Going into Saturday’s game against Nebraska, Ohio State remained a fringe playoff contender in spite of several things: its blowout loss to Purdue two weeks ago, its coach’s health issues, its No. 10 ranking that left the door open to sneak back into the top four. After a 36–31 victory in which the Buckeyes trailed a two-win Cornhuskers team for more than a quarter, it may be time to adust that ceiling downward. Nebraska started the year 0–6 and had fired off two straight wins over Minnesota and then Bethune-Cookman before giving the Buckeyes all they could handle in Columbus. This is not a team Urban Meyer’s machine should have been threatened by. In the eyes of the College Football Playoff selection committee, there are such things as acceptable losses, whether they are flukes under strange circumstances or near-misses against elite opponents. There are also bad wins. For the Buckeyes,…
Continue Reading: Ohio State Escapes Its Latest Sloppy Performance as Bigger Problems Persist
