DALLAS (FWAA) The Ohio State Buckeyes went into Lincoln and dominated Nebraska, 48-7, in a prime time Big Ten Conference battle that turned into a showcase for their defense, led by Justin Fields and J.K. Dobbins. For rolling from the outset and pushing Dobbins past the 3,000-yard career rushing mark, the Buckeyes earned the Reveal Suits National Team of the Week honor for games of the weekend of Sept. 28.
The announcement came on "Playbook on ESPNU Radio on SiriusXM. Each Monday during the season the Reveal Suits National Team of the Week will be unveiled during the program, which airs weekdays from 1-4 p.m. ET. The FWAA's All-America Committee selects the weekly winner and all Division I FBS and FCS schools are eligible to be selected.
This is the fifth time for Ohio State (5-0) to win the FWAA's National Team of the Week honor. The Buckeyes also won in this same week last season following a 27-26 win at Penn State.
Fields accounted for four touchdowns at quarterback and Dobbins had a third straight standout performance with 177 rushing yards. But more telling of the Buckeyes domination was their defense, which intercepted three passes in the first half and held the Huskers to 231 total yards.
Ohio State outgained Nebraska 154-67 in the first quarter as Dobbins had 64 yards on 10 carries while Fields completed 5-of-6 passes for 61 yards. The Buckeyes third interception of the first half · this one by Jordan Fuller at midfield · led to a short touchdown run by Master Teague, who added another shortly after to give Ohio State a 31-0 lead with 5:42 before halftime. Ohio State outgained Nebraska 378-76 in the first half and gained 230 rushing yards while Fields was 10-of-15 passing for 148 yards and accounted for three touchdowns.
It's great. I still feel like we've got a lot of people doubting us but that's out of our control," Ohio State safety Jordan Fuller said. "All we can do is control how we play on Saturdays and so far, we've done a pretty good job of that. We always work so hard during the week, so I always say that Saturdays are paydays and we definitely collected a check."
The other National Team of the Week nominees for the weekend of Sept. 28 were:
Arizona State (4-1): The Sun Devils held Cal to just 11 total fourth-quarter yards, forcing a pair of turnovers on downs in the final five minutes to seal a second upset of a ranked team on the road this season, this time taking down No. 15 Cal, 24-17. Eno Benjamin rushed for three touchdowns, including the go-ahead score in the fourth quarter Friday night.
Duke (3-1): The Blue Devils scored 31 straight points to whip Virginia Tech on the road, 45-10, in Friday's ACC opener, posting their largest winning margin in the series since 1951. Quarterback Quentin Harris finished 20-of-27 for 163 yards and two touchdowns and added another 100 rushing yards and a touchdown.
SMU (5-0): The Mustangs zoomed to a 41-0 lead early in the second half and won their AAC opener, 48-21, at USF to move to 5-0 for the first time since 1983. Shane Buechele was 21-of-25 for 226 yards and three touchdowns, while Xavier Jones ran 15 times for 155 yards and two first-quarter touchdowns that set the tone. The SMU defense had a school-record 10 sacks in the game.
The Football Writers Association of America has named a national team of the week since the 2002 season. In addition to the members of the FWAA All-America Committee, one fan vote from Twitter decides the weekly honor.
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Founded in 1941, the Football Writers Association of America consists of 1,400 men and women who cover college football.
The membership includes journalists, broadcasters and publicists, as well as key
executives in all the areas that involve the game. The FWAA works to govern areas
that include game-day operations, major awards and its annual All-America team.
For more information about the FWAA and its award programs, contact Steve Richardson
at tiger@fwaa.com.