What a difference a week makes.

Following Ohio State’s disappointing offensive performance in last week’s 16-3 win over Purdue, the Buckeyes bounced back in a big way on Saturday at Michigan State with a 45-7 victory that likely raised eyebrows across the country and certainly within the Big Ten.

Ohio State piled up 274 total yards in the first half as it built a 28-0 lead. In the second half, the Buckeyes didn’t need to do much on the offensive side of the ball as their defense took control and salted the game away.

And while OSU finished with just 333 total yards, it was still an exuberant feeling for the offensive coaches and players afterwards. They felt like they could move the ball almost at will against Michigan State’s defense.

“It felt good to get that early lead and we knew we had to fight to keep that lead,” offensive coordinator/offensive line coach Jim Bollman said. “It was good to get a little more consistency. And I’m sure looking at the film, there will be some things we didn’t do well and things where we need to be more consistent. But how we played today offensively – and as a team overall – that was really good. Now we need to build on it and keep improving.”

Head coach Jim Tressel was especially pleased with the Buckeyes’ effectiveness in the first quarter when they took control of the game.

“Well, I thought we did a lot of good things,” Tressel said. “We started the game backed up at our own 7 yard line, but we got out of there a little bit and punted it deep and that was key. Field position is a huge thing when you’re on the road and you can’t give good teams a short field. So, we came out of there good that time.

“And then the next time when we got it back, we took it down and scored a touchdown and were able to kind of get on a roll. I thought we did a lot of good things offensively, but we’ve got a long way to go. And we’ve only got until next Saturday to get there.”

One of the big problems for OSU’s offense this year has been red zone efficiency. However, that area was actually a strong point for the Buckeyes (7-1, 4-0 Big Ten) against the Spartans (6-2, 3-1).

“I think I listened to some of those callers (on my call-in radio show),” Tressel said.

However, Tressel said that OSU didn’t do anything differently inside the 20 other than execute better.

“No,” Tressel said. “We didn’t have penalties down there which helped. Well, actually we did have a first-and-goal from the 21 which is never ideal (following an illegal chop block penalty). Some things went our way today. I think we did some good things and made some things go our way.”

* O-line comes through

Probably the most-maligned position group on the offense this year has been the line. The Buckeyes were expected to have one of the best offensive lines in the country, but the unit has been a disappointment up to this point. However, against Michigan State, the big guys up front were opening up holes for tailback Chris “Beanie” Wells (31 carries, 140 yards, 2 touchdowns) and protecting quarterback Terrelle Pryor throughout the day.

“I put our success today on the linemen, really,” Pryor said. “They played great up there. (left tackle Alex) Boone and all the other older guys, they had a chip on their shoulder. I think they proved how good they are today and hopefully it will carry into next week. We’ve just got to keep on improving.”

Left guard Jim Cordle took a lot of pride in what transpired in East Lansing. He knows that OSU’s line has not played up to expectations this year and he was happy to make a statement against the Spartans.

“From my standpoint, I just wanted to come in and show how good we are,” Cordle said. “Because we haven’t been playing good and we just wanted to show that we’re a good offensive line. We know we have the ability, but on game days were we showing it? And that’s what we wanted to do today was show the ability.”

For any team in the Big Ten, it always feels good to win a conference game. However, Cordle says the win over a good MSU team was extra satisfying because it might have allowed OSU to silence some of its doubters.

“Definitely,” Cordle said. To get it going early – which we have been – but then to keep it going throughout the first half was huge for us. And then we only had one drive in the third quarter, but we drove down the field. It was a fun game and I’m glad that we got to show that we can be a good team.”

Added the always-outspoken Boone: “We went out there and executed and that was the difference. I told you guys they were going to blitz us and we just had to pick it up and that’s what we did.”

Boone believes that the win over MSU will have a long-term positive effect on OSU’s offense. The Buckeyes have been waiting for a performance like that and it will help their confidence going forward.

“It’s going to help a lot,” Boone said. “We’ve got Penn State coming in at night next week and that game is going to be as big as it gets. So, we’ve really got to step it up and you can always get better. They are a great team and we’ve got to show them what we’re about.”

Tressel never likes to say exactly how well a unit performed until he has a chance to study the film. But from his vantage point, he thought the offensive line played well against the Spartans.

“I thought we did a pretty good job up front,” Tressel said. “We’ll have to watch the film, but we seemed to know what we were doing and we seemed to pick it up when they were blitzing. We weren’t real complicated out there. We didn’t use a bunch of different schemes. But I thought we did a pretty good job up front, yeah.”

* Smith plays surprisingly big role

Who says OSU never throws to its fullbacks and tight ends? Senior Brandon Smith fills both roles – and could best be described as an H-back. He’s mostly used as a blocker – namely as a fullback when the Buckeyes go with the I-formation. However, Smith continues to prove he can be an effective receiver as well.

Against Michigan State, Smith led OSU with three receptions and had 37 receiving yards. Not gaudy numbers, but he was a bit of a secret weapon for the Buckeyes in the first half.

“Yeah, I got the ball more today than usual and I got to run up in there and lead block for Beanie,” Smith said. “I think I played pretty well. The offensive line did a great job and I think we were clicking on about all cylinders today. Every position group did a great job.”

“I guess they looked at the film and saw where Michigan State was vulnerable and the flats were vulnerable. So, I don’t know. That’s just how it worked out today and I was just happy to do my job.”

Smith knows the offense has struggled this year and he says the team made up its mind that the woes were going to end on Saturday.

“I don’t think it was necessarily physical, I think it was more of a mindset,” Smith said. “We were fired up, man. We consider every game from this point on the Big Ten championship game because if we lose, we’re out of it. So, we’re taking the approach that each game is the Big Ten championship and we don’t want to lose it.”

* Hartline hauls in big reception

A key play in the game was OSU junior wide receiver Brian Hartline’s 56-yard reception that nearly resulted in a touchdown. It was initially ruled that Hartline scored, but the replay showed he was down at the 1. Wells crashed in on the next play to make the score 21-0 and the game was never in doubt from that point on.

“Yeah, I think it was a great big-play opportunity,” Hartline said. “I think Terrelle put it up there pretty well and allowed me to make a play on it. I wish he would have led me a little more and I kind of gave him some stuff about that after the play. But overall I think it was just an opportunity to make a play and we were able to do it.”

Hartline would have loved to score a touchdown after such a great play. He went up and snatched the ball out of the air with a pair of MSU defenders draped on him.

“Yeah, it was frustrating when the call got reversed,” Hartline said. “I thought I crossed the line, but I guess I didn’t before my knee touched. But all that matters is that we still scored a touchdown there.”

Hartline has been fairly blunt regarding his feelings about OSU’s struggling offense so far this season. However, after the MSU game, he was all smiles. He thought that the Buckeyes finally did a good job of taking the fight to the other team.

“I felt like the play calling was pretty aggressive, which in turn kept the players aggressive,” Hartline said. “I think our coaching staff did a good job putting in a game plan and staying aggressive with it.”