ESPN’s “College GameDay” broadcast from Evanston went off like a dream Saturday morning. Then, Northwestern matched Ohio State blow for blow for more than three quarters Saturday night. A delirious student section at Ryan Field, packed beyond capacity, was ready to explode onto the field.

But a succession of close calls and misfortunes left the Cats a few points behind with seconds to play, and when the Buckeyes jumped on an errant NU lateral to end the game with a touchdown, the campus moaned in disappointment.

The No. 15 Cats lost to the No. 4 Buckeyes 40-30 in a nationally televised thriller that lived up to its immense buildup in every way but NU’s end result. The game featured six lead changes, the last of which — a rushing touchdown from OSU’s Carlos Hyde with 3 minutes and 48 seconds to play — condemned the Cats to a heartbreaking loss.

— Alex Putterman

Read The Daily’s recap of Northwestern-Ohio State.