Jones was the clear winner, and he led the No. 1 Buckeyes to a sometimes-ugly, yet convincing 42-24 win over Virginia Tech. Jones threw for 186 yards, rushed for 99 and had three total touchdowns and an interception. A deep look at how he played inside.
BLACKSBURG, Va. -- Minutes remained until kickoff and everyone was still playing the guessing game, so the real winner of Ohio State's high-profile quarterback battle must have been Urban Meyer.
Because somehow Meyer made it through the past month only having to worry about closely analyzing J.T. Barrett and Cardale Jones. And Meyer did it without distractions.
The doors were completely shut. Nobody knew.
So when Barrett and Jones took the field at Lane Stadium Monday night, everyone was watching every move. Who was the first to work with first-team center Jacoby Boren? Who took reps with the first team on 11-on-11s? Who took longer to warm up? Whose helmet is off? It meant nothing.
It was like Meyer had this all planned. He used both equally in warm-ups, giving nothing away. Even when the PA announcer at the stadium announced the starting lineups, he left Ohio State's starting quarterback out.
Nobody was going to know until it was time to know.
When it finally was, Jones was the clear winner, and he led the No. 1 Buckeyes to a sometimes-ugly, yet convincing 42-24 win over Virginia Tech. Jones threw for 186 yards, rushed for 99 and had three total touchdowns and an interception.
Below is a closer look at how Jones performed in his first start of 2015:
* First, let's start with the play breakdown. There was a chance we wouldn't have had a clear idea of the quarterback competition if both Barrett and Jones played equally. But Meyer revealed that Jones was the winner of the quarterback derby, as Jones took 42 snaps.
Barrett, who had 10 snaps, didn't enter the game until Ohio State held a comfortable 35-17 lead with less than 11 minutes remaining in the game. Barrett had a 40-yard run and a 26-yard touchdown pass to Michael Thomas on his first drive, but Jones had already put the game away.
Braxton Miller also took four snaps in the Wildcat formation, and running back Ezekiel Elliott took one.
* You'd think the jitters would've had an impact on anyone making the start, that Ohio State may need a few series to get back to its College Football Playoff form. There was so much build-up, so much tension. Ohio State, however, scored on its first two possessions to take a 14-0 lead.
The fast start wasn't only because of Jones. Though Jones looked confident on Ohio State's opening drive, he chucked up an ill-advised pass to Curtis Samuel, who made an outstanding play to come down with a 24-yard touchdown. When Jones walked off the field, Meyer said, "Why did you throw that?"
No congratulations for bad decisions, even if they are touchdowns.
* That's what you have to expect from Jones. He has big-play flair, but he's going to make more mistakes than Barrett. It's entertaining, but Jones is still the guy who ran backward in the second half of the national title game and fumbled it away to Oregon. He's a raw athlete, and that means he'll make mistakes. More than Barrett.
* That also means Ohio State's offense can become stagnant at times. After Ohio State scored touchdowns on their first two drives, making the game look like a blowout, the Buckeyes went the remainder of the first half without scoring.
Jones had bad throws, short runs and an interception. At halftime, with Ohio State trailing Virginia Tech 17-14, people were wondering whether or not Barrett was going to start the second half. It wasn't always glamorous for Jones.
* Jones made up for it immediately in the second half. When Meyer stuck with him, he found Miller for a 54-yard touchdown pass to Miller. It was a gorgeous throw over the shoulder of the defensive back right into Miller's hands, who shook off a tackle attempt and walked into the end zone.
That's what was special about Jones last year. He was never rattled. He could have sat in that locker room panicking that the Buckeyes were down, but he came right out and took the game back. Virginia Tech never recovered from that strike.
* On that touchdown pass to Miller, Parris Campbell was wide open underneath. It was a bigger risk to throw it up to Miller, and it paid off. That's more of an example of the type of decision-maker Jones is. He could have dumped it to Campbell for an easy 20 yards, but he took the risk. You decide if you like that.
* Jones is a very gifted runner, and it's possible he hasn't been given enough credit for it. Yes, his huge, 6-foot-5 frame makes him tough to tackle, but he's also very elusive. Between arm strength and his running ability, he had NFL prospects drooling in the game.
* The stats were impressive for Jones, but his team makes him better. Elliott rushed for an 80-yard touchdown on his first carry, and Miller added a dazzling 53-yard rush where he used a Madden-like spin move to take the crowd's breath away.
When you look at Jones' day, he had one impressive touchdown (the one to Miller), one questionable touchdown (to Samuel) and one 10-yard touchdown run. Add in the interception, and he had a solid first game, but nothing dominant.
Jones is a work in progress.
The good news? The Buckeyes just got over their first -- and only -- speed bump of the preseason. That means Jones gets another month, another training camp, if you will, to become Ohio State's quarterback.
He won the job. The work is just starting.
