Braxton Miller accounted for four total touchdowns as the No. 14 Ohio State Buckeyes defeated the UCF Knights 31-16 Saturday afternoon at Ohio Stadium in Columbus, OH.
Braxton Miller Leads Ohio State To 31-16 Win Over UCF
Miller opened up the scoring midway through the first quarter, gashing the Knights defense for a 37-yard touchdown run, his first of three on the day. After trading field goals, UCF tied the game at 10 after Blake Bortles found a wide open Justin Tukes for a 1-yard touchdown pass with 6:54 to go in the second quarter.
Ohio State took the lead back in the final minute of the second half, with Miller scoring on a 6-yard designed run to give the Buckeyes a 17-10 lead as they went into the half.
Miller continued his dominance in the second half, finding Jake Stoneburner for a 12-yard touchdown pass early in the third quarter, and less than three minutes later rushed for his third touchdown on the game.
The Buckeyes do have a major injury concern as starting running back Carlos Hyde was carted off the field in the second quarter with a right knee injury. Hyde did not return to the game and his status is unknown for Ohio State's next game against Cal.
Box Score Hero: Miller was the difference in this game, going 19-25 for 168 yards with a touchdown and an interception through the air while also rushing for 140 yards and three touchdowns in 27 carries.
Blake Bortles had a productive game in his second career start for the Knights, throwing for 253 yards on 25-41 passing and two touchdowns. Bortles however did have three interceptions as well on the day.
Rankings Ramifications: There shouldn’t be any major movement from this game. Ohio State did what they had to do against a quality Non-BCS team and the Buckeyes and the voters will keep them near their No. 14 rankings.
But Did They Cover? UCF just barely covered the spread, which ranged anywhere from 16 to 17.5 points.
For More On This Game: For more on Buckeyes football, visit Ohio State blog Land-Grant Holy Land, plus Big Ten blog Off Tackle Empire and SB Nation Cleveland. For more on Central Florida football, visit SB Nation Tampa Bay. And you should probably start reading Big East Coast Bias.
Next Week’s Schedule: After their victory today, Ohio State will welcomes in the Cal Golden Bears on Sept 15 while UCF returns home to take on the FIU Golden Panthers on Sept 15.
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