Nebraska came ready to compete this week against the fourth ranked Ohio State Buckeyes. We made it difficult for the Buckeyes all game, not allowing them to get much going on the ground or through the air. It was competitive until near the end of the game, but unfortunately quarterback Dylan Riola threw an interception that took away our chance of winning the game.
Let’s look at what happened.
The game started off rough for the Huskers with a muffed kick off return which left Nebraska starting with the ball at our own 9-yard line. After going three and out, Ohio State had their first opportunity with the ball. Due to a shanked punt the Buckeyes took over at the Nebraska 35-yard line. However, the black shirts did a great job stopping Ohio State’s offense by sacking the quarterback, then forcing them to turn it over on downs. Later in the quarter, Ohio State put up the first points on the board with a 42-yard touchdown pass. At the end of the first quarter, the Buckeyes lead 7 to 0. The second quarter produced another Ohio State touchdown, this being a 60-yard bomb and two field goals for Nebraska. Before this game, our kicker was one for five on field goals, but he had two successful kicks, including a 56 yarder. At the end of the first half Ohio State lead 14 to 6.
The third quarter started out with the Buckeyes going three and out. On the ensuing drive, Nebraska kicked another field goal bringing the score to 14 to 9. Nebraska intercepted Buckeyes’ quarterback Will Howard but were unable to do anything with it. At the end of the third quarter, Ohio State lead 14 to 9. Nebraska opened the fourth quarter with a rushing touchdown. This would be their only touchdown of the game. The Huskers were successful on the two-point conversion and took their first and only lead of the game. The score was 17 to 14. However, Ohio State took back the lead with a touchdown of their own. With about six minutes left, we still had a chance only being down by one score. Nebraska was able to force a punt and got the ball back with about 3 1/2 minutes left on the clock. We had a pretty good drive going with a chance to win but with a little over a minute remaining, Raiola threw an interception effectively ending the game. Ohio State won the game 21 to 17.
I have to admit, this game went a lot better than I expected it to. With Nebraska’s history against ranked teams, and their performance last week I wasn’t sure what to expect. They played a pretty good game in all three phases and were competitive the entire time. Although we made some mistakes, we stayed in the game and never gave up. Our special teams unit did a great job making all three of our field goals. The defense also played great against an explosive Buckeyes offense. Offensively, we had many successful drives and were able to keep up with Ohio State’s high scoring offense. However, our perimeter blocking and dropped passes still continue to be a problem. Hopefully that is something that we can approve upon in our last four games. Overall, we played a great game and I am impressed at how well we did. I look forward to seeing how we do when we return home next week to face UCLA.
GBR.
