Anthony Colandrea produced eight of Nebraska's twelve explosive plays
What actually decided Nebraska's win over Ohio — beyond the final score.
There was no drama to speak of. Nebraska dismantles Ohio, 49-21 at Memorial Stadium (Lincoln, NE). Ohio drew level at 7-7 before Nebraska pulled away for good. Anthony Colandrea threw for 275 yards on 32 attempts with three touchdowns and ran 10 times for 23 yards and one score.
Cumulative margin after each quarter (lead change). Above the line = OHIO ahead, below = NEBR ahead.
The big plays only went one way
Nebraska produced 12 plays of 15+ yards to Ohio's 5: Anthony Colandrea (involved in 8), Jamal Rule (involved in 4) and Mekhi Nelson (involved in 2). Nebraska scored on 64% of its drives to Ohio's 33%, chiefly Anthony Colandrea (24 pts), Jamal Rule (18 pts) and Mekhi Nelson (12 pts). Stacked together, that is what turned a close game into this one.
How the two sides actually played on the night.
The difference-makers
Anthony Colandrea threw for 275 yards on 32 attempts with three touchdowns and ran 10 times for 23 yards and one score, including two of them from inside the 20, six third-down conversions and a hand in eight plays of 15 yards or more. Jamal Rule ran 15 times for 122 yards and two scores and caught two passes for 47 yards, one of them for a touchdown — two of them from inside the 20, four third-down conversions and a hand in four plays of 15 yards or more. Mekhi Nelson ran 10 times for 64 yards and one score and caught two passes for 65 yards, one of them for a touchdown. For Ohio, Nick Poulos threw for 164 yards on 31 attempts with one touchdown and ran 10 times for 70 yards and one score, including two of them from inside the 20, four third-down conversions and a hand in four plays of 15 yards or more. Riley Neer caught six passes for 104 yards, one of them for a touchdown — that score from inside the 20 and two third-down conversions. Victor Rosa ran five times for 7 yards and caught one pass for 5 yards. Rex Guthrie was the disruptive one for Nebraska: 1 INT, 3 tackles.
What Ohio has to fix
Ohio was not without production. Nick Poulos threw for 164 yards on 31 attempts with one touchdown and ran 10 times for 70 yards and one score, but it arrived in a game that was already gone.
The defensive story
Two names to keep: Rex Guthrie (1 INT, 3 tackles) for Nebraska and R.Van (1 sack, 1 TFL, 2 tackles) for Nebraska. 3 of Nebraska's 3 sacks came from the defensive line — a change from the 63% it had averaged over the previous 8 seasons.
The takeaway
Historically similar games since 2019 — close margin, both offenses held far below norm — and how often that offense outperformed this level the following week.
Nebraska did exactly what a better team should against Ohio: leave no doubt. Nick Poulos was responsible for 12 of Ohio's points; there was not enough behind him.
Discussion
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