Recap
Ohio State did not respond the way many were expecting them to after their loss to Oregon, and were hoping to see a more aggressive Buckeye team, but the effort on the field did not match the fans energy nor back up the claims from the coaches in players after they let Nebraska hang around for the entire game, a Cornhusker team that just lost by 49 points to Indiana.
In this season, there might not be an elite team, so winning is key, and the Buckeyes survived, got ne step closer to their goals, and need to regroup ahead of the Penn State game or else they could very well suffer their second loss of the season. I do want to call out and give credit to the defense, who did show different blitzes and pressure than they have all season, not just relying on 4 down lineman. They were able to sack Raiola 3 times, and had 13 tackles for a loss. They held the Cornhuskers to 273 total yards, which was a step in the right direction. At some points their aggression cost them, including the longest run of the day from Raiola, and the defensive backs showing some lucky breaks, but I think balancing out their agression and conservative calls will put them in the right spot down the road.
Not to disrespect the opponent, but this game was more about getting the win, and looking good doing it, and the Buckeyes did not do a great job running the ball, which limited their play calling and impacted their ball control. Losing Josh Simmons seemed to be a bigger deal for the offensive line, and now it looks like Zen Michalski will be out next week for Penn State as well, so Ohio State needs to get that solved quick. Winning this game keeps them in the Big Ten Championship hunt, and keeps them in control of their destiny.
Will Howards was near perfect, passing for 221 yards with 3 touchdowns and 1 interception, which only 3 total interceptions. 16 pass attempts might be on of the lowest outputs for the Buckeye offense since Ryan Day has been head coach. He also totaled 14 yards on 8 carries, most of those were scrambling yardage and RPOs.
Quinshon Judkins led the running backs with 10 carries for 29 yards. He also caught 1 ball for 9 yard and the game winning touchdown. TreVeyon Henderson also had 10 carries for 25 yards. 64 yards rushing for the day is not going to win you championships, and Ryan Day agreed with that after the game, stating they need to get the run game going.
Carnell Tate lead the receiver room with 4 catches for 102 yards and a touchdown. Jeremiah Smith had 3 catches for 70 yards, and one of those catches went 50 yards and a touchdown, which tied Jeremiah Smith with the Ohio State freshman touchdown record with Cris Carter. Emeka Egbuka had a quiet day with 3 catches for 20 yards. Gee Scott Jr was the only other reciever for the day, with 2 catches for 20 yards.
Turning Point
Ohio State did not come out strong in the second half, leading 14-9. They let the Cornhuskers drive down the field and score the go ahead touchdown and 2 point conversion to lead 17-14 with just over 10 minutes left in the game. The offense needed to make a response, and did with a 8 play 76 yard drive which was capped with a touchdown pass to Quinshon Judkins. Jordan Hancocks intercepction on the last Nebraska offensive series was sig of relief moment, and the Buckeyes were able to knee it out to finish the game.
Stars of the Game
As always, we rank the top stars of the game, with each Buckeye leaf representing a reward (3 leaves it the 1st place earner)
Jordan Hancock. The defense looked a lot better than it did against Oregon, was a aggressive in some spots, but the game sealing interception by Jordan Hancock helped ensure the win when the Buckeyes needed a stop.
Carnell Tate. The sophmore wide out had a great game and led the wide receiver group for the day, including scoring the first touchdown for the Buckeyes near the end of the first quarter.
Will Howard. Take away the interception, and Howard actually played a good game. There were one or two times I can think of where he should have kept it, or made a better decision, and I wonder how much of that was due to the pressure from the Cornhusker defensive line, but he was near perfect passing, and opened up the deep passing game.
Playoff Picture
The first rankings for the College Football Playoff will release on Tuesday November 5th, so the Buckeyes have a chance to boost their resume with a win over Penn State next week if they can, but if they played like they did this week against Nebrasaka it will not be a happy day in Happy Valley. Winning keeps them close to the top of the rankings, but this team did not look like the same one that just barely lost to Oregon on the road.
Looking Ahead
Ohio State (6-1) will travel to Happy Valley to take on 3rd ranked Penn State (6-0) at 12pm on FOX.
Nebraska (5-3) will head back home to host UCLA (2-5) at 3:30pm on BTN.
Photo Credit: Joseph Malorana | Imagn Imagesha