COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — Ohio State coach Ryan Day and his players spent the preseason saying the opener against top-ranked Texas wouldn't be about defending last year's national championship but about establishing the identity of this year's team.

Julian Sayin and the defense took a big first step toward accomplishing that.

In his first collegiate start, Sayin gave Ohio State a two-score advantage early in the fourth quarter with a 40-yard touchdown pass to Carnell Tate. Add in the defense containing the much-hyped Arch Manning , along with two pivotal stops in the red zone and it resulted in the third-ranked Buckeyes defeating the Longhorns 14-7.

It was the fourth time the No. 1 team in the AP preseason poll has met the previous season’s national champion in the opener. The defen

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