What was supposed to be a critical Big Ten matchup between two top ten teams turned out to be a game that was decided a little earlier than most would assume.
The 10th ranked Nebraska Cornhuskers (7-2, 4-2 Big Ten) hoped to get an upset victory over the #6 Ohio State Buckeyes (8-1, Â 5-1 Big Ten) on Saturday night but instead they received a 62-3 thrashing on the road in front of a mainly Buckeyes crowd of 108,750 in attendance. Buckeyes quarterback J.T. Barrett passed for 290 yards and four touchdowns while also adding another 39 rushing yards. H-Back Curtis Samuel totaled 178 yards from scrimmage on top of his two receiving touchdowns.
You knew things may get out of hand for the Cornhuskers as quarterback Tommy Armstrong Jr. was intercepted on the third play of the game by Buckeyes safety Damon Webb and returned 36 yards for a touchdown.
The ensuing drive by Nebraska resulted in a 20-yard field goal to make it 7-3 in favor of Ohio State but that proved to be all the scoring that Nebraska would account for on the night. By the time Barrett connected with Samuel for a one-yard touchdown with three seconds left in the first half, Ohio State put themselves up 31-3 with the game pretty much wrapped up by that point.
A lot of Nebraska’s momentum was completely dashed in the second quarter as Armstrong was carted off the field after being tackled while going out of bounds with his head slamming on the turf. Armstrong laid on the turf motionless for several minutes and was eventually placed on a cart and into an ambulance. The senior quarterback made a return to the game in the third quarter in street clothes which was a sigh of relief for all.
What was not a relief for Nebraska was dealing with an Ohio State defense that was fast, athletic, and dangerous throughout the night. The Buckeyes held Nebraska to 204 total yards, 5-for-16 on third down, along with two turnovers and seven tackles for loss. On the other hand, Ohio State rolled on offense thanks to stellar passing by Barrett and a strong running game that totaled 238 yards with starting running back Mike Weber accounting for 72 yards and a touchdown on 11 carries
The release of the College Football Playoff poll earlier in the week pitted the Buckeyes at number six on the poll and a victory such as this will only catapult the talented Buckeyes.
