Blue White Illustrated

Buckeyes are ready for the maelstrom they are about to step into. They have only played one true road game so far this season, but they dominated it, thrashing Maryland, 52-24, before 52,000 fans at Byrd Stadium on Oct. 4. "Obviously 110 [thousand] is different than 50-some," Meyer said. Recalling the Buckeyes' most recent trip to Uni- versity Park, a 35-23 victory in front of 107,818 fans two years ago, he said he and his wife, Shelley, agreed that it "was one of the top five atmospheres we've ever played in" and that the Bucks "can expect that same type of reception" this coming Saturday. But, he said, "We'll be ready. I'm more comfortable than I've been." Meyer has a lot of reasons to feel that way. At 5-1 overall and 2-0 in the Big Ten, the Buckeyes are starting to look like the team everyone thought they were before Miller went down in presea- son camp with a season-ending shoul- der injury. Ranked 13th in this week's Associated Press poll, they boast one of the Big Ten's most incandescent young stars in Barrett, one of its most domi- nant defensive players in sophomore end Joey Bosa and are headed toward what figures to be a season-defining matchup Nov. 8 against the Big Ten's other East Division power, Michigan State. It's a game that could vault them back into a national title chase they had seemingly abandoned with a 35-21 loss to Virginia Tech in week two, and one for which they will be well motivated given the devastating loss that the Spartans dealt them in last year's Big Ten Champi- onship Game. But to get to East Lansing with their title hopes intact, they'll first have to beat Penn State. And that means they'll most likely need a composed effort from Barrett. A 6-foot-1, 225-pound redshirt fresh- man from Wichita Falls, Texas, Barrett has been the team's starter since opening day. Still reeling from Miller's injury, Ohio State struggled out of the gate, beating Navy unconvincingly on Aug. 30 then faltering against Virginia Tech. Bar- rett went 9 of 29 with three interceptions against the Hokies, but he bounced back by throwing six touchdown passes a week later against Kent State, and he's been on a roll ever since. He leads the Big Ten in pass-efficiency rating (182.1), completion percentage (65.2), touch- down passes (20) and total offense (333.0 yards per game). This week, he made CBSSports.com's Heisman Watch, fin- ishing in a tie for fiCh place. Ohio State wide receivers coach Zach Smith said that even though Barrett has barely started his college career, he has already shown an "innate leadership quality." "Guys want to follow him," Smith said. "Every pregame, he talks to the offense. I'll never forget, must have been the Navy game. He spoke to the offense. [Receivers] Devin Smith and Evan Spencer looked at me [and said], 'Wow, that's a mature 18-year-old, 19-year- old.' He's different than most redshirt freshmen. There are no qualms. There's no lack of confidence. When we're going into that stadium on Saturday, we know he's leading us. Everyone is confident in that." As he's improved, so have the Buck- eyes. They've outscored their past four opponents by a combined margin of 224- 69 and are looking to strafe Penn State the way they did last year in a 63-14 vic- tory at the Horseshoe. To slow down the Bucks, Penn State is going to need every advantage it can con- jure up. It's got the Big Ten's least- scored-upon defense, and head coach James Franklin is hoping that the ex- pected full house will provide an assist to Mike Hull, Deion Barnes, Jordan Lucas and company. "Obviously, we would love to have a huge home field advantage," he said. "I anticipate us having 107,000 Penn State fans wearing white, screaming and going crazy, making it really difficult for [Ohio State] to communicate. "If you look at them, they really haven't played a whole lot of games on the road this year. They did play at Maryland, but that's the only true road game they've played. The Navy game was at a neutral site. So I think coming on the road in this type of environment is going to be diffi- cult and challenging for them." Challenging? No doubt. Enough to give the Nittany Lions a shot at pulling off the biggest upset of the Big Ten season? That's another question entirely. NATE  BAUER RECORD 5-1 A lot of prognosticators foresee an- other annihilation a la 2013. I don't think that's in the cards, as this year's defense can slow down Buckeyes' O. The problem is points, and how to get them. That's an issue unlikely to be solved until at least next week. OHIO STATE 24, PENN STATE 7 PHIL  GROSZ RECORD 4-2 Penn State and Ohio State appear headed in opposite directions. The Buckeyes are scoring points in bunches, while Penn State has managed one TD in its past two games. PSU needs to find a way to make the Buckeyes one-dimen- sional on offense, otherwise they'll pull away for a comfortable win. OHIO STATE 34, PENN STATE 13 MATT  HERB RECORD 4-2 In some ways, Penn State is better equipped to hang in there with Ohio State than it was last year. Plus, the game's at the Beav. But the matchup of PSU's patchwork offensive line vs. Joey Bosa and company is big trouble for the Lions. I can't see them overcoming it, even if the defense finds a way to slow down the Bucks. OHIO STATE 41, PENN STATE 10 TIM  OWEN RECORD 5-1 Penn State keeps this close in the first half thanks in large part to another strong defensive effort. But the Buck- eyes simply have too much firepower for this scholarship-strapped PSU team and will lay it on in the second half. OHIO STATE 31, PENN STATE 10 RYAN  SNYDER RECORD 5-1 The defense will keep Penn State in this game, but the Buckeyes' defensive line will be the difference-maker. OHIO STATE 41, PENN STATE 24 O c T O B E R 2 2 , 2 0 1 4 B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . c O M 2 BWI'S FORECAST

• Cover