Buckeyes Go to Wells for Win

It might as well have been “Turn Back The Clock Night” at Ohio Stadium.

Jonathan Wells ran for 179 yards and three touchdowns and the defense had all the answers for Ohio State, which kept to the basics to beat No. 14 Northwestern, 38-20, in a Big Ten Conference game Saturday night.

“I came here as a power guy,” said Wells, who set the tone for the night when he rumbled 71 yards for a score on the second play of the game. “I’m not going to make people try to miss. I’m a straight-forward guy and that’s what I’m going to try to do.”

The Buckeyes (3-1, 2-0 in conference) won for the 22nd consecutive time against the Wildcats (3-1, 1-1). Northwestern hasn’t won in the series in 30 years.

“They were obviously a lot more physical,” Northwestern outside linebacker Pat Durr said. “It’s plain and simple, the Big Ten is black and blue and we’re black and blue right now. They put it on us pretty good.”

Harkening back to its three-yards-and-a-cloud-of-dust heritage, Ohio State dominated between the tackles.

“We ran any play we wanted to run,” Wells said.

The defense provided a touchdown on Mike Doss’ 30-yard fumble return and harassed Northwestern quarterback Zak Kustok and tailback Damien Anderson all night.

“We’ve got great athletes over on defense,” Ohio State Coach Jim Tressel said. “I like the way they have the maturity and poise to adapt and adjust.”

The Buckeyes completed just four passes while piling up 287 yards on the ground.

“It was pretty much smashmouth football,” Wells said.

A raucous crowd of 104,042--the largest ever in reconstructed Ohio Stadium--saw the first night Big Ten game ever played in the 79-year-old facility.

They had reason to roar right from the start. Ohio State needed just two plays--both runs by Wells--to get on the board.

After gaining six yards on first down at the Buckeye 22, Wells ran off left tackle and found a gaping hole. He outran Northwestern cornerbacks Chasda Martin and Raheem Covington, diving into the end zone in jubilation.