‘Just run the screen’: Ohio State football’s momentum-shifting play has a funny backstory

Posted by author January 11, 2025 Football

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ARLINGTON, Texas — One fan had his face in his hands while another covered her ears to block out the volume inside AT&T Stadium.

A man donning an orange quarter zip held one arm over his head as his other hand gripped an aluminum Miller Lite. One man sporting a similar looked stared at the venue’s immense video board while both hands sat atop his head.

Many of those same Texas fans attending Friday’s Cotton Bowl were jumping and dishing out fist bumps a few minutes before.

That was until Ohio State football’s TreVeyon Henderson shifted their moods, taking an enthusiastic Texas crowd from excitement to angst.

That’s how quickly, literally, the Buckeyes’ senior running back can change a game.

A game that seemed headed toward a beatdown was tied at seven late in the first half. With a one-play, 75-yard drive that featured a screen pass to Henderson, OSU regained the lead and momentum in the final seconds of the first half.

“That was a huge play for us, a huge swing,” quarterback Will Howard said. “We talk about winning the middle eight all the time, and that was big.”

Henderson’s lanes to the end zone cleared shortly after he caught the ball from Howard well behind Ohio State’s line of scrimmage.

Behind a trio of offensive linemen – a group that included center Carson Hinzman who was credited by teammates postgame for having the most important block – a play that was expected to be a drive starter instead turned into an explosive.

“You know with Trey if you get him in open space, he’s going to do what he does,” running backs coach Carlos Locklyn said.

“I knew because everybody was on the opposite side of the field,” fellow running back Quinshon Judkins added. “(There) was literally nobody there. He just ran untouched to the end zone.”

It was a play Ohio State likely didn’t envision happening heading into the College Football Playoff semifinal.

Coach Ryan Day and his players have joked about eliminating a screen drill from practice. For a team that doesn’t call many screen passes, why waste time on it?

Friday provided the answer.

Day was asked over his headset what he wanted to do in the end-of-half situation. Against Tennessee in a similar spot, Ohio State ran the ball with Henderson and got 15 yards.

Thanks to the big play to open the drive, the Buckeyes saw it was worthwhile to stay aggressive vs. the Volunteers.

Day was asked if he wanted to take that route again or if he wanted to just take a knee and go into halftime tied with Texas.

“Just run the screen,” Day said. “…Sure enough, it went the whole distance.”

The play made up for a costly mistake by Henderson earlier in the contest.

Late in the first quarter, he was flagged for unsportsmanlike conduct after a post-play altercation with a Texas player.

Along with bumping helmets, Henderson appeared to throw a jab at the defender. He wasn’t ejected, but the play hindered what was a promising drive with a chance to go up two scores.

All Locklyn did afterward was put his arm around Henderson and say, “Don’t let the enemy attack you. Be smart.”

One quarter later, redemption arrived.

“I don’t have to yell at my guys,” Locklyn said. “I talk to them. Most of the time, they have a growth mindset. He had a growth mindset in that moment.”