Here are 5 things we learned from Ohio State's 77-21 win over Toledo

C.J. Stroud picked apart an outmanned Toledo secondary on Saturday as Ohio State won 77-21. The Ohio State quarterback was 18 for 20 in the first half and finished 22 for 27 for 367 yards and five touchdowns.

And only two of those completions, for 33 yards, went to top receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba.

Stroud and his air show now head into Big Ten play to face Wisconsin, which won 66-7 over winless New Mexico State on Saturday and has a bad loss to Washington State on its resume already.

Ohio State 77, Toledo 21:Scarlet & Gray Matter analysis

Rob Oller:Ohio State quarterback C.J. Stroud sensational in blowout win against Toledo

Substantive lessons in big wins over Mid-American Conference teams are sometimes hard to come by, but here are five things we learned from the game:

Cade Stover, versatile tight end

When a guy goes from linebacker to tight end to linebacker and back to tight end, the assumption is that he's merely a guy Ohio State hopes to become a typical run-game thumper. And Cade Stover indeed does well in the tough-guy part of the job.

But Stover has also become a receiving weapon. He had three receptions for 83 yards Saturday and was wide, wide, wide open for a short touchdown pass but was overthrown on one of C.J. Stroud's few mistakes during the game. On one catch on the sideline, Stover showed great hands and ability to stay inbounds.

Bottom line:How did the Buckeyes grade out vs. Toledo? How did OSU defense grade?

Flashing Stover this week was Ryan Day's chance to warn upcoming opponents that while they're figuring out how to stop all of those great receivers, don't take your eyes off big No. 8.

Again, does Ohio State have a cornerback problem?

Last week, Denzel Burke struggled and was benched. On Saturday, Cam Brown was beaten deep for a 50-yard touchdown and then later left the game with an unannounced injury. Later in the game, Burke was beaten on a jump ball on a desperation heave, and the outcome was a 40-yard Toledo touchdown.

Part of defensive coordinator Jim Knowles' defensive scheme is to create confusion up front with varied blitzes, so Ohio State has faced some harried quarterbacks. Thus, one would think more frequent pass breakups and interceptions would result. So far, that hasn't been the case.

Marvin Harrison Jr. is a superstar

During Saturday's game, former Ohio State great Johnnie Dixon witnessed Marvin Harrison Jr. make a sensational catch that involved using his incredible length to make the catch and his great footwork to toe-tap both feet in the end zone. From his couch, Dixon tweeted simply, "Na Marvin you crazy for that one."

A week after scoring three touchdowns (would have been four had officials made the right call), Harrison had two against Toledo. He finished with six catches for 102 yards and was unguardable. And ... he's not even the No. 1 receiver on the team when Smith-Njigba is healthy, and might not be No. 2, as Emeka Egbuka had seven catches for 116 yards and a receiving TD and rushing TD on Saturday.

Harrison's first national exposure came in the Rose Bowl (6 catches, 71 yards, 3TDs), and he continues to turn heads because of his length, speed and end-zone awareness. At 6 feet 4 and 205 pounds, he's a quarterback's corner-fade dream. And he's becoming a major facet of receivers coach Brian Hartline's question for defenses: Who you gonna cover?

Dallan Hayden provides some relief

Unfortunately for Ohio State, starting running back TreVeyon Henderson gets hurt a lot. The Buckeyes don't announce injuries, so it can only be assumed that Henderson again was woozy after a head-to-head collision a few plays before his touchdown. He got up from the play and shook his head and returned to the huddle.

After his touchdown, he was taken out of the game and into the locker room. His absence left Miyan Williams as the only proven back. But freshman Dallan Hayden got plenty of looks on Saturday, too, and responded with quickness and decisiveness, finishing with 108 yards and a touchdown on 17 carries. Is Hayden enough to beat Penn State and Michigan? Doubtful. But it's good to know you've seen your third-string runner in action and having success.

Ohio State defensive depth was on display

Somehow, the FOX telecast never mentioned the fact that safeties Josh Proctor and Tanner McCalister and defensive tackle Michael Hall didn't play because of mystery injuries. But the Buckeyes coped just fine without them.

Lathan Ransom and Cameron Martinez started at safety while Knowles rotated several players on the defensive line. The Buckeyes' line rotation is so fluid that it appears that J.T. Tuimoloau is the only guy who stays on the field for nearly every snap. Ransom led the team with six tackles and Martinez had four.

Freshmen safeties Sonny Styles and Kye Stokes also saw several snaps, and each delivered a big hit. Styles had three tackles and Stokes had two.

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This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: OSU Buckeyes football beat Toledo 77-21: 5 things we learned