It’s Bucks against Ducks in the championship.
From the Columbus Dispatch.
In the victorious locker room, Ohio State players wore T-shirts that read “WON NOT DONE.”
Tyvis Powell clutched the football that he intercepted to clinch the Buckeyes’ gripping 42-35 Sugar Bowl victory over top-ranked Alabama in the College Football Playoff semifinals.
Michael Bennett and Adolphus Washington consented to an interview only if they did it together, such is their bond in the middle of the Ohio State defensive line.
Such is the bond among the entire team, and how necessary it’s been for a team that has become the embodiment of resilience.
A team that has lost two star quarterbacks this season, that fell behind 21-6 to the preeminent program in college football, that made the ending heart-wrenching after it seemingly had the game in hand, is now a victory over Oregon away from winning the national championship.
The Buckeyes (13-1) will play the Ducks on Jan. 12 in suburban Dallas. Ohio State will be underdogs again. They will not care a whit.
On a day in which the Big Ten reasserted its strength with stirring victories by Michigan State and Wisconsin in premier games, Ohio State came through with the biggest.
“That was a sledgehammer game,” Buckeyes coach Urban Meyer said. “That was a classic.”
No one would disagree.
It was a game that had almost everything. Momentum shifts that left one team staggering and then the other. Record-breaking performances. A razzle-dazzle touchdown by Ohio State. Even the punters — Ohio State’s Cameron Johnston and Alabama’s JK Scott — were worth the hefty price of admission.
The Buckeyes dominated the game statistically in the first half but were thwarted by two turnovers and the inability to score touchdowns twice when they had first-and-goal near the Alabama goal line.
When Alabama converted those turnovers into touchdowns and added another on its one sustained drive of the first half to take a 15-point lead, the Buckeyes looked on the verge of being knocked out.
Instead, Ohio State showed the resolve it has had all year. The Buckeyes scored two touchdowns in the final three minutes of the first half. The first came on a 3-yard run by Ezekiel Elliott, who broke the Sugar Bowl rushing record with 230 yards against a defense that had yielded only 88 yards a game on the ground this season.
……The second TD came on some trickery. Jalin Marshall took the handoff from quarterback Cardale Jones and gave it to Evan Spencer. The wide receiver then threw to tightly covered Michael Thomas, who leaped and barely kept his foot inbounds for a touchdown with 12 seconds left in the half.
The Buckeyes continued their momentum to start the second half. Jones, who had been shaky early in his second career start, connected on a 47-yard touchdown pass to Devin Smith to put Ohio State ahead for the first time since it led 3-0.
Then defensive end Steve Miller made the biggest defensive play of the game. He dropped back in coverage, read the eyes of Alabama quarterback Blake Sims, made the easy interception and returned it 41 yards for a touchdown.
But Alabama hasn’t been the country’s dominant team in recent years for no reason. Derrick Henry caught a middle screen and ran for a 52-yard score. Four plays later, Sims ran for a 5-yard touchdown.
Ohio State’s offense, saddled by terrible field position all game because of Scott’s punts, had done little since early in the third quarter. When the Buckeyes got the ball with four minutes left, they were desperate need of a big play. They got it. Elliott found a hole opened by blocks from Spencer and left guard Billy Price and ran for an 85-yard touchdown.
Up 14 with 3:24 left after Smith caught a two-point conversion pass, the Buckeyes should have felt secure.
Alabama needed only 77 seconds to score, with star receiver Amari Cooper catching his second touchdown pass of the game.
When Spencer recovered the onside kick, Ohio State should have felt secure with Alabama having only two timeouts.
Meyer called for a deep pass to Spencer that fell incomplete.
“It was my call to throw it down the field,” Meyer said, explaining that Alabama stacked the line and was vulnerable deep. “Maybe it wasn’t the right call. So I just kept thinking I screwed this up.”
The Buckeyes punted, giving Alabama one last chance. The Crimson Tide moved the ball to the 42 with 8 seconds left. Sims threw a Hail Mary into the end zone, and Powell intercepted the pass to clinch it.
The Buckeyes were underdogs when they faced Michigan State. They won 49-37.
The Buckeyes were underdogs when they faced Wisconsin. They won 59-0.
The Big Ten had some strong showings this year, indicating that the gap between them and the SEC powerhouses is closing. I’ve always maintained that in order for the Big 10 to gain credibility they will have to play and defeat SEC teams with consistency. The only way to settle the debate is to have more scheduled games between the major conferences and for Ohio State to prove they have the ability to play well and win consistently no matter the opponent. This year they did.
Now they’re underdogs against Oregon in the championship. They beat Oregon in the 2010 Rose Bowl 26-17.
We’ll see what happens on 12 January.
OH-IO!! Go Buckeyes!