SEEING BIG RED

BUCKEYES HEAD TO HOSTILE NEBRASKA FOR FIRST REAL TEST

Keys for Ohio State

Keep the offense rolling: Ohio State has cruised through its four games without breaking much of a sweat. The Buckeyes trounced Miami University 76-5 last week, rolling up 601 yards to 130 for the RedHawks. Justin Fields passed for four touchdowns and ran for two more, giving him 13 TD passes and six scoring runs this season without a turnover. He is completing 69.5% of his passes, and eight different receivers have caught touchdown passes.

Start stronger: It’s difficult to nitpick when a team is outscored by 71 points, but the Buckeyes did have slight flaws in the early going against Miami. Ohio State’s defense

struggled some with Miami’s up-tempo offense, which kept the Buckeyes off-balance. Miami totaled 113 yards in the first quarter but Ohio State allowed the RedHawks only 17 yards the rest of the way.

Keys for Nebraska

Minimize miscues: The Cornhuskers have struggled with consistency, as evidenced by last week’s win at Illinois. Nebraska prevailed 42-38 but trailed by two scores as late as the third quarter and committed four turnovers. The Fighting Illini capitalized on many of the mistakes, especially a second-quarter fumble by Dedrick Mills on the Nebraska 2-yard line. Illinois scored on the next play.

Let Martinez lead:

Nebraska quarterback Adrian Martinez blamed himself for the near-loss to Illinois, but when the Cornhuskers needed a spark, the sophomore delivered. He completed 22 of 34 passes for 327 yards and three touchdowns and added 118 yards rushing on 19 carries to propel the Nebraska offense.

Prediction

Ohio State 42, Nebraska

21: The Cornhuskers had their hands full with Illinois, so it’s hard to imagine them hanging with Ohio State for long. OSU’s potent offense will receive its biggest test of the season, but once the Buckeyes find their footing they should take control.

[JAY LAPRETE/THE ASSOCIATED PRESS] Ohio State quarterback Justin Fields.