Snap Judgments: Buckeyes pull out another win without best effort at Nebraska
LINCOLN, Neb. — The Ohio State bracket isn’t busted.
It was bent, bruised and nearly broken by another challenging test out to the Big Ten West.
But the title hopes of the Buckeyes remained fully intact on a sleepy Saturday afternoon at Memorial Stadium after surviving with a 26-17 win over Nebraska.
Ohio State was clearly not at its best, and it will once again have some difficult questions to answer after not playing to its potential for the second week in a row. But both of those outings still produced victories, keeping the Buckeyes squarely in position to reach all of its goals heading into the middle of November.
Bottom line: Ohio State is winning ugly, and it won’t feel particularly good about it — but that beats the alternative.
That’s where the instant analysis begins at Lettermen Row as the four-time defending champions escaped Lincoln and a stiff test from Nebraska.
Ohio State offense still trying to find momentum again in key situations
The same offense that made it look routine to score on every single possession has hit a rut, and it’s hard to figure out exactly what’s causing that for Ohio State. There is plenty of blame to go around depending on the situation, so it’s likely not a simple fix. The first-quarter game plan was baffling. C.J. Stroud made some shaky decisions early against Nebraska. The run-blocking was still not up to the program’s standards, and one potential touchdown slipped away thanks to another drop by tight end Jeremy Ruckert. The Buckeyes don’t have to be perfect to win games thanks to their huge talent advantage, but they are going to need to be much closer to stay unbeaten in the Big Ten.
Tyreke Smith is borderline unblockable for Buckeyes
If the official stats tracked the number of holding penalties drawn, Tyreke Smith could easily lead the nation. Of course, that might actually require the officials to throw a flag when the dynamic defensive end is getting mauled on the way to the quarterback. Smith still occasionally winds up with his sack either way, and his strong surge after returning from a September concussion has been a sight to behold. With sacks in three straight games, Smith is starting to live up the first-round NFL Draft projections and is making the Buckeyes a true nightmare up front.
Jaxon Smith-Njigba has become indispensable for Ohio State
There was a noticeable dip in explosiveness on offense without Garrett Wilson available. But Jaxon Smith-Njigba did everything in his power to make up for that loss, and he continues to prove himself as perhaps the most important cog in the system. The sophomore receiver was close to unstoppable for the Buckeyes, even though it appeared at times like he was laboring with some sort of injury. His ridiculous move and sprint down the sideline for a long first-half touchdown was the only real glimpse at the kind of high-powered attack Ohio State had shown for most of the season. Ultimately, though, the Buckeyes are just going to need to find a way to balance that out with a consistent ground game.
