Ohio State continued its upward climb this past weekend, knocking off 15th-ranked Wisconsin 33-29 in the Horseshoe.

The game started off slow, looking like a classic defensive battle, as Wisconsin took a 7-3 lead into the half. But in the second half, the floodgates opened and Ohio State’s anemic offense suddenly looked like it had never missed a beat.

Braxton Miller scored a one-yard touchdown run to put the Bucks ahead 10-7 just three minutes into the half. The touchdown was set up by a 57-yard romp and a 18-yard run by Dan Herron. Ohio State forced Wisconsin into a punt situation and blocked the punt, giving the Bucks possession at the Wisconsin 1-yard line. Three plays later, Jordan Hall punched it in to widen the lead to 17-7.

Wisconsin punted again, but Hall fumbled the punt and Wisconsin recovered at the OSU 27-yard line. Wisconsin’s Montee Ball carried it in to pull the deficit to three.

Ohio State tacked on a field goal at the beginning of the fourth quarter and Wisconsin was stopped on 4th-and-2 from the Ohio State 38 with just over eight minutes remaining. Six plays later (all runs), Miller took it in to put Ohio State ahead 26-14. The two-point conversion attempt failed.

Wisconsin wasn’t finished, however, scoring on just four plays, set up by Ball’s 40-yard run to the OSU 17. Russell Wilson connected with Jared Abbrederis to pull the Badgers within five at 26-21.

Ohio State was forced to punt and Wisconsin used two timeouts to get the ball back with 2:36 remaining. Once again, it took just four plays as Wilson and Abbrederis hooked up again, this time for a 49-yard touchdown to shock Columbus. The two-point conversion was good and suddenly, Wisconsin had a 29-26 lead with 1:18 to play.

Fans in Columbus celebrated a win over 15th-ranked Wisconsin like it was 2002 (photo by Kirk Irwin, Getty Images)

Ohio State got a good kick return and moved the ball to the Wisconsin 40-yard line with less than a minute to play. Needing only a field goal to force overtime, Miller took the snap, flushed to his right towards the line of scrimmage and the sideline and let loose a bomb across his body toward the end zone. Those watching on TV couldn’t see the wide open Devin Smith behind the Wisconsin secondary and immediately assumed interception, but as the TV cameras panned to the left, the ball floated into Smith’s arms and set off bedlam in the ‘Shoe.

Wisconsin’s last-second prayer fell short and Buckeye fans stormed the field, for at least a night of forgetting all about the problems that have plagued the program for nearly the past year, and are still to come when the NCAA hands down its sanctions.

Right now, it seems as if this Buckeye team is coming together. Everybody knew Ohio State’s defense was a force to be reckoned with this season, but the offense was struggling to move the ball with Joe Bauserman under center. When interim head coach Luke Fickell decided to switch to Miller, the true freshman, it signaled a turn to the future.

But it was much more than switching between Steven Threet and Nick Sheridan. While still young and inexperienced, Miller is a playmaker and a threat with his legs as much as his arm. He’s still erratic at times but as the broadcasters kept saying during the telecast, he keeps his eyes downfield while running, allowing him to find open receivers as the play breaks down. And that’s what makes him dangerous.

The scary thing is the Ohio State offense is just going to keep getting better. Offensive tackle Mike Adams returned a couple weeks ago, as did running back Herron. Three weeks from now (barring any further penalty) receiver DeVier Posey will return to give a shot to the arm of the passing game, and with every passing week, Miller will continue to gain confidence.

Ohio State has the fortune of playing Indiana and Purdue the next two weeks to likely push its record to 7-3 before returning home to host Penn State and then traveling to Ann Arbor for The Game. To be honest, Ohio State winning the past couple of weeks and reenergizing the fan base is a good thing.

For one, it keeps the Buckeyes in the thick of the Big Ten race, and as long as Michigan keeps winning, could set up a showdown with major implications on Nov. 26. For the first half of the season, it appeared The Game wouldn’t be a major factor in the Big Ten race.

Secondly, with Ohio State at a likely 8-3 or, at worst, 7-4 heading into The Game, it will be that much sweeter when Michigan turns the tide of the rivalry. Beating a downtrodden program, like OSU has done to us the past three years, will just inspire excuses from down south. Beating a team on a five-game winning streak with a spot in the Big Ten Championship game on the line is the kind of thing that shaped the rivalry over the past 100-plus years.

This week, Ohio State hosts Indiana at noon on the Big Ten Network, the same time as the Michigan game, which means none of us will be watching. Not that we need to. Indiana comes in at 1-8 (0-5 in the Big Ten) and ranks 114th out of 120 FBS teams in scoring defense, giving up 36.2 points per game. The Hoosiers haven’t beaten an FBS team yet (the only win was against FCS South Carolina State), so don’t expect to see anything worthwhile in Columbus this weekend.

Next: Saturday v. Indiana (1-8, 0-5) – 12pm on Big Ten Network

Prediction: Ohio 46 – Indiana 10

Devin Smith catches the game-winning catch with 20 seconds to play as Ohio State upset #15 Wisconsin (photo by Jay LaPrete, AP)