The Nebraska Cornhuskers were defeated by the #4 Ohio State Buckeyes, 21-17 in an outcome that I’m not sure anyone across the country expected to see.
The Buckeyes were fresh off a bye-week, and entered Saturday as a 25 point favorite to a Huskers team that was completely ripped apart against a now 8-0 Indiana Hoosiers team.
Pretty early on, the Blackshirts defense made it difficult for Ohio States offense, including a fourth and one stop by M.J. Sherman.
The Buckeyes quickly found some momentum late in the first quarter, scoring the games first points on a 40-yard touchdown pass from Will Howard to Carnell Tate.
By far the biggest play of the entire first half, was a 54 yard field goal from Husker kicker John Hohl to take a 14-6 deficit into the halftime break.
Things looked much different from that point on. The Huskers outscored the Buckeyes 11-7 in the second half, dominated the time of possession, and took a 17-14 lead at the 10:47 mark in the fourth quarter.
Unfortunately, the Buckeyes retook the lead on the ensuing drive, and a Dylan Raiola interception ended things for the Huskers.
What We Saw on Offense:
Nebraska fought hard all day long on offense, they only put up 17 points, but we saw success in some areas that I’m not sure we expected to see today.
The Huskers ran for 121 yards on a top 15 rushing unit in the Buckeyes, and it seemed that the Huskers offensive line got better as the day went on in the run game department.
The passing game was still very questionable, totaling 152 yards, with lots of screen passes and what seemed like a pocket that was constantly collapsing for Dylan Raiola.
Offensive coordinator Marcus Satterfield should have some tough questions to answer coming next week, including the play calling on the Huskers final drive.
After a targeting penalty by Ohio States Arvell Reese, and a false start by the Huskers Justin Evan-Jenkins had the Huskers at 1st and 10 on their own 41 yard line, back to back screen-designed looking plays put the Huskers at 3rd and 19.
Buckeyes cornerback Jordan Hancock intercepted Dylan Raiola on that third down play, ending the game.
It was not pretty at all, but there is definitely a lot of good tape in there to unpack before UCLA next week.
What We Saw on Defense:
Tony White. That’s the sentence.
Time and time again, the blackshirts defense provided clutch stops, including five three and outs.
The Buckeyes took the approach of trying to get the run game going to open up the pass, and Nebraska was all over it from the start.
After seven tackles for loss, two sacks and an interception, the defense played what was their best game in the Tony White era.
Whether you like a moral victory or not, holding the sixth ranked offense in the country to 285 yards and 21 points is a big win.
Reaction:
Obviously, no one likes a loss, but it can’t help but be said that something ignited this Huskers team leading into Saturday.
UCLA, USC, Wisconsin and Iowa are all games that can be won, and you can even make a point that they should be won.
It will certainly be interesting to watch how this team comes out next weekend.
How juiced up will the Huskers be with an opportunity to end a very long, noticeable drought of six win seasons?