COLUMBUS, Ohio — Michael Thomas and Jalin Marshall, Ohio State’s best wide receivers, both had inexplicable drops on what should have been simple throw-and-catches against Michigan State on Saturday. Thomas’s came near the end of the first half on first-and-10; Marshall’s came near the beginning of the second on a third-and-4. Both drives were three-and-outs, two of a staggering six for the Buckeyes.
But it is difficult to say whether catching the ball would have mattered. Wherever an Ohio State player was, a Michigan State defender was there to stop him. The result was grinding, sleet-soaked trench warfare in which the Spartans, despite being without their steadfast starting quarterback Connor Cook, played their best game of the year and upset the Buckeyes, 17-14, ending with a 41-yard field goal in the final seconds.