COLUMBUS, Ohio — No. 1 Ohio State’s dominance continued on Saturday with a 48-10 win over UCLA, which was playing without starting quarterback Nico Iamaleava.
Iamaleava was ruled out with a concussion before the game began and the Bruins didn’t get anything going without him. The Buckeyes won with ease, despite missing wide receiver Carnell Tate for the second straight game with an undisclosed injury and playing with an injured Jeremiah Smith, who did not play in the second half. Ohio State outgained the Bruins 440 yards to 222.
Now 10-0, the Buckeyes have won their past nine games by at least 18 points and have given up a total of 75 points in 10 games. With a College Football Playoff berth virtually locked up, here are a few takeaways from another blowout win:
How about those running backs?
Ohio State played without veteran back CJ Donaldson but still had its best rushing day against a Power 4 opponent.
The Buckeyes ran for 222 yards and averaged 6.7 yards per carry behind the trio of Bo Jackson, Isaiah West and James Peoples. It felt like the first time this season where the entire backfield shined.
Jackson led the group with 112 yards on 15 carries and scored the first touchdown of the game. West, a fellow freshman, was second on the team with 61 yards on eight carries. Both of them had rushes over 30 yards: Jackson a 32-yard run and West a 38-yard run.
That’s the explosiveness Day has been looking for from an offense that came into Saturday with just five rushes over 20 yards.
The highlight of the day came from Peoples, though. He scored on a 19-yard rush where he juked one defender and then hurdled another before jogging into the end zone. He carried the ball six times for 42 yards and two touchdowns.
James Peoples HURDLES a Bruin for the TD 🤯‼️ @OhioStateFB
📺: NBC pic.twitter.com/wohUYTpf93
— Big Ten Network (@BigTenNetwork) November 16, 2025
UCLA’s defense is one of the worst in the country, as it entered Saturday ranked No. 123 against the run at 191 yards per game. Still, it was good to see the Buckeyes get their rushing attack going, especially with the injuries at wide receiver.
Day has been patient with his young running backs this season, but Saturday marked the second game in a row where their physicality has shown up in person. Jackson’s 11-yard run in the first quarter, where he ran through a pile to get to the 1-yard line, was a good example of a freshman who has learned how to run through contact. On the next play, he ran through a defender to score a 1-yard touchdown. Both Jackson and West are becoming difficult to bring down in the second level.
“I thought the running backs ran hard,” Ryan Day said. “There were a lot of runs in there where we were making guys miss on the first level and the second level. … Every play sort of looks the same to start with, but how are you finishing plays? That comes down to effort and mindset. It seemed to me that they were running hard and physical.”
They are far from perfect, yet, but next week’s game against Rutgers will give them another chance to gain more confidence. Rutgers is the worst rushing defense in the Big Ten, giving up 196 yards per game and over six yards per carry.
Sayin’s 80 percent streak ends with WR shortage
Julian Sayin had completed over 80 percent of his passes in three straight games and four of the past five before Saturday, when he completed only 23 of 31 passes for 1894 yards and a touchdown. The 74.2 percent completion rate takes his national-high rate down to 80.1 percent for the season.
Sayin played without Tate for the second straight game, and he also played without a fully healthy Smith, who caught four passes for 40 yards in the first half — including a one-handed snag — before exiting after being listed as questionable on the pregame availability report.
Who needs two hands when you’re Jeremiah Smith? @OhioStateFB.
📺: NBC pic.twitter.com/WsMws7CkGd
— Big Ten Football (@B1Gfootball) November 16, 2025
Though Sayin did throw an 11-yard touchdown to Bryson Rodgers, there was an obvious lack of chemistry with the second-team receivers. Sayin completed just 50 percent of his passes in the third quarter and looked uncomfortable at times in the pocket.
The numbers won’t jump off the stat sheet, but he did go another game without a massive mistake. It wasn’t a bad day for Sayin — nobody should be upset about completing 74 percent of his passes — but the third quarter will be a focus for him and the Ohio State coaching staff this week.
He also took a hard hit in the first half. After a third-down completion was short of the first down, Sayin left the field holding his ankle and went straight to the injury tent during the possession break. He returned and played the rest of the first half and third quarter before Lincoln Kienholz replaced him amid a blowout.
Still, between his ankle and the receiving corps, Ohio State is a bit banged up going into the final two weeks of the season.
Ohio State needs to get healthy
The list of notable players battling injuries is long.
In addition to Tate and Donaldson, backup center Josh Padilla did not play.
Smith was limping on the field before the game and limped to the locker room at halftime, and receiver Brandon Inniss looked like he was banged up throughout the evening. Right tackle Phillip Daniels did start and play the first three quarters after missing last week.
Day said that he is not concerned about Tate or Smith’s injuries long term.
“Jeremiah had a nagging issue that we wanted to make sure we were smart with him, as we know what’s coming down the road here,” Day said.
Inniss, who said he was banged up in the win, added that he will be fine and that there is no reason for fans to worry about Smith and Tate.
“They will be fine,” he said.
Ohio State will be a large favorite over Rutgers (5-5, 2-5) next week before heading to Michigan for its Nov. 29 rivalry matchup.
The Buckeyes must get healthy before going to Ann Arbor to play a Michigan (8-2, 6-1) team that will likely be 10-2 and playing for a Playoff berth.
A landmark kick return
UCLA scored its only touchdown of the day on an 18-yard pass from Luke Duncan to Kwazi Gilmer in the third quarter. On the ensuing kickoff, the Bruins kicked off to defensive back Lorenzo Styles, who took it back 100 yards untouched.
It was the first kickoff return touchdown for Ohio State since Jordan Hall in 2010.
LORENZO TO THE END ZONE. 💨 pic.twitter.com/stCgjn45MO
— NBC Sports (@NBCSports) November 16, 2025
Ohio State also blocked a punt in the game — well, kind of. UCLA punter Will Karoll miskicked a punt at the end of the first half, sending the punt just a few yards in front of him and into the chest of defensive end Caden Curry.
Curry credited the blocked punt to his intimidation factor.
“He kind of just put it there, I’ll take it,” Curry said with a laugh.
Regardless of how it happened, Ohio State has seen improvement from its special teams unit this year. Between the returns, the block and Jayden Fielding’s 33-yard field goal, the special teams unit is looking like a strength for the Buckeyes.
“This year has been a little iffy on special teams, but coach Day has been telling us in these meetings that we have to get special teams going, I feel like we did that tonight,” Inniss, who is also the team’s punt returner, said.
The thing with special teams, though, is that continued good fortune is hard to come by. A game can change based on the wind, bad weather or one bobbled punt, so Ohio State has to remain consistent.