On Saturday afternoon the Ohio State Buckeyes squared off against the Nebraska Cornhuskers in what promised to be a much closer contest than in previous years between these two teams.
Matt Rhule’s Huskers program is on the rise after nearly three decades of languishing in the bottom of the pack. The revamped Nebraska team looked very much like a contender for the majority of the game, even taking the lead early in the fourth quarter.
A Dante Dowdell touchdown run and Dylan Raiola pass to Nate Boerkircher for a two-point conversion gave Nebraska a 17-14 lead with just under 11 minutes to play. Will Howard and the Ohio State offense answered with a touchdown of their own to retake the lead 21-17 with just over six minutes to play.
With 3:36 to play in the fourth quarter, Nebraska had one last opportunity to take win the game. The drive started with an offensive pass interference play before one of the most controversial plays of the season.
Raiola completed a pass to Jahmal Banks, but the play was broken up by Ohio State’s Arvell Reese with a nasty hit. Unfortunately for Reese, the officials determined that targeting took place and, after a review, he was ejected from the contest.
Here’s the play.
Ohio State is called for targeting on this play
Nebraska’s offense stays on the field, trailing 21-17 with 3:14 to go in the 4th pic.twitter.com/D5mNZVskr9
— FOX College Football (@CFBONFOX) October 26, 2024
Fans were furious with the call on the field, but it didn’t end up coming back to bite Ohio State. Just a few plays later, Raiola threw a game-ending interception to give the Buckeyes the win.
What do you think of the call?
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