MY THOUGHTS.....Nebraska

 

The Ohio State Buckeyes survived a surprisingly putrid performance on the offensive side of the ball to win a hard-fought 21-17 victory over a game Nebraska squad.  Ohio State ran for a mere 64 yards as Nebraska’s “black shirts” did a good job holding Quinshon Judkins (29 yards) and TreVeyon Henderson (25 yards) well in check.  In fact, the offense managed only two runs of 10 yards or more.  Nebraska’s defense concentrated on stopping anything between the tackles and it didn’t help that tackle Josh Simmons is out for the year and Zen Michalski, his replacement, was taken to school by Nebraska’s defense.  Because the run game suffered, Ohio State was able to convert only one of 10 third-down conversion attempts and one of two fourth-down conversion attempts.  It was fortunate Nebraska does not have the secondary to keep up with Ohio State’s receivers, as quarterback Will Howard was 13-of-16 for 221 yards and three touchdowns against one interception, despite being pressured a lot.  Carnell Tate led the way with four receptions for 102 yards. 

The defense, meanwhile, had quite a turnaround from the Oregon debacle.  They had no sacks and only two tackles for loss against the Ducks but turned in three sacks and a whopping 13 tackles for loss against the Cornhuskers.  JT Tuimoloau, Tyleik Williams, and Ty Hamilton were responsible for the three sacks as they came at key times.  The defense also turned in a great goal line stand that proved to be the difference in the game.  Perhaps the two Cody Simon had on Nebraska’s last possession were the difference.  Following an offensive pass interference call on Nebraska WR Jahmal Brooks, the absolutely terrible targeting call on Arvell Reese and a false start, Simon made two TFLs in a row on 1st down and 2^nd down, leading to the game-sealing interception by Jordan Hancock on 3^rd down.

One other point which I am obliged to make.  Is it me or is the college football officiating getting worse year after year, especially in the B1G Conference?  The targeting rule is so open to interpretation that half the time, even with a review, they still can’t get it right.  Fortunately, the B1G office saw how horrendous the targeting call on Arvell Reese was and reversed his 1^st half suspension for next week.  I will make another post about the bad state of officiating after the season, but the sad fact that college football officials very rarely receive a reprimand or any adverse consequences for poor performance (as anyone in just about any other profession would) speaks volumes about how something is seriously broken and needs to be fixed.

Next up, comes a tough test as the Buckeyes travel to Penn State and will need a much-improved offensive line performance if they’re going to come back with a win.