COLUMBUS, Ohio - Penn State freshman running back Saquon Barkley (Coplay, Pa.) rushed for 194 yards in his return from injury, but the Nittany Lions were unable to hold on to an early lead against No. 1 Ohio State, as the Buckeyes won, 38-10, in a Big Ten football contest Saturday night in Ohio Stadium.

Penn State (5-2, 2-1 Big Ten) assembled a six-play, 61-yard field goal drive on its first possession and forced punts on Ohio State's (7-0, 3-0 Big Ten) first three drives to hold a 3-0 lead after the first quarter. The Buckeyes found their rhythm in the second quarter though, as they scored rushing touchdowns on their next three possessions to take the lead for good, including two from quarterback J.T. Barrett.

Barkley led all rushers with 194 yards on 26 carries, including a career-long 56-yard rush to Ohio State's 21-yard line early in the fourth quarter on Penn State's first offensive play after Ohio State extended its advantage to 24-10 with a field goal. The Lions reached the 13, but were unable to convert on third-and-2 and fourth-and-2, and turned the ball over on downs. Barkley also had a 44-yard touchdown run in the first quarter nullified by a penalty, and Penn State would eventually be forced to punt.

Barkley's 194-yard performance ranks as the fourth most by a true freshman at Penn State, trailing his third-ranked 195-yard performance against Rutgers earlier in the season. His three 100-yard rushing games are tied for second on the all-time true freshman season list, while D.J. Dozier's five 100-yard rushing games in 1983 top it.

Elliott and Barrett both broke 100 yards on the ground to lead Ohio State's offense. Elliot totaled 153 yards on 27 carries with a touchdown, while Barrett amassed 102 yards and two touchdowns on 11 carries, while completing all four passing attempts for 30 yards and two more touchdowns. Six different rushers ultimately totaled 315 yards.

Trailing 21-3 after halftime, the Nittany Lions would fight back into the game at the start of the second half, as they covered 78 yards on just three plays for a touchdown. Quarterback Christian Hackenberg (Palmyra, Va.) threw a 56-yard pass to Chris Godwin (Middletown, Del.) to flip the field from the Penn State 22 to the Ohio State 22 on the first play, and then Barkley rushed for 14 yards to the 8, setting up a quick strike to DaeSean Hamilton (Fredericksburg, Va.) along the right sideline, on which he broke tackles and leapt into the end zone to reduce Ohio State's lead to 21-10.

It was Hackenberg's 40th career touchdown pass, giving him sole possession of No. 6 all-time at Penn State.

Godwin finished with three catches for 103 yards, while Hamilton caught his 100th and 101st receptions to become the 13th player all-time at Penn State to reach 100 career completions.

The score would prove to be the only one of the quarter and Penn State's last. Ohio State would score on each of three drives in the fourth quarter to put the game out of reach, kicking a 39-yard field goal with 12:54 remaining before Barrett completed touchdown passes to Braxton Miller (6:25 remaining) and Michael Thomas (4:14).

Field position was a factor in the game, as Penn State was pinned inside its own 10 four times and inside its own 20 a total of six times out of 12 offensive drives. Its best drive start came at its own 35. Ohio State had four drive starts in Penn State territory and started inside its own 20 just twice.

The nation's sack leader, Carl Nassib (West Chester, Pa.), led the Penn State defense with 1.5 sacks and 3.5 tackles for loss, also tying for second on the team with eight tackles. The Lions totaled 10.0 tackles-for-loss to mark its fourth game with at least 9.0 TFLs. It was also the most surrendered by Ohio State this season. Joey Bosa led Ohio State with seven tackles, a sack and 3.0 TFLs.

Penn State will next meet Maryland in Baltimore's M&T Bank Stadium Saturday at 3:30 p.m.

Tickets for the Nittany Lions' last two home games are available. Penn State hosts Illinois on Oct. 31 and Michigan on Nov. 21 for Senior Day and a Penn State WhiteOut. To purchase tickets or for more information, fans can visit PSUnrivaled.com, call 1-800-NITTANY or visit the Bryce Jordan Center ticket office weekdays from 10 a.m-6 p.m.

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