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Ohio State home cooking? OSU benefitted from several questionable calls vs. Nebraska

Paul Harvey

By Paul Harvey

Published:

Ohio State survived a major scare in Week 9 as Nebraska pushed the Buckeyes to the limit. However, some fans believe things could have been much different than the 21-17 win by OSU if not for the officials.

Of course, the officiating is a hot topic after many close games. The same thing happened after Ohio State’s close road loss to Oregon, especially as it relates to a weak pass interference call on Jeremiah Smith and Dan Lanning utilizing a 12-men loophole to work the clock to his advantage. (Though Lanning’s tactic was admittedly legally working the system prior to a swift NCAA rule change.)

Still, one Nebraska fan compiled a clip of the perceived misses from Saturday’s game, and some of the calls are jarring.

The clip begins with Matt Rhule getting flagged for unsportsmanlike conduct from a play against Purdue for slamming his headset down. That play is referenced because Ryan Day did the same thing while on the field after a review went against the Buckeyes.

Day was flagged but instead of a penalty, the head coach was only awarded his first sideline warning of the game. The FOX booth was beside themselves at that decision with the announcers expecting the unsportsmanlike conduct penalty on Day for his location on the field.

A large portion of the clip is devoted to pass interference calls that can be debated to no end, but a glaring issue on Nebraska’s final series before the half draws particular attention. At one point, the Huskers appeared to be safely across the line to gain by at least a yard but was later spotted short of the line to gain.

With just one timeout, that spot let a lot of time slip away and ultimately led to Nebraska settling for a long field goal at the break.

So, was Ohio State the benefactor of some major home cooking in Week 9, or is this just a one-sided example of Nebraska getting upset that the Huskers could not close out a big game on the road? That, of course, is up for the viewer to decide.

Here’s the full clip of questionable calls involved in Saturday’s game:

Paul Harvey

Paul is a lifelong fan and student of all things college football. He has been covering college football since 2017 and the B1G since 2018.