For the first seven minutes, Buckeyes fans held their breath as the Zips zipped ahead and scored the game’s first touchdown in the first quarter.
Freshman quarterback Kyle McCord — starting in place of redshirt freshman C.J. Stroud — went 0-for-2 on passing attempts during his first drive. Just before the game seemed bleak, No. 10 Ohio State answered with touchdowns on back-to-back series and never looked back.
The Buckeyes (3-1) defeated Akron (1-3) by a score of 59-7 behind 319 passing yards and two touchdowns from McCord and nine sacks from the defense, including three from graduate defensive tackle Haskell Garrett.
Resting an injured shoulder, Stroud looked on from the sidelines as McCord, a former 5-star recruit, became the fourth true freshman to start at quarterback in Buckeyes history and first since Braxton Miller in 2011.
Despite beginning the game 2-for-5, McCord completed 11 of his next 13 passes. McCord’s second completion came on a 5-yard flip to senior wide receiver Chris Olave, who swept down one sideline and scored on the other to tie the game at seven.
On Akron’s ensuing drive, Garrett broke through for two sacks, and junior defensive end Zach Harrison nearly recorded a third if not for a holding penalty against senior cornerback Sevyn Banks.
McCord’s next pass went 57 yards to junior wide receiver Garrett Wilson, setting up a 3-yard rushing score for freshman running back TreVeyon Henderson as the Buckeyes took the lead for good with 0:11 left in the opening quarter.
McCord had completions of 85, 57, 39 and 34 yards to his name, and the latter came on a touchdown toss to sophomore wideout Jaxon Smith-Njigba. He did throw an interception, however, as Akron junior defensive back Charles Amankwaa snagged the pick on the first drive of the second half.
Redshirt freshman Jack Miller III took over under center with just over seven minutes left in the third quarter. He finished with 66 yards on five completions.
Ohio State made freshman history, also. McCord and Henderson became the first quarterback-running back duo to start a game for the Buckeyes where both were true freshmen. Ohio State started four freshmen in total, with cornerback Denzel Burke and defensive end J.T. Tuimoloau rounding out the quartet.
Henderson finished with 93 rushing yards and two touchdowns, while graduate running back Master Teague III added two scores and 71 yards of his own.
Wilson led the way with a game-high 124 receiving yards. Freshman wide receiver Emeka Egbuka caught the first reception of his career and completed it for 85 yards.
Akron junior quarterback DJ Irons finished with 115 passing yards and a touchdown, albeit alongside a pair of picks on back-to-back drives. Sophomore linebacker Cody Simon grabbed his first-career interception with 8:17 to go in the second quarter before junior defensive back Ronnie Hickman snagged his second of the season and returned it 46 yards and a score just over three minutes later.
Ohio State returns to the road and will play at Rutgers next week. Kickoff is scheduled for 3:30 p.m.
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Football: McCord, Miller help Buckeyes roll to 59-7 win over Akron - OSU - The Lantern
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