By Danielle Daniels
Buckeyes are coming off their second bye weekend of the season
COLUMBUS, Ohio — Ohio State safety Lathan Ransom and five other Buckeyes have been ruled unavailable against Nebraska.
See the full availability report below:
Questionable
N/A
Out
Kacmarek, Will
Ransom, Lathan
Scott, Aaron
Stocksdale, Reis
Caffey, Timothy (out for the season)
Simmons, Josh (out for the season)
FIRST AND TEN
- No. 4 Ohio State, 5-1 overall and 2-1 in the Big Ten Conference, looks to rebound from its one-point loss at No. 2 Oregon Oct. 12 when it hosts Nebraska (5-2 and 2-2 Big Ten) Saturday at noon in Ohio Stadium. FOX will televise the game to a national audience.
- This is the first meeting between the two tradition rich programs in three years, or since Ohio State claimed a 26-17 victory in 2021 at Memorial Stadium in Lincoln, Neb.
- This weekend is the 112th Homecoming at Ohio State. Archie Griffin, in this 50th Anniversary year of winning his first Heisman Trophy, is Grand Marshall of the Homecoming Parade.
- Ohio State’s 2014 College Football Playoff national championship team, coached by Urban Meyer, will celebrate its 10-year anniversary this weekend, including on-field recognition.
- The game will feature two Top 20 defenses. Ohio State is second in total defense at 251.3 yards per game and Nebraska is 18th at 304.3 yards per game. The “D’s” will match up against Buckeye and Cornhusker offenses that produce 503.0 and 370.3 yards per game, respectively.
- The teams will play next in consecutive years: 2026 in Lincoln and 2027 in Columbus.
BY THE NUMBERS
177.82: Will Howard is having a terrific season. He is fourth nationally in passing efficiency with a 177.82 rating, third in completion percentage (73.3), 21st in TD passes (14) and 21st in yards per game (262.3).
2006: Ryan Day was a 27-year-old wide receivers coach at Temple University in 2006 under Al Golden, the same year that Nebraska head coach Matt Rhule was a 31-year-old defensive line coach for the Owls.
26-26: Ohio State’s offense has scored on all 26 trips into the opponents red zone – only five nationally are at 100 pct. this season – with 24 touchdowns (92 pct.), including 14 rushing TDs and 10 passing TDs.
Top 5: Since Ryan Day took over as head coach in 2019, he has coached Ohio State in 67 games and his Buckeyes have been ranked in the national polls as a Top 5-or-higher team in 57 of those games.
OHIO STATE VS. NEBRASKA
- Ohio State has won seven consecutive games in the series since losing in Lincoln in 2011, 34-27, and holds a 9-1 advantage in wins.
- Coaches in that 2011 game: Luke Fickell and Bo Pelini.
- Eight of the 10 all-time meetings between Ohio State and Nebraska have been played since the Cornhuskers joined the Big Ten Conference for the 2011 season.
- The teams initially met back-to-back in 1955 and 1956 with both games played at Ohio Stadium.
- This is the seventh game in Ohio Stadium between the teams with Ohio State winning the previous six.
- Since that 2011 loss to Nebraska, Ohio State has scored 333 points in the seven games (47.5 ppg) and allowed 127 points (18.1).
- It’s no fun to remember or bring up, but Ohio State and Nebraska opened the COVID-19 pandemic-altered 2020 season on Oct. 24 in Columbus. The Buckeyes won 52-17 behind a 276-yard effort from Justin Fields, who completed 20 of 21 passes.
MORE GAME NOTES
- The game will feature two of the winningest programs in college football history.
- Ohio State is third – one win behind Alabama – with 969 all-time wins while Nebraska is eighth with 922.
- The two programs have combined for 85 conference championships, 10 Heisman Trophies and 13 national championships.
OHIO STATE TODAY
- The Buckeyes came through the first half of their schedule, which included two off weeks, with a 5-1 record and wins over Michigan State and Iowa before the loss Oct. 12 vs. Oregon.
- Offensively, the team is No. 6 nationally in both total offense (503.0) and scoring (43.5) and it has a 100 percent scoring rate inside the red zone.
- Defensively, Ohio State is second nationally in total defense (251.3), third in scoring defense (11.0) and sixth vs. the rush (86.3).
HOWARD’S LAST TWO GAMES
- Will Howard has been on fire the past two games, completing 81.6 pct. of his passes (49 of 60) for 535 yards with six touchdowns and one interception.
- He completed 84 pct. of his passes against Iowa; 80 pct. vs. Oregon.
- The last time an Ohio State quarterback topped an 80 pct. completion percentage in back-to-back games: C.J. Stroud in 2021 vs. Michigan State (91.4 pct.) and Purdue (81.6 pct.). Justin Fields is the last Ohio State QB with three consecutive games completing at least 80 pct.: in 2020 vs. Nebraska (98.2 pct.), Penn State (82.3 pct.) and Rutgers (85.7 pct.).
COURTESY OHIO STATE ATHLETIC COMMUNICATIONS
