COLUMBUS, Ohio — Julian Sayin had a 40-yard touchdown pass to Carnell Tate early in the fourth quarter, Ohio State got a couple of key stops in the red zone and the third-ranked Buckeyes opened the defense of their national championship with a 14-7 victory over No. 1 Texas on Saturday.
It was the fourth time the No. 1 team in the AP preseason poll has met the previous season’s national champion in the opener. The defending champ has won the last three.
“Just a gritty win to start the season,” Ohio State coach Ryan Day said. “We just felt like in Week 1, we didn’t want to beat ourselves. We took that into consideration with everything that we did.”
Arch Manning completed 17 of 30 passes for 170 yards, a touchdown and an interception for the Longhorns.
Texas was 1 of 5 on fourth down, including being stopped twice in the red zone. Manning was stuffed at the 1-yard line on fourth-and-goal by Caden Curry and Lorenzo Styles Jr. on a QB sneak in the third quarter.
The Longhorns were driving for a tying touchdown late in the game, but Caleb Downs stopped Jack Endries 1 yard short of a first down to end hopes of a comeback.
“Ultimately, not good enough,” Manning said. “Obviously you don’t want to start off the season 0-1. They’re a good team. I thought we beat ourselves a lot, and that starts with me. I’ve got to play better for us to win.”
Sayin was 13-of-20 passing for 126 yards. His best pass came with 13 minutes, 8 seconds remaining in the game, when Tate beat Texas cornerback Jaylon Guilbeau for the long score. Tate juggled the ball before pulling it down in the end zone to put the Buckeyes up by two touchdowns.
CJ Donaldson Jr. opened the scoring midway through the second quarter with a 1-yard run up the middle to cap a 13-play, 87-yard drive that took eight minutes off the clock. The Buckeyes benefitted from a pair of penalties, including a face-mask call on Colin Simmons that wiped out an incomplete pass on third-and-4.
Texas finally got points with 3:28 to play in the fourth quarter when Manning connected with Parker Livingstone for a 32-yard touchdown.
The Longhorns defense forced a three-and-out, giving Texas a chance to tie.
The takeaway
Texas: The Longhorns had their 11-game winning streak in true road games snapped. The run included five victories against ranked opponents.
Big Ten football: What to know about every team before the season kicks off
Ohio State: The Buckeyes should take over the top spot in the AP poll after Matt Patricia came up with a great game plan in his first game as defensive coordinator.
Up next
Texas plays host to San Jose State on Saturday.
Ohio State plays host to Grambling State on Saturday.