Justin Fields, No. 3 Ohio State Beat Jahan Dotson, No. 18 Penn State 38-25

Ohio State quarterback Justin Fields completed 28-of-34 passes for 318 yards and four touchdowns as the No. 3 Buckeyes beat No. 18 Penn State 38-25 on Saturday at Beaver Stadium in State College, Pennsylvania.

Fields started the game by completing 15-of-17 passes for 147 yards and a pair of touchdowns to Chris Olave and Jeremy Ruckert. Thanks largely to Fields' efforts, the Buckeyes out-gained Penn State 280-75 in the first and second quarters en route to leading 21-6 at halftime.

PSU's offense came to life in the second half, and Jahan Dotson snagged three touchdown passes before finishing with eight catches for 144 yards.

However, Ohio State's strong passing attack led to Olave and Ruckert each scoring another touchdown after halftime.

OSU is now 2-0 after winning its opener 52-17 against Nebraska. Penn State has lost its first two contests following a 36-35 overtime defeat at Indiana last Saturday.

Notable Performances

Ohio State QB Justin Fields: 28-of-34, 318 yards, 4 TD

Ohio State WR Chris Olave: 7 catches, 120 yards, 2 TD

Ohio State WR Garrett Wilson: 11 catches, 111 yards; 1 carry, 62 rushing yards

Ohio State WR Jeremy Ruckert: 4 catches, 25 yards, 2 TD

Ohio State RB Master Teague III: 23 carries, 110 yards, 1 TD

Penn State QB Sean Clifford: 18-of-30, 281 yards, 3 TD, 1 INT

Penn State WR Jahan Dotson: 8 catches, 144 yards, 3 TD

Fields Holds a Passing Clinic in Happy Valley

Fields spent most of his Saturday night tossing dimes to Ohio State pass-catchers, which proved valuable on a night where Penn State's offense dropped 22 second-half points to make the game at least somewhat interesting until the final minutes.

He found Olave down the sideline for a 26-yard score to give Ohio State a 13-0 edge:

Fields didn't have to worry much on this 10-yard pass to Ruckert, who found himself wide open on a slant:

But he needed pinpoint accuracy to find Olave once again as the Buckeye wideout was being chased by three Nittany Lion defenders. Somehow, the two connected for 49 yards, giving OSU a 27-13 lead early in the third quarter:

Remarkably, that may not have even been Fields' best play, as he kept his balance, avoided the PSU pass rush and found Jake Hausmann for this 13-yard pass:

The compliments flooded in for Fields following his excellent performance:

The Ohio State passing attack looks near unstoppable thanks to Fields and the Buckeye wideouts, and a return trip to the College Football Playoff seems inevitable.

Dotson Provides Glimmer of Hope for Penn State

The Buckeyes gained nearly four times as much yardage as Penn State through two quarters, but credit goes to PSU for preventing this game from becoming a blowout.

The offense played a key role in that endeavor with a few impressive drives thanks largely to Jahan Dotson, who has broken out in 2020.

Dotson provided two highlight-reel plays on the same drive, using his helmet for one catch before needing only one hand for his second to score a 21-yard touchdown to cut OSU's lead to 31-19 early in the fourth quarter:

Mark Brennan of 247Sports provided a still photo of the Dotson catch:

The junior later snagged a 20-yard touchdown with 6:20 remaining to keep PSU's slim hopes alive and slashing OSU's edge to 38-25:

That last touchdown gave Dotson three on the night after he opened the second-half scoring with a 14-yard touchdown grab to pull PSU within 21-13. 

PSU couldn't cut OSU's edge any more following Dotson's last score, leading to the sobering reality that Penn State has started 0-2 for the first time since 2012. Any hope for a College Football Playoff berth was lost after the Indiana game, and a Big Ten title game berth is all but out of reach at this point.

However, Dotson is the player to watch moving forward as Penn State looks to end the year on a high note. PSU's offense finally seemed to click with him as a primary target.

He, tight end Pat Freiermuth and quarterback Sean Clifford could ultimately prove to be a problematic trio for PSU's six remaining opponents, especially if Dotson plays anywhere close to how he did Saturday against one of the nation's best teams.

What's Next?

Both teams will play at home on Saturday. Ohio State will host Rutgers in Columbus' Ohio Stadium, and PSU will welcome Maryland to Happy Valley.