No. 6 Ohio State obliterated No. 10 Nebraska in Columbus on Saturday night, 62-3, in a game that muddled one Big Ten division and maintained the status quo in the other.
Nebraska-Ohio State was technically a top-10 game. Only the Buckeyes played that way.
The Buckeyes keep marching toward that Michigan game.
Photo by Jamie Sabau/Getty Images
It was never close. Ohio State jumped to a 31-3 lead by halftime with dominance on both sides of the ball. Damon Webb notched a 36-yard interception return touchdown on Nebraska’s game-opening drive, and the Buckeyes never looked back.
On offense, the Buckeyes were balanced, and a talented Nebraska secondary was never a problem for J.T. Barrett and the Buckeye passing game. Things only got worse as the game wore on, and the Buckeyes cruised. It was a romp.
Nebraska quarterback Tommy Armstrong Jr. left the game in an ambulance after hitting his head on the turf in the second quarter. Armstrong was briefly unconscious but recovered quickly enough to return to the stadium in scrubs and eventually join his teammates on the field.
For the Buckeyes, the win averts a disaster scenario in the Big Ten East.
They lost at Penn State two weeks ago, but Big Ten tiebreakers are such that their game against unbeaten Michigan on Nov. 26 still figures to decide the division. A loss would’ve put the Buckeyes two games back of their northern neighbors, however, and almost certainly handed the division to Jim Harbaugh with a month to go.
Now, the Buckeyes get to stay on track. If Ohio State handles both Maryland and Michigan State in the next two weeks, the Michigan game at the Horseshoe will be for every Big Ten East marble. At this point, it’s impossible for Urban Meyer’s team to ask for anything more. They just can’t mess up in the interim.
For Nebraska, this is bad news. The Huskers led the West outright with one loss, but now they’re tied at two losses with both Wisconsin and Minnesota.
The Big Ten’s three-team-plus tiebreakers are tricky, and the Huskers’ path to Indianapolis is now exceptionally muddled. A win would’ve left them in total control, but now it’s hard to see exactly how that’ll shake out. This was an opportunity for both a huge win and some stability in the West race. The Huskers got neither out of it.
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