Buckeye Leaves: Caden Curry, Jeremiah Smith, Sonny Styles Stand Out In Ohio State’s 13-10 Loss To Indiana In Big Ten Championship Game

Ohio State lost its first game of the season against No. 2 Indiana in the Big Ten championship, with the defenses ruling the day on both sides. The Buckeyes missed out on their first Big Ten title since 2020 with the 13-10 loss.

Here’s who the BSB staff is giving Buckeye Leaves:

Sam Cipriani: For his dominant all-around defensive performance in the Big Ten Championship game, I’m giving my Buckeye Leaf to defensive end Caden Curry.

The senior edge rusher racked up seven tackles (four solo), while leading the team with both two sacks and three tackles for loss. Curry made his presence known from the jump, taking a big hit on Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza on the Buckeyes first defensive play of the game.

His most impactful play came on third-and-5 in the first quarter, when Curry screamed off the edge to sack Mendoza and force a punt. Curry also added one pass breakup and one quarterback hurry.

Bobby Gorbett: On a quiet day for Ohio State’s offense, star sophomore receiver Jeremiah Smith had a strong performance. The Buckeyes’ pass-catcher finished the game with a game-high 144 receiving yards on eight catches.

Smith’s biggest play came on a 52-yard catch in the second quarter. On the play, Smith zoomed past Indiana cornerback D’Angelo Ponds to find himself wide open in Indiana territory. Redshirt freshman quarterback Julian Sayin slightly underthrew his pass to Smith, but the star receiver created enough separation to still make the catch. Smith then cut across the field and went 10 more yards to give the Buckeyes a first down at Indiana’s 22-yard line.

It was the fifth time this year, Smith went for over 100 receiving yards in a single game.

Greg Wilson: My Buckeye Leaf goes to senior linebacker Sonny Styles, who had the second double-digit tackle game of his career with 11 stops against Indiana. The Buckeyes may have lost the game, but the defense was still its usual dominant self.

Styles was a major part of that, moving sideline to sideline throughout the game and making solo tackles when runners were making it into the second level.

Styles had seven solo tackles and added one quarterback hurry in the game.