The Shoe was rocking and rolling Saturday morning, with Buckeye fans filling Ohio Stadium for another day of football. The Buckeyes bounced back and trounced the Golden Flashes 59-3 in week 3 of the season.

By the end of the afternoon, (2-1) Ohio State had piled up plenty of points. But for a team coming off a disappointing second-half collapse against Texas, Saturday's matchup with (1-2) Kent State left just as many questions as answers.

The biggest moment of the day came in the first half, when wide receiver Jeremiah Smith became the all-time leader in receiving yards in Ohio State history.

Smith hauled in five passes for 85 yards before his day was finished, pushing his career total past Michael Jenkins' 2,898 receiving yards from 2000-03.

"Put a lot of hard work into it. They said 33 games, so I'm blessed. But I got two more (records) to get," Smith told ESPN reporters following the game.

No disrespect to Kent State, but Saturday felt like a tune-up. And, in many ways, it felt as though the Golden Flashes learned more about themselves walking out of Ohio Stadium than the hometown team did.

Heading into the game, one of the biggest questions surrounding the Buckeyes was whether they could establish a consistent rushing attack and impose their will at the line of scrimmage.

They didn't exactly provide that answer.

Ohio State was stuffed multiple times on third-and-short situations, continuing a trend that has followed the Buckeyes early in the season. Against a lesser opponent, Saturday presented an opportunity to establish a physical identity on the ground.

Instead, the Buckeyes left that question unanswered.

Outside of a Hail Mary attempt at the end of the first half, no wide receiver other than Smith consistently threatened Kent State downfield. Quarterback Julian Sayin also appeared hesitant at times to look elsewhere when Smith wasn't available.

Saturday was the perfect opportunity to learn more about what this offense could look like around the edges.

Everyone knows Smith is the focal point of the passing attack, and that shouldn't change. The question is what Ohio State can find around him to make the offense more difficult to defend.

Can another receiver emerge as a consistent threat? Can the Buckeyes develop a reliable short-yardage rushing attack? Can they find a way to make those pivotal third-and-short situations less stressful?

Those are the questions Ohio State still has to answer.

Are we witnessing a freshman doghouse?

Another storyline worth watching is the limited playing time for freshmen Legend Bey and Khary Wilder.

Against Texas, both players saw minimal snaps. With a lesser opponent coming into Ohio Stadium, it seemed reasonable to expect the young players to receive more opportunities.

That wasn't the case.

Bey didn't see the field until the second quarter and ultimately played just one snap. On that play, he was involved in an option play in which Sayin appeared indecisive with the football. Bey was hit in the backfield, appeared to tweak his ankle and did not return.

Wilder's situation is even more intriguing.

The freshman defensive lineman was one of the few Ohio State players to consistently generate pressure against Texas, recording two pressures on just five snaps against the Longhorns.

On Saturday, Wilder played just 11 snaps.

For a team that has stressed the importance of generating a consistent pass rush, limiting one of its more productive young pass rushers raises questions.

Ohio State managed only one sack against Kent State, coming late in the game.

Perhaps Wilder's workload was part of a larger rotation plan. Perhaps the coaching staff simply wanted to ease him into the season.

Whatever the reasoning, his limited involvement is something worth monitoring as the season progresses.

Questions remain in the quarterback room

One of the quieter developments inside the Woody Hayes Athletic Center has been the emergence of true freshman Luke Fahey as the apparent No. 2 quarterback behind Sayin.

Entering the season, Ryan Day said the backup quarterback competition remained open. But through the opening weeks, Fahey has seemingly separated himself from former five-star quarterback Tavien St. Clair.

That became even more apparent Saturday, when Fahey played roughly twice as many snaps as St. Clair.

Fahey's emergence speaks to the work he has put in since arriving in Columbus. But it also creates some interesting questions about what Ohio State's quarterback room could look like moving forward.

St. Clair entered Ohio State with significant expectations as a five-star prospect. If Sayin leaves for the NFL following the season and St. Clair remains behind Fahey on the depth chart, the quarterback situation could become one of the more interesting storylines of the offseason.

There is still a lot of football to be played before that becomes a legitimate offseason issue, but Ohio State has to be pleased with the development of Fahey while also recognizing the questions his emergence creates.

Neither backup had a perfect afternoon Saturday, either.

Fahey threw an interception while attempting to find Brock Boyd in double coverage, while St. Clair was hit as he released a pass, resulting in another interception.

Still, the most important takeaway may be that Ohio State appears to have options behind Sayin — something that wasn't necessarily clear entering the season.

Defense provides a positive takeaway

For all of the questions surrounding the Buckeyes, the defense provided one of the clearest positives Saturday.

Ohio State looked far more disciplined than it did during the second half against Texas.

There were fewer obvious miscommunications, fewer receivers running wide open and fewer opportunities for Kent State to consistently move the football.

Outside of a trick play, the Golden Flashes struggled to find much room on the ground or through the air. The Buckeyes' defensive front was able to control the line of scrimmage and prevent Kent State from establishing a consistent rushing attack.

That was something Ohio State needed to see.

After watching Texas take control of the game in Austin, the Buckeye defense needed a bounce-back performance. Against Kent State, it largely delivered.

Of course, Kent State is not Texas.

That's an important distinction.

Saturday's performance should provide some confidence, but the real test will come when Ohio State faces another opponent capable of challenging the defense consistently.

For now, the Buckeyes leave Saturday with a comfortable victory and plenty of points on the scoreboard.

But the bigger questions remain.

Can Ohio State consistently run the football?

Can someone besides Smith emerge as a reliable downfield threat?

Why aren't some of the young defensive players seeing more opportunities?

And what will the quarterback room look like beyond this season?

The Buckeyes answered some questions Saturday.

They also created a few new ones.