The Buckeyes forced a fumble and returned it for a touchdown in the final seconds to seal the victory.
Ohio State head coach Ryan Day wasn’t kidding when he said this week that his team needed to be prepared for “always dangerous” Maryland, as the Buckeyes escaped College Park with a 43-30 win on Saturday afternoon.
It appeared Ohio State would cruise into next week’s game against third-ranked Michigan after freshman running back Dallan Hayden’s 13-yard touchdown run put the Buckeyes ahead 33-21 with 12:36 remaining in the fourth quarter.
However, the Terrapins blocked the ensuing extra point and returned it 80 yards for a two-point conversion. They promptly went on a seven-play, 74-yard touchdown drive to cut the lead to 33-30 with 9:49 left in the game.
The teams exchanged possessions, with Ohio State failing to convert on 4th-and-1 near midfield and Maryland going three-and-out, before the Buckeyes went on a lengthy drive that milked the clock down to 42 seconds remaining before kicking a field goal.
With Maryland down six, senior defensive end Zach Harrison sacked quarterback Taulia Tagovailoa on back-to-back plays, forcing a fumble on the latter that was returned for a touchdown by redshirt junior linebacker Steele Chambers to reach the final score.
Meanwhile, Hayden – who came on in relief of sophomore Treveyon Henderson after he aggravated his lingering foot injury and watched most of the second half in a walking boot – finished the game with a career-high 146 yards and three touchdowns.
-----
Get your Ohio State football tickets from SI Tickets. Also, be sure to check out our new message boards, Buckeye Forums. We'd love to have you part of the conversation during the season.
-----
You may also like:
-----
Be sure to stay locked into BuckeyesNow all the time!
Join the BuckeyesNow community!
Subscribe to the BuckeyesNow YouTube channel
Follow Andrew Lind on Twitter: @AndrewMLind
Follow BuckeyesNow on Twitter: @BuckeyesNow_FN
Follow BuckeyesNow on Instagram: @BuckeyesNow_FN