Paul Finebaum explains what surviving Nebraska meant for Ohio State, Ryan Day

Paul Finebaum still likes Ohio State but he considered Ryan Day and the Buckeyes lucky for getting out with a win against Nebraska Saturday afternoon.

It wasn’t a pretty day in the least, especially based on what Day had to say after the game. Now in a must-win game against Penn State, for both squads anyway, Finebaum knows Day and Ohio State must rebound.

Because the College Football Playoff could very well hinge on this next game too.

“He’s counting his lucky stars because had they lost that game, and they weren’t far from it, I mean, he could have possibly been out of the playoffs by next Saturday night,’ Finebaum said on The Matt Barrie Show. “I’m giving you the worst case scenario at Penn State, but this is a team that, I mean, I was convinced they had more talent than anybody, and were probably the best team before the season. And then I’m getting really squeamish about that.”

Early in the fourth quarter, Ohio State trailed 17-14 and really couldn’t get the offense going. But Will Howard made some plays with arm and legs, eventually finishing the drive with a touchdown pass to Quinshon Judkins.

And despite trading punts over the next two drives, Ohio State’s defense came up big with a Dylan Raiola interception, the Husker QB’s lone pick of the game.

That’s why Day tipped his cap to the defense.

“I think it really came down to us really not being able to run the football,” Day said. “That’s what it came down to. So we really never controlled the game. We hit some big plays on them, I thought Will did a good job down the field with that. We had the big turnover here coming out, which kind of flipped the game. 

“But we talked a lot this year about leaving no doubt. Don’t leave it in the call of an official or whatever, take control of the game. Our defense went out and did that, and that’s what we needed to do. We spent a lot of time talking about that in the off week of coming out and winning the game in the fourth quarter, our defense won the game right here in the fourth quarter.”

As far as the Big Ten pecking order is concerned, Day knows Ohio State is right there. Indiana and Oregon are both 8-0 (5-0), Penn State is 7-0 (4-0) and the Buckeyes are 6-1 (3-1). A win over the Nittany Lions goes a long way, but an Ohio State loss could spell deep trouble.