Nebraska (2-6, 1-4 Big Ten) at No. 8 Ohio State (7-1, 4-1, No. 10 CFP), Noon ET (FOX)
Line: Ohio State by 24.
Series record: Ohio State leads 5-1.
WHAT’S AT STAKE?
The Buckeyes look to bounce back strong after a complete collapse at Purdue two weeks ago. Coming off a bye week, they need to show that deep problems with the defense and running game have been shored up enough to make a run at the playoffs. Scott Frost’s Cornhuskers have won two in a row and will be looking to exploit the glaring weaknesses Ohio State showed against Purdue.
KEY MATCHUP
Nebraska RB Devine Ozigbo vs. Ohio State defense. Ozigbo moved up from third on the depth chart to starter three games into the season. He rushed 11 times for 110 yards, including a 14-yard touchdown to open the scoring in Saturday’s 45-9 win over Bethune-Cookman, and sat out the second half. The Ohio State defense has some large holes and at times had trouble even getting their hands on Purdue’s skill players.
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Nebraska: QB Adrian Martinez. The freshman threw for 213 yards Saturday to increase his season passing total to 1,656 yards and set a Nebraska freshman record.
Ohio State: Dwayne Haskins Jr. Haskins has carried the Ohio State offense and, despite some errant first-half throws against Purdue, logged a school-record 470 passing yards. He’s considered a leading Heisman Trophy candidate.
FACTS & FIGURES
Nebraska has four 500-yard offensive games this season. It has not had five 500-yard total offense games in a season since 2000. ... Nebraska is averaging 86.3 more total yards this season than it did last year, helping the Huskers climb 69 spots in the national rankings from 87th in 2017 to 18th this season. ... Ohio State WR K.J. Hill is coming off back-to-back 100-yard receiving games. ... Ohio State RB J.K. Dobbins is 56 yards shy of 2,000 for his career. ... Haskins has three straight 400-yard passing games. ... Ohio State is second in nation in total offense, averaging 555 per game.
