COLUMBUS, Ohio (WATE) — Tennessee’s road woes under head coach Josh Heupel continued in its first College Football Playoff game as the Vols fell on a cold Columbus night by a score of 42-17.
The Buckeyes quickly put together an effective attack in the air that ended with a 37-yard touchdown pass by Will Howard to Jeremiah Smith. The Ohio State pass game proved to be the downfall of the Vols by the end of the night.
Tennessee proceeded to go three-and-out on their first two drives. In the meantime, the Buckeyes doubled their lead on a two-yard rushing touchdown by Quinshon Judkins.
That wasn’t all Ohio State would pour on the Vols in the first quarter. TreVeyon Henderson broke free for a 29-yard score on the ground with 3:27 remaining in the first quarter, marking the first time this season that a team has put up 21 points on the Vols in the first half, the Buckeyes managing to do it in the first quarter.
The Buckeyes were on the verge of their fourth touchdown in as many drives when Will Brooks intercepted Howard in the end zone. On the ensuing drive, Tennessee worked their way down to field goal range, Max Gilbert knocked down a 36-yarder to get the Vols on the board.
The Vols defense began to adjust, keeping the Buckeyes scoreless in the second quarter. While Tennessee managed to finish out a 16-play drive with a Nico Iamaleava two-yard rushing touchdown.
Ahead 21-10, Ohio State got the ball back with less than a minute remaining, they got close enough to try out a 56-yard field goal that fell short.
The Vols got the ball to start off the second half with a chance to make it a one-score game. They were forced to punt. Ohio State didn’t have the same issue, the Buckeyes connected on a 22-yard touchdown through the air on the next drive to put them up 28-10.
The Vols simply couldn’t make anything work in the third quarter, that goes for both sides of the ball. Offensively, Tennessee was shut out in the third quarter. In fact, they were unable to even make it out of their own territory.
Defensively, the Vols let up two touchdowns in the third frame. In addition to the Smith catch, Judkins tacked on a one-yard run for a 35-10 lead.
If the game wasn’t already sealed, it was by the time the game flipped to the fourth quarter. Henderson got more action on the ground, adding a 24-yard score to make it 42-10. A late Tennessee rushing touchdown by Peyton Lewis cut the final deficit to 25 points.
Ohio State advances to the quarterfinals where they’ll take on No. 1-ranked Oregon in the Rose Bowl on New Years Day.
