Will Howard, Ohio State Crush Northwestern as CFB Fans Hype Massive Indiana Game

The No. 2 Ohio State Buckeyes took care of business on Saturday, beating the Northwestern Wildcats 31-7 at the iconic Wrigley Field in Chicago.

OSU improved to 9-1 overall and 6-1 in Big Ten play with the win, and senior quarterback Will Howard was once again at the center of the team's success with 247 yards, two touchdowns and no interceptions on 15-of-24 passing.

After going down 7-0 early in the second quarter, the Buckeyes exploded for 31 unanswered points, including a pair of one-yard touchdown runs by running back Quinshon Judkins in the second quarter.

One of those touchdown runs was set up by a blocked punt, which shifted the momentum of the game firmly in the Buckeyes' favor.

Howard went to work late in the second quarter, hitting wide receiver and Chicago native Carnell Tate for a 25-yard scoring strike with just 47 seconds remaining in the half.

The Howard-Tate combo came through once again early in the third quarter, as an eight-yard touchdown hookup extended the OSU lead to 28-7.

Ohio State was expected to take the fight to a Northwestern team that entered the game with a 4-5 record, and it did precisely that to keep hope alive for a Big Ten Championship Game berth and a potential first-round bye in the College Football Playoff.

However, in order to have those opportunities, the Buckeyes will have to get past the undefeated No. 5 Indiana Hoosiers next weekend at Ohio Stadium in Columbus.

Indiana is the surprise team of the college football season, and it is currently lined up to face undefeated No. 1 Oregon in the Big Ten Championship Game.

Ohio State can leapfrog the Hoosiers for that spot with a win next week, though, and college football fans are already hyping up what promises to be one of the biggest and highest-stakes games of the season:

Calling the all-time series between Ohio State and Indiana pure domination would be an understatement, as the Buckeyes are 79-12-5 against the Hoosiers, and have won each of their past 28 clashes.

Most of the meetings haven't been close either with Ohio State winning each of the past three and seven of the past eight by at least 20 points.

This year's Indiana team is much different than those of the past, though, as head coach Curt Cignetti has already led the Hoosiers to their first-ever 10-win season.

As impressive as the Hoosiers have been, next Saturday will mark their first game against a ranked opponent this season.

They will also have to deal with an Ohio State team in fine form, coming off two blowout wins on the heels of a hard-fought, 20-13 win over then-No. 3 Penn State earlier this month.