Ohio State 19, Indiana 15: Buckeyes keep the Hoosiers off the board for the final 10:30

No. 4 Ohio State won the meeting of unbeatens at Memorial Stadium on Saturday, 19-15 over No. 5 Indiana. It came down to the last 10:30. Indiana pulled within four with a touchdown and a two-point conversion, then did not score again.

The Hoosiers outgained the Buckeyes 369 to 313 and converted 8 of 16 third downs. Ohio State won anyway, helped by a touchdown with seven seconds left in the first half that it never gave back. Indiana takes its first loss; Ohio State's only defeat remains the one-point loss at Texas.

How it was won

C. Hawkins opened the scoring with a 26-yard field goal at 11:52 of the first quarter. Indiana answered early in the second, when Turbo Richard ran 7 yards for a touchdown at 13:54 and N. Radicic's kick made it 7-3.

The swing came just before halftime. Julian Sayin found Bo Jackson for a 2-yard touchdown with 0:07 left in the second quarter, and Ohio State went to the locker room up 10-7.

Hawkins added a 29-yarder at 11:51 of the third. Early in the fourth, Sayin hit Jeremiah Smith for a 38-yard touchdown at 12:46. The two-point try failed, leaving it 19-7.

Indiana responded within about two minutes. Josh Hoover threw 19 yards to Nick Marsh for a touchdown at 10:30, then hit Richard for the two-point conversion to make it 19-15. That was the last score of the game.

Sayin finished 15 of 29 for 235 yards with two touchdowns and two interceptions. Smith caught four passes for 68 yards and Chris Henry Jr. added two for 51. Jackson carried 18 times for 56 yards and Isaiah West ran six times for 45. Ohio State held the ball for 32:12 and went 6 of 15 on third down.

Hoover threw for 296 yards on 20 of 40 passing. Charlie Becker was the best player on the field for Indiana with nine catches for 165 yards. Marsh had three for 57. The run game managed 73 yards, with Richard at 46 on 16 carries and Lee Beebe Jr. at 24 on nine.

Each side turned it over twice.

Against the number

Ohio State closed as a 3-point favorite and won by four, so the Buckeyes covered. Indiana got close enough to make it uncomfortable, but it never got the final score inside the number.

The total closed at 49.5 and the teams combined for 34, a comfortable under. The first half produced 17 points, and the only touchdowns after the break came in a two-minute stretch of the fourth quarter.

On the moneyline, Ohio State closed at -148 and Indiana at +124. Full pricing history is on the game page.

What's next

Ohio State (6-1) has won five straight since the loss at Texas, including 31-14 at Iowa and 45-16 over Maryland. The Buckeyes play next on Saturday, October 31, at No. 19 USC.

Indiana (6-1) had been living on close margins, with a 20-17 win at Nebraska and a 29-23 win over Northwestern in recent weeks. It goes back on the road Saturday, October 24, at Michigan on Fox.