'We shouldn't be playing games like this': OSU's win raises more questions than answers

Michael Cohen

College football and college basketball writer

COLUMBUS, Ohio – Try as they might, the horns, woodwinds and drummers of Ohio State's famed marching band couldn't drown out the boos as the third quarter came to a close Saturday afternoon. Clinging to an increasingly tense five-point lead, the Buckeyes' offense had just taken the lead for the third time in a four-possession span, with the only relief coming in the form of a stunning interception by quarterback Will Howard. The final upset for the 104,830 spectators at Ohio Stadium was a failed third-down carry by running back TreVeyon Henderson that was rejected for negative yards while the offensive line surrendered. A few fans expressed their desperation as the punt team got ready for action and the band continued playing as if nothing was wrong.

But there were plenty of problems with Ohio State University's harrowing 21-17 survival against Nebraska, a mediocre Big Ten opponent that had lost by 49 points in a nationally televised implosion to then-No. 1 seven days earlier . 16 Indiana. The Cornhuskers arrived here as 25-plus point underdogs and losers of their last 26 games against ranked opponents, a streak that predated head coach Matt Rhule. And yet there the Buckeyes stood, speechless and dazed and disbelieving what they were seeing, trailing by three with 10:47 left when Nebraska tailback Dante Dowdell darted across the goal line for a 1-yard score. In that moment, and despite all the flaws that had been exposed, the idea that Ohio State should be considered one of the best teams in college football — a real contender to win its first national championship since 2014 — seemed pretty absurd.

“It wasn’t perfect,” Howard said. “But a win is a win.”

And the fans could feel it. Sure, there were a few small frustrations amid the collective disdain on a beautiful fall day in Columbus. They were irritated by an ineffective rushing attack that averaged just 2.1 yards per carry on 31 attempts. They were upset by the porous pass blocking, which seemed to make the clock run faster in Howard's head. They were upset by kicker Jayden Fielding's missed field goal. They were outraged by the three penalties against cornerback Davison Igbinosun, although one of them was declined. They were angry about linebacker Arvell Reese's ejection for targeting and threw bottles onto the field, briefly halting the game while stadium staff cleared away debris. And they were amazed that head coach Ryan Day and his staff hadn't done a better job of strengthening and revitalizing this group with two full weeks of practice since the heartbreaking loss to Oregon.

But it was the macroeconomic overtones that were far more troubling for a fan base desperate to cleanse itself after watching arch-rival Michigan win the Big Ten championship and reach the College Football Playoff in three straight seasons the last was punctuated with the conference's first National Championship title in a decade. In fact, what the Buckeyes showed against Nebraska was far from the kind of dismal fourth-quarter victory that Day described in his postgame press conference, an ambiguity that raised more than a few eyebrows among reporters. No amount of coaching talk or cliche-spreading could disguise the harsh reality facing Ohio State: that it is an extremely talented football team that is underperforming.

“We have to go back and look at the film and get it corrected because (it’s like) we’re in the playoffs now,” Howard said. “Every game is the most important game. We cannot afford to perform like we do today that we are not proud of. And I think today will wake us up and remind us that we just have to keep going. “Put in the effort every day, every week and never get complacent because you never know.”

That Ohio State's offensive weakness against Nebraska could easily be compared to Indiana's 56-7 win over the Cornhuskers last week only heightened the concern. How could the Buckeyes, whose running back tandem of Henderson and Quinshon Judkins is arguably the best in the country, be targeted seven times behind the line of scrimmage by a defense that averaged 215 rushing yards and 6.5 yards per carry gave up a less talented player? Hoosiers? How did Ohio State, whose receiving trio of Jeremiah Smith, Emeka Egbuka and Carnell Tate are the envy of college football, convert on third down just once in 10 attempts after Indiana moved the chains against Nebraska at a rate of 55.6%? How could an offense overseen by Day and first-year offensive coordinator Chip Kelly, considered one of the game's brightest minds, produce 35 fewer points than IU when it faced the same unit in consecutive weeks?

All of these questions point, to varying degrees, to injury issues along the offensive line at Ohio State University, where starting left tackle Josh Simmons is out because of an undisclosed left knee injury suffered in the loss to Oregon. canceled for the season. Without Simmons, who had emerged as the team's best lineman in his second season since arriving from San Diego State, offensive line coach Justin Frye entrusted senior Zen Michalski to fill that role against Nebraska, despite playing just 105 snaps through the first six games achieved.

Michalski, a former four-star prospect in the 2021 recruiting cycle, struggled in his first career start before exiting in the fourth quarter with an apparent hip injury. He allowed a sack on Ohio State's first possession when defensive lineman Jimari Butler beat him at the line of scrimmage, and appeared to miss a call on each of the Buckeyes' next two drives, including one that led directly to a three-and- Out contributed. Without long touchdown throws from Howard, who hit Tate for a 40-yard score and Smith for a 60-yard score, the revolving door of errors on the left side alone would have proven even more damaging given Judkins and Henderson combined for 54 rushing yards and failed to reach the end zone on the ground.

“For our offense,” Judkins said, “it definitely wasn’t our best day up front. But I think these guys will correct that. Coach Frye, you know, he's great at what he does as a coach, and I think he'll definitely get it right next week, but I think everyone could improve.

It's a message that resonated with nearly every member of the Ohio State team on an afternoon when the Buckeyes had to mount an eight-play, 75-yard touchdown drive with 6:04 left in the fourth quarter to finally retake the lead when The victory wasn't certain until defensive back Jordan Hancock intercepted a poorly thrown ball from five-star freshman quarterback Dylan Raiola in the final 90 seconds – a one-time effort by OSU – when the toughness, will and determination of one rosters that reportedly cost more than $20 million to raise have all been called into question as the path to an expanded College Football Playoff temporarily faded.

That's why there were boos in the stadium on Saturday. And even the Ohio State band couldn't overpower them.

“We’ll look back,” Day said, “and realize, quite frankly, that we shouldn’t be in games like this. I mean, that’s just the way we look at it.”

“But we were (today). Give Nebraska credit.”

Michael Cohen covers college football and basketball with a focus on the Big Ten for FOX Sports. Follow him at @Michael_Cohen13.

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