Ohio State vs. Penn State score: Marvin Harrison Jr. stars as defense leads Buckeyes to seventh straight win.

No. 3 Ohio State defeated No. 7 Penn State 20-12 in a game that featured two smothering defenses and one offense that was able to do just enough to eke out a key victory.

A game that was tabbed as the first premier Big Ten conference showdown of the season played out more like what you'd expect from a battle of Big Ten West rivals than two College Football Playoff contenders, but Ohio State fans won't complain about it for too long.

In the end, all wins look the same in the standings.

This wasn't a game you're used to seeing from either of these teams. Every single inch was fought for, and more often than not, it was lost. Ohio State's offense was the better of the two, but while the Buckeyes had some success moving the ball down the field, they struggled in the red zone.

In order to struggle in the red zone, however, you have to reach the red zone. Penn State never crossed the Ohio State 20-yard line until the final minute of the game when it trailed 20-6, so even if Ohio State managed only 20 points in five red-zone trips, it was more than it needed to emerge victorious.

The Buckeyes defense held Penn State to 240 yards of offense with 73 of those yards coming on the Nittany Lions' final drive of the game when the outcome was largely decided.

Ohio State did an incredible job limiting the Lions on third and fourth down (1 of 16 on third, 1 of 3 on 4th). The 1 of 16 on third down mark is the worst third-down conversion percentage by any team ranked in the AP top 10 in the last 10 seasons.

The Buckeyes finished with four sacks and eight tackles for loss as they overwhelmed the Penn State offensive line. Drew Allar hardly had a moment to breathe while finishing the game only 18-of-42 passing for 191 yards. The Nittany Lions

Ohio State's Kyle McCord wasn't outstanding but made a few big throws to Marvin Harrison Jr. and Cade Stover to gloss over the bad. He finished with 286 yards and a touchdown while completing 22 of 35 passes.

Harrison was his most frequent target, catching 11 passes for 162 yards and scoring a fourth-quarter touchdown to put the game to bed.

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