Not a pretty day for No. 1 Ohio State. Mistakes here and there, but it didn’t matter much as the Buckeyes started slow, then put up a flurry of points late and beat Hawaii 38-0 on Saturday.
Ezekiel Elliott scored three touchdowns on short runs, two in the first half and one in the second, and it was more than enough against the Rainbow Warriors (1-1), who came into the game as six-touchdown underdogs.
”We did not execute well,” Ohio State Urban Meyer said.
Cardale Jones started again at quarterback for the Buckeyes (2-0). He was 6 of 9 for 82 yards in the first half and finished with 100 yards passing. He also fumbled twice in the backfield, but recovered each one. The offensive line was called for three penalties and a 46-yard field goal attempt was botched when holder Cameron Johnston mishandled the snap.
”It wasn’t a performance that I wanted,” Jones said.
Elliott scored on runs of 1- and 3-yard runs in the first half, and added a 1-yard touchdown with about nine minutes left for a 24-0 lead. He finished with 101 yards on 27 carries.
The Buckeyes added two more touchdowns after that when safety Vonn Bell scooped up a fumble and ran 14 yards less than two minutes later and Bri’onte Dunn added another score.
J.T. Barrett replaced Jones for the final three series of the second quarter, but Jones returned to start the third.
Barrett completed 8 of 15 passes for 70 yards plus one carry for seven yards.
Meyer admitted he is struggling to figure out how to best use two talented quarterbacks.
”I’m evaluating how we’re doing that and what’s the best opportunity to go down the field and score,” he said.
Hawaii quarterback Max Wittek threw for 67 and had two interceptions. Rainbow Warriors running back Paul Harris, a Columbus native, ran for 46 yards on 14 carries.
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