In a Rose Bowl shootout for the ages, Ohio State finished the 2021 football season and started the 2022 calendar year with a win.
Despite giving up 35 points in the first half, Ohio State rallied back to defeat Utah, 48-45, in a game where C.J. Stroud became the Buckeyes’ first-ever 500-yard passer and Jaxon Smith-Njigba became Ohio State’s first-ever 300-yard receiver in a single game.
The Buckeyes scored on all of their last five possessions to win the game, with Noah Ruggles making a game-winning 19-yard field goal with just nine seconds to play.
Ohio State’s defense forced a punt on the game’s opening series, but the Buckeyes went 3-and-out on their opening possession.