Penn State’s red zone debacle diminished, but did not end, the Nittany Lions’ chances of defeating the Buckeyes. With five minutes left, they needed the defense to stop Ohio State’s offense and get the ball back.

The defense couldn’t keep its end of the bargain, however, as Howard, a Pennsylvania native, rushed for seven yards with less than a minute left in the third, securing Ohio State’s 20-13 win over Penn State.

It was the first time the Buckeyes beat a top-five team on the road since 2006.

After 31-yard and 33-yard plays by tight end Tyler Warren, the Nittany Lions had an opportunity to make it 20 yards on first down at the OSU three-yard line.

However, the Buckeyes’ defense rose to the occasion, stopping Penn State to force a turnover on downs and maintain their seven-point lead.

After the middle three plays in a row and Allar’s incompletion against Khalil Dinkins, PSU failed to get the ball over and give the ball back to Ohio State with nearly five minutes left in the contest.

PLACED ON 4TH & GOAL 🔒

The @ohiostatefb The defense makes a MASSIVE stop in Happy Valley 🌰

(Presented by @ATTBusiness #ATTBusiness #NextLevelNetwork) pic.twitter.com/XnSqLWCCcr

— FOX College Football (@CFBONFOX) November 2, 2024

It’s become a field goal duel in Happy Valley.

Fielding made his second field goal of the game from 39 yards, giving Ohio State a 20-13 lead and completing a 12-play, 64-yard drive. The last three drives between Penn State and the Buckeyes resulted in a field goal.

Beaver Stadium hosted some of the largest crowds in college football history, and Saturday was no different.

Well, technically it was.

The early afternoon game drew 111,030 fans, the largest crowd ever in Beaver Stadium history. The unprecedented number surpassed the previous record of 110,889 set in Ohio State’s 27-26 victory over Penn State in 2018.

Penn State’s Barker made his second field goal of the contest, hitting a 44-yard field goal to make it 17-13.

Similar to Ohio State’s last drive, the three-point conversion ended a nine-play, 49-yard drive. OSU’s defense has only given up six points all game so far.

The Buckeyes start the second half with a 46-yard field goal from kicker Jayden Fielding, extending Ohio State’s lead to seven points.

The field goal capped an eight-play, 46-yard drive for OSU and was Fielding’s first field goal of the game.

Ohio State adds a FG to extend the lead to 7 🙌 Big kick by Jayden Fielding #GoBucks #OhioState #OSUvsPSU
pic.twitter.com/hyq5jArnoD

— Saturday Cadence Podcast (@SaturdayCadence) November 2, 2024

The Buckeyes caught a break with Igbinosun’s interception to end the half and led 14-10 at the break.

The first 30 minutes of the game were flooded with highlight plays on both sides of the ball. Aside from Howard’s two turnovers, Ohio State’s offense was consistently successful with 118 yards through the air and 73 yards on the ground.

The Nittany Lions offense showed few signs of life until the final possession of the half. After Penn State took a 3-0 lead, back-to-back three-and-outs and three total punts were all they had to show.

To make matters worse, Allar didn’t complete a pass to a wide receiver for almost the entire half.

It took 29 minutes, but Penn State just completed its first pass to a wide receiver.

— Ross Dellenger (@RossDellenger) November 2, 2024

What. A. Play.

When Penn State knocked on the door for the first time in the game, Ohio State defensive lineman Davison Igbinosun took matters into his own hands and intercepted Allar in the end zone.

After giving up a one-handed 21-yard grab to Harrison Wallace III that put the Nittany Lions in the red zone, Igbinosun made up for it on the next play. On the next play, Allar reached out to Igbinosun and tried to shut out Wallace.

But instead of the wideout making another incredible catch, the ball ricocheted off Wallace’s helmet and landed in Igbinosun’s right hand, where he was able to intercept it on the break.

What an unreal interception 🤯

How did Davison Igbinosun even understand that? @OhioStateFB?! pic.twitter.com/YlvorsDzSE

— FOX College Football (@CFBONFOX) November 2, 2024

Approaching his third touchdown of the first half, Howard fumbled out of the end zone for a touchback, nullifying OSU’s offensive momentum and giving the ball back to Penn State.

It’s Howard’s second turnover of the game and ends the Buckeyes’ nine-drive streak of scoring a touchdown after converting on fourth down this season.

A closer look at Will Howard’s fumble just before the goal line 👀🎥

Where do you think it came out? pic.twitter.com/4oxDE3yzWX

— FOX College Football (@CFBONFOX) November 2, 2024

Howard continues to play for Ohio State. On fourth-and-1, the graduate student rolled left, missed a man and threw a pass to wide receiver Jelani Thurman for the first down.

The Buckeyes have scored a touchdown on all NINE fourth-down drives this season.

On 4th and 1, the Buckeyes get a WILD first down 🤯@ohiostatefb pic.twitter.com/kKeMojlvLt

— FOX College Football (@CFBONFOX) November 2, 2024

After an early 10-0 loss, Howard gave the Buckeyes a 14-10 lead with his second passing touchdown of the day.

On Egbuka’s first tackle, the quarterback found wide receiver Brandon Inniss for a 21-yard receiving touchdown, capping a 10-play, 81-yard drive. Penn State bailed out OSU’s offense on several third downs due to penalties – one for five yards and one for 15.

Since his interception, Howard has been in the zone, completing 8 of 12 passes for 95 yards and two touchdowns.

BUCKEYES CLOSING AGAIN 😤@OhioStateFB takes the lead in Happy Valley 🌰 pic.twitter.com/g9Cuj5bQCX

— FOX College Football (@CFBONFOX) November 2, 2024

Ohio State and Howard’s offense did the exact opposite of a loss, orchestrating a seven-play, 74-yard drive to cut Penn State’s lead to three points in less than four minutes.

The Buckeyes relied on the running game for most of the drive and took to the air to find the end zone on Howard’s 25-yard pass touchdown to Egbuka. For Egbuka it was the 21st touchdown of his career – the fourth most of all active Big Ten players.

That didn’t take long ⚡️

Will Howard finds Emeka Egbuka for instant answer @OhioStatefb 💪 pic.twitter.com/RQTytXdcrF

— FOX College Football (@CFBONFOX) November 2, 2024

Beaver Stadium has officially reached the Cloud 9 level.

On the third play of Ohio State’s first offensive attack, defensive back Zion Tracy intercepted quarterback Will Howard for a pick-six, giving Penn State an early 10-0 lead.

Tracy stood across from wideout Emeka Egbuka and read Howard like a book, taking home his first interception of the season. It’s Penn State’s first lead against the Buckeyes since 2022.

PENN STATE PICK SIX 😱🤯@PennStateFball pic.twitter.com/JpisM5PoXL

— FOX College Football (@CFBONFOX) November 2, 2024

The Nittany Lions capped a 14-play, 61-yard drive with a 29-yard field goal from kicker Ryan Barker to give Penn State a 3-0 lead.

PSU’s offense was firing on all cylinders early on, with quarterback Drew Allar under center. With 30 passing yards and 36 rushing yards, Allar struggled to open up the offense on three consecutive plays without showing any signs of being limited by a left knee injury.

However, the drive stalled when the Nittany Lions entered the red zone after being flagged for an ineligible receiver down the field on first down.

🦁FIELD GOAL IS GOOD!🦁#PennState Kicker @RyanBarker111 shoots the 29-yard field goal #PSU a 3-0 lead.

👉 https://t.co/A2Xq7AnEEZ pic.twitter.com/XGaEbvUyiT

— Penn State Nittany Lions | Happy Valley Insider (@PennStateRivals) November 2, 2024

One of college football’s biggest rivalries is just minutes away.

Big Ten heavyweights Penn State and Ohio State will meet for the 32nd consecutive time in a matchup that could determine both teams’ postseason fates. Additionally, it raises the question of which coach can lead his program to victory even if history doesn’t favor him.

PSU coach James Franklin is 1-9 against OSU as head coach of the Nittany Lions, while Buckeyes coach Ryan Day is 0-5 against teams that are 7-0 or better.

According to ESPN’s College Football Playoff forecast, Penn State has a 97 percent chance of reaching the CFP with a win, which would be the program’s first-ever CFP appearance. Ohio State has an 88 percent chance of winning and would increase its chances of advancing to the conference championship game.