter who came successful completing 80.2% of his passes, wasn't rather arsenic businesslike Saturday, completing 19 of 27 attempts. But helium avoided large mistakes, tossed 2 touchdown passes and led scoring drives connected six of Ohio State's archetypal 8 possessions, including a 63-yard touchdown thrust that ate up 7:52 aft Illinois scored its archetypal touchdown aboriginal successful the 2nd half.

"We've shown a batch of resiliency," S...