WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. Hop Riopel . -- Urban Meyer thought Ohio State needed a pregame wake-up call Saturday. The Buckeyes answered with a quick flurry. Interception return, touchdown. Two plays, touchdown. Six plays, touchdown. Two plays, touchdown. And that was just in the first quarter. Doran Grant picked off the first pass of the game, scoring on a 33-yard return, and Braxton Miller threw for 233 yards and four touchdowns as No. 4 Ohio State extended the nations longest winning streak to 21 with a record-breaking rout 56-0 of Purdue. "I saw, not necessarily a sleepy look, but I just didnt like what I saw in our pregame," said Meyer, the Buckeyes coach. "So we brought them in here and kind of rattled them up a little bit and made sure they woke up." Did they ever. The Buckeyes produced the highest scoring total and most lopsided victory margin in the 56-game series, surpassing marks they set in a 49-0 victory in 2010. They handed Purdue (1-7, 0-4) its first back-to-back shutouts in six decades, and the 56-point loss matched the worst in Boilermakers history. Purdue lost 56-0 to Iowa on Oct. 28, 1922 and 56-0 to Chicago on Nov. 9, 1907. It was hardly a surprise. Ohio State (9-0, 5-0) hasnt lost in 22 months. Meyer tied a personal best by winning his 22nd consecutive game, which includes his final victory at Florida. Miller went 19 of 23 before giving way to Kenny Guiton for good in the second half. Guiton was 8 of 11, throwing one TD pass and running for two more. He finished with 98 yards rushing on nine carries, second only to Carlos Hyde who ran for 111 yards on eight carries. Tight end Jeff Heuerman caught five passes for a career-high 116 yards and was one of five different Ohio State receivers to score. Plus, the Buckeyes defence forced two turnovers, added six more sacks to their Big Ten-leading number and limited the Boilermakers to 116 total yards as a large contingent of scarlet-and-grey clad fans turned the road game into a pseudo home contest in the second half when most of the Boilermakers fans left. The combination was enough to keep Ohio State on track for a second straight perfect season and a potential berth in the BCS title game. But the Buckeyes, admittedly, needed some early help. "It was an early morning, we had to get up early, we had to get prepared, we had to eat well," Miller said. "We had to get the guys going and the coaches talked to us and got us hyped." Purdue certainly didnt need that. The game that was billed as a blackout turned into a washout. How bad was it? Etling, the freshman, was 13 of 29 for 89 yards. Purdues mistake-prone secondary was gouged so often by the Ohio State quarterbacks that the Boilers gave up a record-breaking scoring total in Ross-Ade Stadium for the second time this season. The Boilermakers head into next weeks game against Iowa with eight consecutive scoreless quarters and with the dubious achievement of failing to reach the red zone for the third consecutive game. Purdue hasnt taken a snap inside the opponents 20-yard line since late in a Sept. 28 loss to Northern Illinois, and still hasnt beaten a Football Bowl Subdivision since Darrell Hazell took over the program after last season. "We didnt tackle very well, we had guys out of place quite a few times (on defence) and we need to get off the blocks," Hazell said. "We cant get a quarterback beat up the way we did. We had problems in pass protection." Miller & Co. made them pay for those miscues, seemingly every time. On the games second snap, Grant stepped in front of B.J. Knauf, picked off Etlings pass and sprinted 33 yards to make it 7-0. Miller then threw a 40-yard TD pass to a wide open Jeff Heuerman on the Buckeyes second offensive play to give Ohio State a 14-0 lead. Before the first quarter ended, Miller threw an 8-yard TD pass to Nick Vannett and a 2-yard shovel pass for a TD to Corey Brown to make it 28-0. Not enough? Guiton threw a 1-yard TD pass to Chris Fields midway through the second quarter, and Miller hooked up with Ezekiel Elliott on a 10-yard scoring pass later in the first half to make it 42-0 at the half. Guiton ran for two scores in the second half to close out the milestone victory. "Were just playing Ohio State ball," Hyde said after the Buckeyes rolled up 640 yards in offence. "I expect this out of the offensive group, you know. Just come out and be explosive all day and put points up and put up yards. Thats what I expect from us." Butch Byrd . With their coach gone, they finally played offence the way he would have wanted. Amare Stoudemire made all seven shots in the first half, Anthony passed and shot well, and the Knicks shook off the surprising departure of their coach to rout the Portland Trail Blazers 121-79 on Wednesday night, snapping a six-game losing streak. Charley Brock . Howard hit a three-run homer with two outs in the bottom of the ninth inning to lift the Philadelphia Phillies to a 6-3 win over the Colorado Rockies on Wednesday night. https://www.cheapnfljerseyschina.co/ . - Chelseas 1-0 win at the Etihad, spoiling Manchester Citys perfect home record continues to be the talking point of the week. TORONTO -- Toronto FC is making progress on its hunt for a new general manager, according to Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment CEO Tim Leiweke. "This wont be a long search. Were already down to two (candidates)," Leiweke told season ticket-holders at the MLS teams annual barbecue Sunday. "Ive been focused on this the last two weeks." The struggling 5-13-10 club fired president and GM Kevin Payne on Thursday, with Leiweke saying the two were not on the same page. Reports have linked Real Salt Lakes Garth Lagerwey to the Toronto job although Real Salt Lake has noted he is under contract to the club through 2014 -- a fact that might not mean a move is out of the question. Leiweke also told his audience at the teams training centre Sunday that the MLSE board had authorized $26 million to spend on two major player acquisitions in the transfer window that just closed. The team was unable to close those deals, a failure that was seemingly part of the reason behind Paynes departure and Leiweke hitching his wagon to rookie manager Ryan Nelsen. "I also believe that the coach and the front office have to have the same view of the kind of DP (designated player) and the position youre trying to fill," Leiweke said. "One thing Nellie (Nelsen) and I agree on is we need strikers. "If you watched the game last night (a 4-0 loss in Portland on Saturday), we need finishers and we need strikers. It is so clear what we need here. Were not chasing defenders or midfielders. If were going to find a midfielder, itll be an attacking midfielder. And we do believe weve got to solve our striker situation once and for all by (spending) significant money." "Moneys not the issue," he added. "We have the money. But we have to find the right players." That means finding a player who wants to be here and wants to make a difference. "It cant just be a payday or a holiday or else thats going to backfire." Leiweke reiterated that the GM search is not about hiring "a dynamo or world-class personality that is a great spinner." "I think the future of this league is about the (salary) cap, about trades, about player evaluation and about development. I think what we need to do is take a page out of the NBAs book and find someone thats analytical, a capologist that understands how tto handle our cap and make sure we do not enter into bad deals, that gets along and knows every GM in the league and knows how to make trades. Chase Vaughn. " His comments seemed to suggest a growing role for Nelsen in player personnel. Leiweke has pushed back the deadline to renew season tickets to January, telling fans that he will come back to them then. "We dont want you to make that decision now and, by the way, we dont have the right to ask that decision now," he said. "Well be back in January. "We know where were going and were going to get there quickly." Toronto, on its eight manager in seven seasons, has a history of failure on the field that includes never having made the playoffs. Leiweke also pointed to some of the teams past mistakes, said TFC will stop trading away its draft picks. "Those days are over, that I promise." He also said the franchise has also done a poor job of trading within the league. The MLSE boss paid tribute to the fans, saying he was "shocked" by the turnout Sunday and their loyalty in the face of the teams performance. "We dont deserve this," he said. Leiweke promised to talk to the ticket-holders in January "and lets see how weve done." "Between now and then Im tired of the BS and you aint going to get any from me. This is about rolling up our sleeves and getting to work. And thats what were going to do between now and January." Before then, Leiweke said he given his staff specific instructions. "No more promises, no more spin, no more assessment. Im tired of that. That doesnt solve a damn thing. What weve got to do is go work hard. Thats what were going to do." That seemed to be an unspoken reference to Payne, who often talked up the talent on the way. Leiweke also addressed speculation that the CFL Argonauts might join the MLS team at BMO Field, with the stadium being retrofitted to accommodate football. "Nothings going to happen until we have another conversation and you have input, I promise," he said. "This hasnt even been a subject or a discussion with our board. And when youre talking about $60 (million) or a $100 million, believe me the boards not only going to have an involvement, its not going to be a quick decision. "So lets not worry about that yet." ' ' '