Jt Barrett has been in college for a long time, or so it seems. But Saturday's win may be the most special of his entire career. His Ohio State Buckeyes were expected to struggle against the Penn State Nittany Lions and that held to be true for the first few minutes of the game. But the veteran quarterback proceeded to turn up the volume and play a spectacular game, leading to the home upset of Penn State and the reinsertion of Ohio State back into the playoff conversation.

Ohio State pulls out win

The game started off preposterously bad for the Buckeyes.

On the opening kick of the game, Heisman Trophy favorite Saquon Barkley returned the kickoff for a touchdown. Penn State scored a touchdown on their next drive as well, giving the Nittany Lions a 14-0 lead over Ohio State with the game barely three minutes old. There was no need for the Buckeyes to panic, though; they had Barrett on their side.

About a third of the way through the second quarter, the deficit reached 18 points. That's when Barrett finally broke through with a 14-yard touchdown pass to Terry McLaurin, Ohio State's first touchdown of the game. They were down by just 11 points at halftime. But by the end of the third quarter, Penn State had jumped out to a 15-point lead again.

Four minutes into the final quarter, Barrett found Johnnie Dixon for a 38-yard score.

They connected again with just over four minutes to go, cutting it down to a five-point game. Finally, the icing on the cake came within the two-minute mark, with Barrett finding Marcus Baugh for a 16-yard touchdown. The Ohio State defense held firm from there, giving the Buckeyes a comeback 39-38 win over Penn State.

Barrett is spectacular

By the end of the game, Barrett had an impressive stat line. He went 33-for-39 with 328 yards and four touchdowns. He also rushed for an additional 95 yards. The Ohio State quarterback easily put himself back into the Heisman Trophy conversation.

Barrett has had an up-and-down career with the Buckeyes, beginning when he was part of a three-headed quarterback triumvirate with Cardale Jones and Braxton Miller, who are both trying to make their way in the NFL now.

He holds almost every record in Ohio State history. He also holds several Big Ten conference records. He surprised many when he decided to return to the team for his senior year, but his impressive play against Penn State validated that decision for the Columbus faithful.
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