What We Learned: Nebraska

LINCOLN, Neb. - Another Saturday, another blowout win for the Buckeyes. This was another game where Ohio State asserted their dominance over their opponent on offense, defense and special teams. It didn't matter that it was on the road, under the lights against a hyped up opponent. It didn't matter that the Buckeyes hadn't been given a serious test before this opportunity happened. All that did matter was that Ohio State, again, were able to take over every facet of the game.

While it may be difficult to surmise what we haven't already learned about this team through their first four games, there were still things that jumped out about this team against Nebraska that will be important for the Buckeyes going forward. With that said, check out what we learned this week in Ohio State's 48-7 win over Nebraska.

A lot went right for Ohio State against Nebraska, but nothing went right for anyone more than it did for Jeff Okudah. After securing his first career interception last week against Miami (Ohio), Okudah was able to make a diving catch and a catch on his back to pick off Nebraska QB Adrian Martinez two more times during Saturday's matchup.

This was a raucous crowd early in the game, and Okudah's interceptions on two of Nebraska's first three offensive drives helped to take this crowd out of the game and give the offense some peace and quiet to work with. While it seemed like Okudah may have been in the right place at the right time, putting yourself in the best place to succeed (or in this case, pick off the quarterback) is a defining trait of those players that provide an x-factor for their team.

Saturday showed that Okudah can be one of those x-factors for the Buckeyes with his ability to stall drives for opposing offenses, and with a newfound confidence after earning some highly-coveted turnovers, he's playing like a future NFL draft pick who can be a major game changer for Ohio State.

Something we already knew heading into this game was that Justin Fields can win games with his arm. He's shown the ability to make all the throws from the corner of the end zone to throws in traffic between the hashes.

While we had seen Fields take off in earlier games this season, Nebraska showed glimpses of Fields' full potential as a rushing quarterback for Ohio State. He was crafty in the pocket, not only knowing when to take off, but in extending plays with his legs that resulted in big gains for the Buckeyes. The result of this matchup wasn't in doubt past the first quarter, but Fields showed that he can makes those plays happen with his legs in moments where it will truly count for Ohio State.

With 72 rushing yards on 12 carries, this was Fields' highest rushing total of the season and arguably most impressive performance on the ground. This should give confidence to Ohio State fans and the coaching staff that with the game on the line, with the pocket collapsing around him, Fields will be able to make the big plays with his legs.

Ohio State fans had long speculated that the Buckeyes were a top team in the nation, but after Sunday's thorough dismantling of the Nebraska Cornhuskers on their own turf, it's going to be hard for anyone to deny that Ohio State is still among the upper echelon of teams in the country.

Though the Buckeyes still have not faced the best teams on their schedule yet with Wisconsin and Penn State still waiting in the wings, it is impossible to deny the performance of this team so far. It's difficult to accomplish their efficiency against air, yet every week they have put up eye-popping numbers on offense and defense. Against Nebraska, both sides of the ball were working in sync, racking up 580 yards on offense and only allowing 231 yards on defense. Special teams were converting all their kicks and doing work on returns to make big plays of their own and limit those of Nebraska's return team.

In short, this is a team firing on all cylinders right now, and in a primetime night slot on ABC, the world has now seen what the Buckeyes are capable of. We'll have to wait until Sunday to see where the Buckeyes fall in the AP Top 25 poll, it would be difficult to argue that they aren't one of the top teams in the nation.

This wasn't Master Teague's best rushing performance of the season, but it may have been the most telling for his future.

Teague finished with 77 yards on 12 carries and two touchdowns, but the most interesting part of his game was when he saw action. Four of Teague's carries came in the second quarter, and he got the ball twice in goal line situations. Though the game was already well in hand for the Buckeyes, these goal line snaps are big plays for Ohio State, and the coaching staff deemed it appropriate to put Teague in during these situations vs. J.K. Dobbins or anybody else. This speaks to the trust they have in him and how his strong performance through the first four games of the season is rewarding him with more carries and more opportunities etch out his role on this team.

Dobbins will obviously be the bell cow for the season for Ohio State, but Teague has shown himself to be a dependable option for the Buckeyes in big games like this one, and he will continue to be rewarded with more playing time and more chances to prove his worth to Ohio State.