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Five different Ohio State players scored touchdowns as the sixth-ranked Buckeyes got out to a 35-0 halftime lead and then rolled to a 59-3 win over Kent State before an announced crowd of 100,009 on a sunny Saturday afternoon at Ohio Stadium. Ohio State (2-1) was back in action after last Saturday's 24-23 loss at Texas. Ohio State blew a 20-point fourth-quarter lead in that game. The Buckeyes showed they have largely put that painful defeat behind them. This was OSU's last tune-up before the Buckeyes host Illinois (1-1) to open Big Ten play next Saturday. "It's hard to give it a rating, I guess, right now," OSU coach Ryan Day said after the final gun. "There are a lot of things here that I thought we did well. There was a lot of clean play early on in the game and then some other things. I think the message is that everything matters. Every play matters. Every rep matters. Every opportunity to create a turnover matters. Every third-down or fourth-down opportunity matters. Every trip to the red zone matters. "We'll get on to the film. But I thought we came out with the right mindset. The guys played with good energy. And to me, it's all about how you respond. You know, we had an event last week. How we responded was critical. I thought we responded the right way, but now we're on to conference play." OSU quarterback Julian Sayin hit on his first 11 passes and ended up 18 of 22 passing for 248 yards and two touchdowns. All-American wide receiver Jeremiah Smith set a new Ohio State career record for receiving yards in the first quarter of this game. He finished up with five catches for 85 yards and now has 2,958 yards in his career. That betters the previous career mark of 2,898 set by Michael Jenkins (2000-03). He remains fourth in career receptions and fourth in career touchdown receptions at OSU. "I put a lot of hard work into it. They said 33 games, so I'm blessed. But I got two more (OSU records) to get," Smith said. Tight end Nate Roberts and wideout Brandon Inniss each caught touchdown passes. Inniss' came on a 49-yard Hail Mary from Sayin on the final play of the first half as OSU built its 35-0 lead. Backup QB Luke Fahey had an interception but also found fellow freshman Chris Henry Jr. on a 75-yard catch-and-run touchdown in the fourth quarter. Running back Ja'Kobi Jackson had two short touchdown runs, while Bo Jackson led OSU with 11 carries for 73 yards and a touchdown. Isaiah West also had a TD run. The OSU defense slammed the door on Kent State (1-2). Linebacker Riley Pettijohn intercepted a pass and linebacker Payton Pierce recovered a fumble. Kent State quarterback Dru DeShields was 6 of 15 passing for 35 yards with an interception. The defense notched seven points as 349-pound freshman DT Jamir Perez returned a fumble 11 yards for a touchdown in the fourth quarter. His teammates mobbed him as he danced in the end zone to celebrate the improbable score. "Is he the heaviest guy to ever score a touchdown in Ohio State history? He might, right?" Day asked with a smile. "When you get excited for someone else's accomplishments almost more than yourself, then we have something. And to me that was most important there." Kent finally cashed in an interception by third string OSU QB Tavien St. Clair into a chip shot field goal in the final two minutes to avert the shutout. "It never feels good to lose that way. I'm really proud of our guys and the fight and the compete they showed," Kent State coach Mark Carney said. "There's a lot of details we've got to clean up to be our best selves. I'm not sure we've gotten there just yet, but excited to keep building with this group." After the way Ohio State collapsed in the fourth quarter last week at Texas, he assembled his team on the field after the third quarter of this game and lectured them on finishing off the game. "We know how important that these fourth quarters are going to be and it doesn't matter what the score is, the game is or the opponent is. We want everybody up together recognizing where we're at and what's at stake," Day said. "That's something I'm going to continue because it's about the team, our tribe. It's about us coming together, playing for each other and what do you want to sacrifice for your teammate? I know that sounds like coach talking cliche, but it is more important to me now than ever." Quick Takes: Instant analysis of Ohio State's romp over Kent State