No. 2 will meet No. 5 Saturday at Ohio Stadium

Buckeyes one spot behind Alabama; Oklahoma jumps two spots in AP poll

The top game on the college football schedule in the second week of the season will match No. 2 vs. No. 5 at 7:30 p.m. Saturday at Ohio Stadium.

The Ohio State Buckeyes stayed at No. 2 in the Associated Press poll Tuesday after beating Indiana 49-21 on Thursday, while Oklahoma jumped two spots to No. 5 with a 56-7 victory over UTEP on Saturday.

Penn State moved up two spots to No. 4. Michigan climbed three spots to No. 8. Wisconsin stayed at No. 9.

SEVEN HIGHLIGHTS: Ohio State routs Indiana

Oklahoma will play a top-two opponent on the road for the first time since 2000. It will play in Columbus for the second time and the for the first time since 1977. Ohio State is 8-4 against top-10 teams in the Urban Meyer era.

Meyer spoke on Big Ten coaches teleconference Tuesday. Here are some highlights:

• The Buckeyes have to improve in three areas from their opener, Meyer said: Pass defense; interior blocking on the offensive line; and accuracy on deep passes.

“Other than that it was a pretty solid game,” Meyer said.

• The Buckeyes plan to use J.K. Dobbins and Mike Weber at running back against Oklahoma.

“They’ll both certainly play,” Meyer said. “I think they’re good complements to each other. It remains to be seen how we use them.”

• Quarterback Joe Burrow continues to make progress in his recovery from a broken hand.

“He’s throwing now,” Meyer said, “so it’s pretty close.”

• Oklahoma’s offense, led by quarterback Baker Mayfield, will be a big challenge for Ohio State.

“They’re excellent,” Meyer said. “It carried on from what they did last year. They were one of the best teams offensively last season. They did lose some weapons, but they reloaded. That’s what you’d expect from a team like Oklahoma.”

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• Of Lincoln Riley, Oklahoma’s rookie head coach, Meyer said, “You don’t make it to that level and have a guy like Bob Stoops put his name on you without being excellent. That’s what he is.”

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