Meanwhile, Ohio State is destroying mediocre teams like a good team should

Ohio State guillotined Nebraska on Saturday in Lincoln, 56-14. The Buckeyes were up 42-0 four minutes into the third quarter, and they started using backups down the stretch, as Nebraska ran up a bunch of late yards to make the game’s numbers look less lopsided than they should’ve been.

But this was still not a lot more complicated than Ohio State completely overwhelming someone again.

Since falling 31-16 to then-No. 5 Oklahoma in Week 2, Urban Meyer’s team been clobbering everything it’s faced:

Ohio State also beat Indiana, 49-21.

“But,” you’re thinking, “none of those teams is any good at all.”

You are correct. Ohio State still hasn’t beaten a really good team this season. But the Bucks have rebounded from that Oklahoma loss in businesslike fashion, and they’re not far from the Playoff top four as they gear up for a more challenging Big Ten stretch.

Barrett is now rocking a 21-to-1 touchdown-to-interception ratio. He’s posted a passer rating north of 164 in every game since the Oklahoma debacle, when he couldn’t hit downfield throws and finished 19-of-35 for 183 yards and a pick. Barrett will never be Aaron Rodgers, but he’s quietly putting together an excellent season. His passer rating declined in both of the seasons before this one, but Barrett’s aerial numbers are now just as good as they were when he led OSU to the 2014 Playoff as a redshirt freshman.

Barrett’s wide receivers look good. They’ve done well to get open for him, and Barrett’s looked exceptionally comfortable as a distributor. He hit 11 different targets against Nebraska, and only one had more than four catches or 48 yards.

Against Nebraska, Barrett tied a school record with seven total touchdowns: five passing, two rushing. He was 27-of-33 passing for 325 yards.

When he hired ex-Indiana coach Kevin Wilson to be his offensive coordinator, Urban Meyer said tempo was coming. It appears it has. The Buckeyes ran 86 plays in 35 minutes with the ball on Saturday. It’s easy to muster that stamina when you’re cycling through second- and third-stringers in a blowout, but still: Part of Barrett’s comfortability is that he’s looked smooth in a system that moves quickly.

The Buckeyes have now run between 84 and 86 plays in four of their seven games. In the other three, they ran between 68 and 69. The Buckeyes’ two most efficient games by yards per play are ones in which they ran fewer plays. But this one’s encouraging, at a 7.4-yard average, and that’s dragged down in some part by playing backups. Whatever Ohio State gains in fresh legs when it subs starters out, it loses more in skill.

If Ohio State gets more comfortable in Wilson’s scheme and can move the ball while operating with speed, that’ll be helpful against some of the elite defenses the Buckeyes are soon to see. Tempo’s a good way to keep good those teams off balance.

Nebraska averaged 9 yards per play in the second half, which isn’t good. But much of that was against reserves, and Nebraska’s deficit was so big that it threw 24 times to six rush attempts in the last two quarters. The Buckeyes’ defense has been dominant against most of these mediocre teams. If that keeps up, it’ll mean a helpful margin for offensive error:

Ohio State’s offense has had a great month. They’re improving every week. But there may be a hiccup here or there, especially if the Buckeyes suffer another injury where they don’t have great depth, like at running back or on the offensive line. But with a defense that can create havoc, play efficiently, and still likely with room to grow, they’re going to have a much larger margin of error in their quest to win out and take home some hardware.

Look, I’m with you guys. I’m here for points and more points, and if a defense isn’t sacking the QB, picking off a pass, or blasting some poor slot receiver into next week, I may not direct as much attention to it, unless it’s clearly not working.

But Ohio State’s is, for now. That’s worthy of plenty of praise. And it may end up being the reason they come back from another ugly early season loss to compete for a title.

That ranking that isn’t meant to praise resumes, but to predict who’ll win games going forward. So a system that’s highly competitive against Vegas spreads would pick the Buckeyes in a neutral-site game against anybody, for what that’s worth at this point.

And it won’t be Ohio State-Michigan.

The Penn State-Ohio State game in Columbus on Oct. 28 might decide the race. Michigan’s looked shaky in more games than it hasn’t, including a home loss to Michigan State and an overtime squeaker over Indiana on Saturday. Michigan plays at Penn State next weekend and might get crushed. That’d make two conference losses for the Wolverines and none, probably, for both OSU and Penn State.

Penn State swiped the division from Ohio State with a blocked field goal return last year in State College. Ohio State’s setting itself up for a chance to flip the script at home this year. When it comes, the Buckeyes are going to be ready.