It was a record-breaking day for Ohio State wide receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba and midfielder CJ Stroud in the Rose Bowl Game presented by Capital One Venture X..
The Buckeyes broke or tied eight Rose Bowl records, as well as several Ohio State records, on Saturday in a 48-45 Glory ends Utah.
Smith-Njigba set several records on his own after finishing with 15 catches at 347 yards and three touchdowns in the game. 347 yards received is the most in a bowl game in FBS history as well as the most in a game in Buckeyes history, while 15 catches is a Rose Bowl record. The extension also attaches to the Rose Bowl mark to receive touchdowns with teammates Marvin Harrison Jr., who also had three touchdowns in the game, and set the Ohio State field record in a single season.
Stroud broke the Rose Bowl record for passes and touches after going 37 out of 46 for 573 yards with six touchdowns and one interception.
Stroud said he’s not surprised by Smith-Njigba’s performance, because he’s seen him do it throughout the season, in practice and in games. Smith-Njigba received 240 yards against Nebraska earlier in the year, and with his performance on Saturday, Smith-Njigba became the only Ohio State receiver ever to have multiple 200-yard picks.
“We built that connection probably a long time ago, we came together as freshmen, arriving early, we were throwing at Woody [Hayes Athletic Center] our first day,” said Stroud. Then last year’s scouting team was like when we actually built it. “
The team did all this despite not having a top receiver Chris Olave and Garrett Wilson, both of which are predicted to be first-round picks in the upcoming NFL draft. The Buckeyes fell 35-21 after halftime, but found a way to score 27 points in the second half.
Ohio State coach Ryan Day said team leaders entered the locker room at halftime, similar to what happened during the 2019 Big Ten championship game against Wisconsin. Day said he would leave what was said in the dressing room, some of which he probably wouldn’t be able to repeat anyway, but team leaders were supportive.
“I’m just so proud of the coaching staff, the players and the leadership of this team for playing the way we did, especially in the second half and winning this game,” Day said after the game. fight. “We played inaccurately and there were some lads who weren’t here today. And the fact that we reacted the way we did at half-time and then came out in the second half speaks for itself. a lot of things about this team’s personality. win this game.”
Smith-Njigba broke Terry Glenn’s school record of 253 yards, set before Pitt in 1995. He also easily surpassed him. Keyshawn JohnsonThe Rose Bowl’s previous record was 216 yards. If that wasn’t enough, the sophomore’s superb performance sent him for 1,606 yards during the season, breaking David Boston’s previous one-season school record of 1,435 yards in 1998.
“I just tried to take advantage of every time I had the ball, and I feel like I did that today,” said Smith-Njigba.
Stroud’s 573 yards of passing is the third most ever in a bowl game and also the second most in any game in Big Ten history. Dave Wilson had 621 for Illinois in 1980 against Ohio State.
That wasn’t all Ohio State in the game, though, as Utah took an early lead, then returned late in the game with the back-up quarterback. Bryson Barnes, who didn’t throw a pass all season.
Utah starts quarterback Cameron Rising Coach Kyle Whittingham said his initial assessment was not worrisome with an apparent head injury at 9:56.
“He’s currently doing fine according to post-game reports, unless something materializes that we don’t know about,” Whittingham said.
Barnes led the Utes to a game-force encounter late in the fourth quarter, but it wasn’t enough to hold the Buckeyes at bay. The mid-half rally and leadership from the players propelled Ohio State to the lead.
With Stroud a freshman and Smith-Njigba a sophomore, Day views the match as positive for next season, saying it made him realize that the team has young leaders already take over.
“As we go into this season, it’s the part where we’re really going to get back into this game, is the leadership that drove us in the second half where we won’t be turned down, and two in Some of them are already sitting right here,” Day said. “And if we want to get where we want to be next year, we definitely have to, there’s a long way to go from now on, but I’ve been thinking about that first game and what that means. was the leadership from these two guys really got the springboard. Especially the way they played in the second half of this game, but really the whole game, it’s really going to create some momentum. .”
ESPN’s Kyle Bonagura contributed to this report.
