Nebraska Football: What We Learned from the Ohio State Game

Nebraska won a hard-fought battle Saturday night against the Ohio State University, 34-27.

The Cornhuskers looked like two different teams as they overcame a 21-point deficit to beat Ohio State. The team looked terrible in the first half. It was missing tackles and having a hard time blocking the Ohio State defenders.

In the second half, Nebraska corrected its mistakes and put pressure on the Ohio State quarterback, and the Huskers offense was able to dominate the game.

While I think the improvement on defense had more to do with Ohio State quarterback Braxton Miller being injured and replaced by Joe Bauserman than it had to do with coach Bo Pelini making adjustments, it was still good to see the Blackshirts make plays on defense.

So, now that the Ohio State game is in the books, it is time to look at what was learned from the game.

Nebraska does not give up

Nebraska has been playing football for 120 years, and on Saturday night the Cornhuskers were able to do something that no other Nebraska football team had ever accomplished. Nebraska overcame a 21-point deficit to beat the Ohio State Buckeyes.

In order to dig out of such a large hole, Nebraska needed a team who believed in each other and believed they could overcome the adversity in front of them.

Like most Cornhusker fans, I wrote Nebraska off at halftime. I did not believe the Cornhuskers had what it took to win the game. Nebraska proved me wrong.

This win could be a turning point in the 2011 season. I have seen it many times in sports when a team hits rock bottom and then finds a way to climb out; their season turns around and everything points back to the time when the team was at the bottom. I think many people will be pointing at the Ohio State game as the turning point in Nebraska’s season.

Taylor Martinez is Nebraska’s best quarterback

Taylor Martinez might have played his best game of the season Saturday night. The only other game that would come close would be the first Washington game last year.

Martinez was beat up in the press last week, and I must admit I was one of the people who wrote that Martinez needed to be bench. Martinez shut me and his other critics up Saturday night with a great performance on the field. I own Martinez an apology, and I look forward to seeing what he does the rest of the season.

Martinez completed his first 10 passes of the game. While the Nebraska offense had a hard time getting going in the first half, I do not believe the problems were Martinez’s fault. The blocking was horrible. Nebraska was getting beat at the line of scrimmage, forcing Martinez into some bad plays.

Martinez also proved that he can learn from his mistakes. In the Wisconsin game, Martinez had many open receivers in the flat to which he could have half-dumped off the ball. Instead he tried to make plays with his feet or force balls to covered wide receivers. Saturday night, Martinez used his check down receivers beautifully. Martinez would look down the field, and if no one was open he would throw the ball to running back Rex Burkhead in the flat. One of these passes went for a 30-yard touchdown.

Martinez looked like a much-improved quarterback Saturday night. Hopefully the bye week will give him an opportunity to grow even more.

Nebraska’s biggest problem is its coaching staff

I hate to criticize the coaching staff because they have one of the toughest jobs in sports, but come on…the first half of the Ohio State game was embarrassing.

Everyone knew that Ohio State could not pick up a blitz. Everyone except the Nebraska coaching staff. While every team that had played Ohio State this season brought pressure to force Ohio State into bad plays, Nebraska used its front four to try to create pressure and played man-to-man defense in the secondary. It did not work.

The announcers on the ABC telecast were begging Nebraska to blitz more during the game. Nebraska stuck to its game plan, though, and Ohio State ran all over the Blackshirts defense.

My question is this: If everyone in the country knew how to stop Ohio State, how is it that Nebraska's coach, who is supposed to be a defensive genius, could not figure it out?

The Nebraska coaching staff did make one great decision in the game. Cornerback Stanley Jean-Baptiste was put into the game and came up with a game-changing interception. It was great to see Nebraska make a play in the secondary, and I think Jean-Baptiste will be a star for the rest of the season, but what took our coaching staff so long to figure out this player was so good?

The best thing Nebraska can do during the bye week is to figure out what combination of players needs to be in the game. Whether it is in the secondary or on the offensive line, Nebraska needs to find a unit it can trust the remainder of the season. If the problem with the Cornhuskers continues to be in the coaching staff, it may be a long November for Nebraska fans.

Nebraska still cannot stop a mobile quarterback

Once again Nebraska proved it cannot stop a mobile quarterback. If Ohio State’s quarterback, Braxton Miller, had not been injured, Nebraska probably would not have won the game.

Miller completed 5-of-9 passes for 95 yards and a touchdown. Where he did most of his damage was with his legs. Miller ran for 91 yards on only 10 attempts in the first two-and-a-half quarters of play.

Nebraska’s inability to stop a mobile quarterback does not make its future look too bright. Two of the most mobile quarterbacks in the Big Ten Conference are coming up on Nebraska’s schedule. Northwestern’s Dan Persa and Michigan’s Denard Robinson are known for making plays with their feet. If the Huskers are unable to figure out a way to contain mobile quarterbacks, they will find a couple more loses on their record.

Looking forward

Nebraska has a bye next week, and it could not have come at a better time for the Cornhuskers.

Nebraska needs to fine-tune its offense and analyze its defense to see what is wrong with the Blackshirts. Nebraska will not win many games playing defense like they did against Wisconsin and in the first half against Ohio State.

After the bye week, Nebraska plays Minnesota. The Gophers are by far the worst team in the Big Ten Conference. Nebraska should have no problem beating up on them. The Cornhuskers can use that game as another practice to get ready for their tough November schedule.

Nebraska overcame a lot of adversity Saturday night. Let’s see if the Huskers build upon what they learned from the Ohio State game or if they continue to struggle. Hopefully the Cornhuskers turn into the team everyone expected them to be at the beginning of the season.