Ohio State Spring Game 2016: Recap, Highlights and Twitter Reaction

The Gray team defeated the Scarlet team, 28-17, in Ohio State's annual spring football game in front of a record-breaking crowd at Ohio Stadium in Columbus, Ohio. 

One year after setting the national spring game attendance record with 99,391 fans at the Horseshoe, OSU upped the ante Saturday with 100,189 fans on hand to witness the exhibition, according to Bruce Feldman of Fox Sports.

That prompted head coach Urban Meyer to show his gratitude on Twitter:

Junior quarterback J.T. Barrett entered the game with all eyes on him, but he struggled with two interceptions for the Scarlet team, while freshman Joe Burrow put up 196 yards and three scores through the air for the Gray squad.

As seen in this GIF courtesy of Ohio State Buckeyes on Twitter, the players were pumped and ready to play after a long offseason:

That included Meyer, who entered the contest with a positive outlook, as evidenced by this video via Ohio State on BTN:

Emotions ran high prior to the start of the game, as a moment of silence was held for late Ohio State and New Orleans Saints defensive end Will Smith, as seen in this video provided by Big Ten Network:

Eric Seger of Eleven Warriors offered a look at the helmet decals Buckeyes players wore in memory of Smith:

After being mired in a quarterback controversy with Cardale Jones and Braxton Miller over the previous couple seasons, Barrett stepped onto the field as the unquestioned starter Saturday and got his spring off to a positive start on the first drive.

He completed six of his seven attempts for 40 yards, and kicker Sean Nuernberger finished it off with a 43-yard field goal to put Scarlet on top, 3-0:

The defense stepped up on the ensuing possession, however, as sophomore safety Malik Hooker intercepted Barrett and returned it 82 yards for a touchdown to give Gray a 7-3 advantage:

Things started to snowball for Barrett after the initial interception, as he was picked off once again on the next drive by sophomore cornerback Marshon Lattimore.

That gave the Gray offense a short field, and it took advantage of it when Burrow found a well-covered Torrance Gibson for an 18-yard score to extend the lead to 14-3:

Gray continued to pour it on as the second quarter progressed with Burrow leading the way. The native of The Plains, Ohio, connected with Gibson for another touchdown on a two-yard shovel pass after setting it up with a 52-yard strike to sophomore wide receiver Terry McLaurin:

By virtue of that play and several others made by Burrow on Saturday, ESPN.com's Austin Ward suggested that his spot behind Barrett on the depth chart was safe:

Scarlet managed to gain some momentum back ahead of halftime, as freshman running back Mike Weber cashed in from two yards out to make the score 21-10 in favor of Gray entering the locker room:

That momentum carried over into the second half, as Weber found pay dirt once again from eight yards out in the third quarter, which allowed Scarlet to cut the deficit to 21-17:

Gray attempted to respond, as Burrow and the offense moved into Scarlet's red zone, but sophomore linebacker Jerome Baker made what was unquestionably the play of the day.

With Burrow under pressure, Baker went up and pulled in a ridiculous one-handed interception to prevent Gray from extending the lead:

That gave Scarlet an opportunity to possess the ball and potentially drive for the go-ahead score, but Hooker played hero once again by intercepting sophomore signal-caller Stephen Collier for his second pick of the day.

Burrow then capped off his big day and provided the dagger in the fourth quarter when he hit McLaurin for a long touchdown to go up 28-17, which was ultimately the final score:

While Barrett's performance may prove to be the biggest story coming out of the spring game, there is still plenty of time for him to right the ship before the start of the 2016 season.

The play of Weber was particularly encouraging, as he rushed for 38 yards and two touchdowns on eight carries and looks to be a strong option to replace Ezekiel Elliott in the backfield.

Both of the Buckeyes' defensive units, led by co-coordinators Luke Fickell and Greg Schiano, made some big plays as well, especially in terms of defending the passing game, which is a good sign for Meyer's team.

OSU has lost just two games over the past two seasons, and while it will be forced to replace a number of high-profile players in 2016, its depth of talent was on full display Saturday.

Meyer is as good as they come in terms of recruiting players and fitting them into his system, and based on many of the performances on both sides of the ball, the Buckeyes figure to be contenders in the Big Ten once again during the upcoming season.

Postgame Reaction

Although Barrett likely would have preferred to turn in a stronger showing Saturday, he left the spring game with a positive outlook due to the manner in which some of the team's up-and-coming players performed, according to the Buckeyes' official Twitter account:

Baker was among those young players who stepped up, and he was willing to share the credit for his amazing, one-handed interception:

Much of the talk following the spring game focused on the massive crowd, however, which wowed Barrett due to the fact that the stadium was near capacity for a game that meant virtually nothing.

"Oh, man, that was crazy," he said, per Ward. "I appreciate our fanbase. It's crazy that many people would come to watch a practice—a very basic practice at that. It just shows the love that we get from our fans, the best fans in the land and I know as an Ohio State football player, we definitely appreciate that.

Meyer agreed and discussed the joy that the game and atmosphere seemed to bring many:

The Ohio State fanbase is as committed as they come, and the spring game was an ideal example of that.

Buckeyes fans got to see some exciting, young talent on display Saturday, and if their performance is any indication, the Shoe will be rocking throughout the 2016 season.

Follow @MikeChiari on Twitter.