Tulsa vs. Ohio State: Score and Twitter Reaction

Two weeks into the season, the Ohio State Buckeyes look like the national title contender they thought they would be.

The Buckeyes, who scored the final 45 points of the game after a 3-3 first quarter, gained 268 yards on the ground and forced six turnovers on their way to a 48-3 win over the Tulsa Golden Hurricane on Saturday.

Quarterback J.T. Barrett had a pair of rushing touchdowns and added 149 yards through the air on 14-of-22 passing a week after throwing for six scores against the Bowling Green Falcons.

A year after being unable to make a decision between Barrett and Cardale Jones, head coach Urban Meyer's offense is thriving now that he's settled on the dual-threat signal-caller. The Buckeyes have outscored their opponents 125-13 through the first two weeks.

Sports writer Sam Vecenie commented on the Buckeyes' stellar start:

Mike Weber led the team with 92 yards on the ground and had a third-quarter touchdown. Curtis Samuel added 78 yards and Dontre Wilson had 30 as the Buckeyes carved Tulsa apart for 5.7 yards per carry.

But the star of the show was the defense, which fundamentally demoralized a typically solid Golden Hurricane offense. Quarterback Dane Evans threw four interceptions, two of which Ohio State returned for touchdowns. Interception returns by Malik Hooker and Marshon Lattimore were the only times the Buckeyes got into the end zone in the first half.

The Land-Grant Holy Land Twitter account wasn't complaining:

Tulsa also lost two fumbles on a sloppy day in Columbus, Ohio. A thunderstorm caused a short delay in the game, after which Ohio State returned to the field with a renewed offensive focus.

Ramzy Nasrallah of Eleven Warriors offered the stats:

The Buckeyes will travel to Norman, Oklahoma, next week for a game against the Sooners that looked like a matchup between marquee heavyweights in the preseason. Oklahoma's surprising loss to Houston called that into question, though Heisman Trophy contender Baker Mayfield will be looking to get his team back into the Top 10 with a win.

Another tough nonconference loss would all but ensure that the Sooners will be sitting on the outside of the College Football Playoff picture just three weeks into the season.

It's hard to see where Oklahoma matches up well against Ohio State. Setting aside the cupcake factor, Ohio State's defense has been historically dominant. The only touchdown the Buckeyes have allowed this season came on a Barrett pick-six.

Bowling Green, which gained more than 400 yards in its 27-26 win over North Dakota on Saturday, barely managed half that against the Buckeyes. Tulsa was a week removed from a 512-yard outing against San Jose State.

Brian Bennett of ESPN.com offered a look at what Ohio State has done to opposing quarterbacks:

As long as Barrett can keep the Ohio State offense humming—it's gained more than 1,100 yards though two weeks—it's hard to see anyone stopping the Buckeyes. There's no looking ahead in the Big Ten, but the Nov. 26 date with Michigan is already shaping up to be a potential classic.

Postgame Reaction

Meyer commented on the defense to reporters: "Our defense is playing so well right now. Obviously the challenges come next week against a very good team and we're going to jump on that one early and get ready to go."

The coach also complimented Weber: "I thought the best thing he did is he hit the hole hard, he ran hard, but he also hung on that ball. It's night and day compared to who he was a year ago."

Tulsa head coach Philip Montgomery wasn't pleased with his team's effort, per the Associated Press (via ESPN.com): "We got some things going but just didn't finish when we got in the red zone. We just made too many crucial mistakes at bad times."