Why the Ohio State football team needs a statement win next weekend

The Ohio State football team had this weekend off. It was needed after they fell to Oregon for their first loss of the season. The Buckeyes didn't look like the dominant team that they had all season long prior to that game. Still, it was just a one-point loss on the road at night.

Ohio State's next game is at home against Nebraska. That Nebraska team got shellacked by Indiana in a game that wasn't close at any point. We saw that the Cornhuskers are not a good team and that Dylan Raiola isn't ready to play against really good teams.

This is an extremely important game for the Buckeyes. Why is it so important? Because they need to show that they are angry about what happened against Oregon. They need to put out a statement win that shows Ohio State football fans that they have fixed the issues that plagued them in Eugene.

The Ohio State football team needs a statement win vs. Nebraska

The Ohio State Buckeyes need to show that they can play better defense than they did against the Ducks. Their pass defense got torched in that game. Denzel Burke, in particular, got burned multiple times. He needs to know that he's not as bad as he was in that game.

A statement win would assuage some of the fears that Ohio State football fans have. Everyone is worried about the defense and Ryan Day getting out-coached. A massive win over the Huskers would show that this team is still really good and they are still national championship contenders.

I do think that's going to happen. Nebraska is not good and they've never played well at the Shoe. After a week off, I fully expect to see the Buckeyes start fast and keep their foot on the pedal throughout the game.