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LGHL Ohio State opens as 1.5-point favorites over Oregon; Buckeyes have second-best title odds
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Ohio State opens as 1.5-point favorites over Oregon; Buckeyes have second-best title odds
Gene Ross via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
Photo by Jason Mowry/Getty Images
The Buckeyes are favored over the No. 1 seed in the College Football Playoff.
Ohio State came out and played its best game of the season in the first round of the College Football Playoff, silencing the Tennessee fans in attendance with a 42-17 beatdown of the Volunteers. The Buckeyes’ reward is a rematch against Oregon in the Rose Bowl on New Years Day, where they open up as slight betting favorites over the No. 1-seeded Ducks.
It’s crazy how much one football game can change the perception of an entire season for Ohio State, but that is where the Buckeyes currently stand after a blowout win over Tennessee in the first round of the College Football Playoff.
Having defeated the Volunteers 42-17 in Columbus on Saturday, Ohio State now finds itself favored over No. 1 seed Oregon in the Rose Bowl, whom they lost to in a close battle at Autzen Stadium earlier this year, 32-31. The Buckeyes opened as a 1.5-point favorite against the Ducks, and as of Sunday morning that line has moved to 2.5 points. It will be interesting to see the crowd split in Pasadena, as Oregon fans have had a long head start on ticket sales and are obviously much closer in proximity to California.
When Ohio State’s offense plays like it did against Tennessee, the are one of the most dangerous teams in college football. The Buckeyes came out with an aggressive game plan that centered around getting the ball in the hands of their best players, including Jeremiah Smith. The five-star freshman was unstoppable against the Volunteers, catching all six of his targets for 103 yards and two touchdowns. Will Howard was in complete control of the offense, completing 24-of-29 pass attempts for 311 yards and two scores.
Defensively, the Silver Bullets kept Nico Iamaleava uncomfortable and off-schedule throughout the game. The young Tennessee quarterback threw for just over 100 yards on 14-of-31 passing, and was forced to run the ball 20 times as a result of consistent pressure, netting only 47 yards. Ohio State’s defense recorded four sacks and six tackles for loss, and should have also gotten an interception if not for an incredibly questionable roughing the passer call. Overall, the Buckeyes held the Vols to 256 yards and 17 points, with 73 of those yards and seven of those points coming on their final drive against backup defenders.
Oregon, meanwhile, spent this weekend idle after defeating Penn State 45-37 in the Big Ten title game and earning a first round bye. The Ducks finished the regular season a perfect 12-0 and remain unbeaten on the year heading into the Rose Bowl, where they will face an Ohio State team that they beat at home by one point in early October.
The last time these two programs met, Dillion Gabriel had a huge game. The Heisman finalist threw for 341 yards and two touchdowns while also rushing for 32 yards and a score. The Buckeyes’ defense had no answers for Evan Stewart, who had a season-high 149 yards on seven catches with a touchdown. Oregon basically got whatever it wanted through the air and on the ground, where Jordan James rushed for 115 yards and a TD on 23 carries. The dominant showing by the Ducks led to a complete restructuring of Ohio State’s defense, so we will see if those changes are effective this time around.
Oregon’s defense did enough to get the win in Eugene, but Ohio State still managed to put up 467 yards of offense in the loss. The death knell for the Buckeyes was turnovers, with a pair of fumbles ultimately proving to be the difference in the game. That being said, Ohio State’s beat up offensive line will now have to contend with an elite defensive front, which ranks No. 1 in the Big Ten with 40 sacks. That includes Jordan Burch, who missed the previous matchup with the Buckeyes but is second on the team with 8.5 sacks, on top of guys like Derrick Harmon and Matayo Uiagalelei, who gave OSU fits last time.
They say it’s tough to beat a team twice in the same season, but Oregon is the undefeated No. 1 seed in the College Football Playoff for a reason. It feels very much like the winner of this game will ultimately go on to win the national title, regardless of whether that is the Bucks or the Ducks. These are two of the best teams in the country when they are playing up to their potential, and it should be a stellar environment as well as a super aesthetically pleasing game in one of the sport’s best venues.
As an added note, Ohio State now has the second-best odds to win the national title after its eye-opening win over Tennessee. Texas currently has the best odds at +310, largely a result of having the perceived easiest matchup in the second round against Arizona State, but the Buckeyes are right behind them at +360, followed by Oregon at +430.
I’d expect the winner of the Rose Bowl will see their odds bumped to the top.
Continue reading...
Gene Ross via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
Photo by Jason Mowry/Getty Images
The Buckeyes are favored over the No. 1 seed in the College Football Playoff.
Ohio State came out and played its best game of the season in the first round of the College Football Playoff, silencing the Tennessee fans in attendance with a 42-17 beatdown of the Volunteers. The Buckeyes’ reward is a rematch against Oregon in the Rose Bowl on New Years Day, where they open up as slight betting favorites over the No. 1-seeded Ducks.
Opening Odds: Ohio State -1.5 | O/U 54.5 (per FanDuel Sportsbook)
It’s crazy how much one football game can change the perception of an entire season for Ohio State, but that is where the Buckeyes currently stand after a blowout win over Tennessee in the first round of the College Football Playoff.
Having defeated the Volunteers 42-17 in Columbus on Saturday, Ohio State now finds itself favored over No. 1 seed Oregon in the Rose Bowl, whom they lost to in a close battle at Autzen Stadium earlier this year, 32-31. The Buckeyes opened as a 1.5-point favorite against the Ducks, and as of Sunday morning that line has moved to 2.5 points. It will be interesting to see the crowd split in Pasadena, as Oregon fans have had a long head start on ticket sales and are obviously much closer in proximity to California.
When Ohio State’s offense plays like it did against Tennessee, the are one of the most dangerous teams in college football. The Buckeyes came out with an aggressive game plan that centered around getting the ball in the hands of their best players, including Jeremiah Smith. The five-star freshman was unstoppable against the Volunteers, catching all six of his targets for 103 yards and two touchdowns. Will Howard was in complete control of the offense, completing 24-of-29 pass attempts for 311 yards and two scores.
Defensively, the Silver Bullets kept Nico Iamaleava uncomfortable and off-schedule throughout the game. The young Tennessee quarterback threw for just over 100 yards on 14-of-31 passing, and was forced to run the ball 20 times as a result of consistent pressure, netting only 47 yards. Ohio State’s defense recorded four sacks and six tackles for loss, and should have also gotten an interception if not for an incredibly questionable roughing the passer call. Overall, the Buckeyes held the Vols to 256 yards and 17 points, with 73 of those yards and seven of those points coming on their final drive against backup defenders.
Oregon, meanwhile, spent this weekend idle after defeating Penn State 45-37 in the Big Ten title game and earning a first round bye. The Ducks finished the regular season a perfect 12-0 and remain unbeaten on the year heading into the Rose Bowl, where they will face an Ohio State team that they beat at home by one point in early October.
The last time these two programs met, Dillion Gabriel had a huge game. The Heisman finalist threw for 341 yards and two touchdowns while also rushing for 32 yards and a score. The Buckeyes’ defense had no answers for Evan Stewart, who had a season-high 149 yards on seven catches with a touchdown. Oregon basically got whatever it wanted through the air and on the ground, where Jordan James rushed for 115 yards and a TD on 23 carries. The dominant showing by the Ducks led to a complete restructuring of Ohio State’s defense, so we will see if those changes are effective this time around.
Oregon’s defense did enough to get the win in Eugene, but Ohio State still managed to put up 467 yards of offense in the loss. The death knell for the Buckeyes was turnovers, with a pair of fumbles ultimately proving to be the difference in the game. That being said, Ohio State’s beat up offensive line will now have to contend with an elite defensive front, which ranks No. 1 in the Big Ten with 40 sacks. That includes Jordan Burch, who missed the previous matchup with the Buckeyes but is second on the team with 8.5 sacks, on top of guys like Derrick Harmon and Matayo Uiagalelei, who gave OSU fits last time.
They say it’s tough to beat a team twice in the same season, but Oregon is the undefeated No. 1 seed in the College Football Playoff for a reason. It feels very much like the winner of this game will ultimately go on to win the national title, regardless of whether that is the Bucks or the Ducks. These are two of the best teams in the country when they are playing up to their potential, and it should be a stellar environment as well as a super aesthetically pleasing game in one of the sport’s best venues.
As an added note, Ohio State now has the second-best odds to win the national title after its eye-opening win over Tennessee. Texas currently has the best odds at +310, largely a result of having the perceived easiest matchup in the second round against Arizona State, but the Buckeyes are right behind them at +360, followed by Oregon at +430.
I’d expect the winner of the Rose Bowl will see their odds bumped to the top.
Continue reading...
LGHL Hangout in the Holy Land: Ohio State dominates Tennessee to set up Oregon rematch
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Hangout in the Holy Land: Ohio State dominates Tennessee to set up Oregon rematch
justingolba via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
Adam Cairns/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
How were the Buckeyes able to move past the loss to Michigan and play their best game of the season?
The latest episode of Land-Grant Holy Land’s flagship podcast is here! Join LGHL personalities as they discuss Ohio State football, basketball, recruiting, and much more! Come for the hot takes. Stay for the warm ones.
Subscribe: RSS | Apple | Spotify | Google Podcasts | iHeart Radio
On the brand new episode of Hangout in the Holy Land, Justin is joined by Land-Grant Holy Land’s Managing Editor Matt Tamanini to discuss the No. 8 seed Ohio State Buckeyes dominant win in the first round of the College Football Playoffs over the No. 9 seeded Tennessee Volunteers.
How were the Buckeyes able to pull it off? And what were the key differences between this game and the loss against Michigan?
Who were the MVPs on both sides of the ball? And what can we expect moving forward into a rematch with the No. 1 seed Oregon Ducks?
To close, we discuss the 12-team College Football Playoff as a whole and quickly recap the Ohio State men’s basketball team's win over No. 4 Kentucky at Madison Square Garden.
Make sure to like and subscribe to the podcast. As always, Go Bucks!
Connect with the pod:
Twitter: @HolyLandPod
Connect with Justin Golba:
Twitter: @justin_golba
Connect with Matt Tamanini:
Online Profile: https://authory.com/MattTamanini
Continue reading...
justingolba via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
Adam Cairns/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
How were the Buckeyes able to move past the loss to Michigan and play their best game of the season?
The latest episode of Land-Grant Holy Land’s flagship podcast is here! Join LGHL personalities as they discuss Ohio State football, basketball, recruiting, and much more! Come for the hot takes. Stay for the warm ones.
Subscribe: RSS | Apple | Spotify | Google Podcasts | iHeart Radio
On the brand new episode of Hangout in the Holy Land, Justin is joined by Land-Grant Holy Land’s Managing Editor Matt Tamanini to discuss the No. 8 seed Ohio State Buckeyes dominant win in the first round of the College Football Playoffs over the No. 9 seeded Tennessee Volunteers.
How were the Buckeyes able to pull it off? And what were the key differences between this game and the loss against Michigan?
Who were the MVPs on both sides of the ball? And what can we expect moving forward into a rematch with the No. 1 seed Oregon Ducks?
To close, we discuss the 12-team College Football Playoff as a whole and quickly recap the Ohio State men’s basketball team's win over No. 4 Kentucky at Madison Square Garden.
Make sure to like and subscribe to the podcast. As always, Go Bucks!
Connect with the pod:
Twitter: @HolyLandPod
Connect with Justin Golba:
Twitter: @justin_golba
Connect with Matt Tamanini:
Online Profile: https://authory.com/MattTamanini
Continue reading...
LGHL The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly: Ohio State’s 42-17 win vs. Tennessee
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The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly: Ohio State’s 42-17 win vs. Tennessee
Gene Ross via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
Photo by Jason Miller/Getty Images
The Buckeyes played their best game of the season on Saturday night.
It was tough to predict which Ohio State team would show up against Tennessee in the first round of the College Football Playoff after its loss to Michigan to close out the regular season. It became instantly clear that the Buckeyes completely flushed their loss to the Wolverines and found the best version of themselves on Saturday night, dismantling the Volunteers 42-17 in Columbus to advance to the Rose Bowl.
Here is the good, the bad and the ugly from Ohio State’s victory over Tennessee.
Jeremiah Smith/Will Howard
Jeremiah Smith is the best wide receiver in college football, and he put his arsenal on full display on Saturday. The freshman, playing in his first ever College Football Playoff game, was the star of the show for the Ohio State offense. Smith caught six passes (on six targets) for 103 yards and two touchdowns, all while being matched up against All-SEC first team corner Jermod McCoy. With his performance, Smith surpassed 1,000 yards on the season, becoming only the 10th Buckeye to achieve such a feat — and the first freshman.
It was an incredibly impressive game for the 19-year-old, but it was not to be overshadowed too heavily by the play of Will Howard, who was tremendous in his own right against the Vols. After some criticisms of his play against Michigan, Howard came out and completed 24-of-29 passes for 311 yards and two touchdowns, while also rushing five times for 37 yards. It was one of Howard’s best games of the year when his team needed it most, and only the second time this season the senior has thrown for more than 300 yards.
The wide receiver-quarterback duo had it all working on a cold night in the Shoe.
Game Plan
After one of the worst game plans anyone could possibly conceive against Michigan, Ryan Day and Chip Kelly put together a nearly perfect game plan against Tennessee. Ohio State fully leaned into its strengths, getting the ball to its five-star receivers on the outside and using the passing game to set up the rushing attack. As a result, the Buckeyes put up 473 yards and 42 points against a team that hadn’t allowed more than 347 yards or 31 points all season. Ohio State also averaged an insane 7.8 yards per play.
This is Day’s offense at its best, and its something we haven’t seen from the Buckeyes in quite some time. With the injuries plaguing the offensive line, Ohio State was able to use tempo and quick passes to mitigate some of those concerns. Once Tennessee was on its heels trying to defend the pass, TreVeyon Henderson and Quinshon Judkins were then able to find some space on the ground. Ohio State as a team ran for 156 yards on 4.7 yards per carry, compared to 77 yards on 3.0 yards per carry against the Wolverines.
It does make the loss to Michigan all that more frustrating knowing that this game plan likely would have resulted in a 40-point win in The Game, but if Ohio State sticks to this ideology moving forward, they instantly become one of the most dangerous teams remaining in the College Football Playoff.
Defense
So much of the discussion on Saturday night was about the dominance of Ohio State’s offense, but the defense deserves a ton of credit as well. The Silver Bullets held a Tennessee team that averaged 35.7 points and nearly 450 yards per game to just 17 points — seven of which came in garbage time against backups — and 256 total yards, 73 of which came on the Vols’ final drive of the game.
The Buckeyes’ defense made life miserable for Nico Iamaleava, who completed only 14 of his 31 pass attempts for 104 yards and zero scores. The pass rush consistently forced Iamaleava to scramble out of the pocket and look to pick up yards with his legs, but the young QB only managed 47 yards on 20 carries while scoring both of Tennessee’s touchdowns on the ground. The Volunteers offense looked disjointed right from the get-go, and Ohio State never let them get into any sort of groove.
Overall, the Buckeyes racked up six tackles for loss and four sacks, led by J.T. Tuimoloau’s 2.5 TFLs and two sacks. Tuimoloau also forced a fumble, but it was recovered by Tennessee. On the other end, Jack Sawyer had a big game as well, tallying 1.5 sacks and 1.5 TFLs while batting down a pair of passes at the line. Cody Simon led the way in the tackles department with 12, while Ohio State’s corners did a fantastic job in coverage from start to finish with no Vols receiver eclipsing 40 yards.
Second Quarter Ref Show
For a stretch of about four minutes during the second quarter, it looked as though the officials were doing just about everything possible to try and keep Tennessee in the game.
It began when Howard fired a pass over the middle to Smith in the end zone, which was tipped into the air and “intercepted” by Tennessee’s Will Brooks. Two problems with that: Smith was being fully tackled by the defensive back while the ball was in the air but no pass interference was called, and also it was not entirely clear whether or not Brooks had a foot in bounds before controlling the football. After a super quick replay, officials determined it was in fact Tennessee ball.
On the ensuing drive, the Volunteers managed to work the ball past midfield, but Iamaleava was intercepted by Davison Igbinosun at the Ohio State 20-yard line — until he wasn’t. Kenyatta Jackson was called for roughing the passer, negating the turnover and eventually allowing Tennessee to get its first points of the game on a field goal. It was an awful call, as Jackson was only flagged because he tackled Iamaleava while the quarterback left his feet to make a pass, making the hit look much harder than it actually was.
Two bad calls changed what could have been a 28-0 Ohio State lead to a 21-3 game, and gave Tennessee a little bit of momentum before halftime. Luckily, they wouldn’t be able to maintain it into the second half.
Kirk Herbstreit
It was an awful night in the booth for the failed Ohio State quarterback, as Kirk Herbstreit spent much of the second half attacking Buckeyes fans who had an issue with their head coach losing a game to the worst Michigan team of the last several decades, calling folks with rightfully high standards for their football team the ‘lunatic fringe’ of the fanbase. It was an incredibly weird stance to take, and it was clear that it was a personal attack from a guy who had his feelings hurt by the program.
It has been a tough week for Herbstreit, who is still reeling after Ohio State’s coaching staff failed to call and congratulate his 0-star son — who did not have an offer from the Buckeyes — for committing to the program’s biggest rival. How dare Ryan Day and his staff, who were busy both preparing for a College Football Playoff game and attempting to navigate the transfer portal for next season, not take time out of their days to recognize the child of a program legend who threw five touchdowns and 11 picks in his career and went winless against Michigan.
Ohio State fans should not be attacked for wanting more from their program, and Buckeye Nation has a right to be upset after four-straight losses in The Game, especially this most recent loss to a bad Wolverines squad without its two best players. Herbstreit taking several minutes during an OSU blowout in a CFP game to attack the fanbase is a bad look for both himself and ESPN.
Narratives
It was a rough night for Tennessee fans, but maybe an even worse night for SEC fans.
All weekend long we had to listen to fans of teams like Alabama and Ole Miss — and Lane Kiffin himself — and even a large swath of national media folks whining and moaning on social media that Indiana and SMU did not deserve their spots in the playoff, only for the Volunteers to suffer an even worse loss than the Hoosiers. Tennessee, by the way, beat the Crimson Tide this season, and the Rebels lost to a 4-8 Kentucky team AND and five-loss Florida.
Strangely enough, while the talking heads spent the aftermath of the Indiana and SMU losses discussing how those teams ‘didn’t belong’ in the College Football Playoff, it doesn’t seem like that same energy exists for a Tennessee team that was a garbage-time score away from losing by 32 points in Columbus. The prevailing ideology that the SEC is this dominant conference whose 9-3 teams are just as good as 11-1 teams in other conferences comes crashing down when you watch a 10-2 SEC team gets pants’ed on national television by a Big Ten team that did not even win the B1G.
The reality of the situation is that blowouts happen, and it doesn’t take away from the impressive seasons by Indiana or SMU. Both of those programs were more than deserving of their spot in the 12-team field, and those on the outside looking in should have simply won their games if they wanted to earn the right to compete for a title. All four first-round games resulted in blowouts, but so were the majority of games in the four-team CFP, so what are we even talking about?
Maybe it was less about being ‘undeserving’ for Indiana, SMU and Tennessee and more about dominant performances for Notre Dame, Penn State and Ohio State.
Continue reading...
Gene Ross via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
Photo by Jason Miller/Getty Images
The Buckeyes played their best game of the season on Saturday night.
It was tough to predict which Ohio State team would show up against Tennessee in the first round of the College Football Playoff after its loss to Michigan to close out the regular season. It became instantly clear that the Buckeyes completely flushed their loss to the Wolverines and found the best version of themselves on Saturday night, dismantling the Volunteers 42-17 in Columbus to advance to the Rose Bowl.
Here is the good, the bad and the ugly from Ohio State’s victory over Tennessee.
The Good
Jeremiah Smith/Will Howard
Jeremiah Smith is the best wide receiver in college football, and he put his arsenal on full display on Saturday. The freshman, playing in his first ever College Football Playoff game, was the star of the show for the Ohio State offense. Smith caught six passes (on six targets) for 103 yards and two touchdowns, all while being matched up against All-SEC first team corner Jermod McCoy. With his performance, Smith surpassed 1,000 yards on the season, becoming only the 10th Buckeye to achieve such a feat — and the first freshman.
It was an incredibly impressive game for the 19-year-old, but it was not to be overshadowed too heavily by the play of Will Howard, who was tremendous in his own right against the Vols. After some criticisms of his play against Michigan, Howard came out and completed 24-of-29 passes for 311 yards and two touchdowns, while also rushing five times for 37 yards. It was one of Howard’s best games of the year when his team needed it most, and only the second time this season the senior has thrown for more than 300 yards.
The wide receiver-quarterback duo had it all working on a cold night in the Shoe.
Game Plan
After one of the worst game plans anyone could possibly conceive against Michigan, Ryan Day and Chip Kelly put together a nearly perfect game plan against Tennessee. Ohio State fully leaned into its strengths, getting the ball to its five-star receivers on the outside and using the passing game to set up the rushing attack. As a result, the Buckeyes put up 473 yards and 42 points against a team that hadn’t allowed more than 347 yards or 31 points all season. Ohio State also averaged an insane 7.8 yards per play.
This is Day’s offense at its best, and its something we haven’t seen from the Buckeyes in quite some time. With the injuries plaguing the offensive line, Ohio State was able to use tempo and quick passes to mitigate some of those concerns. Once Tennessee was on its heels trying to defend the pass, TreVeyon Henderson and Quinshon Judkins were then able to find some space on the ground. Ohio State as a team ran for 156 yards on 4.7 yards per carry, compared to 77 yards on 3.0 yards per carry against the Wolverines.
It does make the loss to Michigan all that more frustrating knowing that this game plan likely would have resulted in a 40-point win in The Game, but if Ohio State sticks to this ideology moving forward, they instantly become one of the most dangerous teams remaining in the College Football Playoff.
Defense
So much of the discussion on Saturday night was about the dominance of Ohio State’s offense, but the defense deserves a ton of credit as well. The Silver Bullets held a Tennessee team that averaged 35.7 points and nearly 450 yards per game to just 17 points — seven of which came in garbage time against backups — and 256 total yards, 73 of which came on the Vols’ final drive of the game.
The Buckeyes’ defense made life miserable for Nico Iamaleava, who completed only 14 of his 31 pass attempts for 104 yards and zero scores. The pass rush consistently forced Iamaleava to scramble out of the pocket and look to pick up yards with his legs, but the young QB only managed 47 yards on 20 carries while scoring both of Tennessee’s touchdowns on the ground. The Volunteers offense looked disjointed right from the get-go, and Ohio State never let them get into any sort of groove.
Overall, the Buckeyes racked up six tackles for loss and four sacks, led by J.T. Tuimoloau’s 2.5 TFLs and two sacks. Tuimoloau also forced a fumble, but it was recovered by Tennessee. On the other end, Jack Sawyer had a big game as well, tallying 1.5 sacks and 1.5 TFLs while batting down a pair of passes at the line. Cody Simon led the way in the tackles department with 12, while Ohio State’s corners did a fantastic job in coverage from start to finish with no Vols receiver eclipsing 40 yards.
The Bad
Second Quarter Ref Show
For a stretch of about four minutes during the second quarter, it looked as though the officials were doing just about everything possible to try and keep Tennessee in the game.
It began when Howard fired a pass over the middle to Smith in the end zone, which was tipped into the air and “intercepted” by Tennessee’s Will Brooks. Two problems with that: Smith was being fully tackled by the defensive back while the ball was in the air but no pass interference was called, and also it was not entirely clear whether or not Brooks had a foot in bounds before controlling the football. After a super quick replay, officials determined it was in fact Tennessee ball.
On the ensuing drive, the Volunteers managed to work the ball past midfield, but Iamaleava was intercepted by Davison Igbinosun at the Ohio State 20-yard line — until he wasn’t. Kenyatta Jackson was called for roughing the passer, negating the turnover and eventually allowing Tennessee to get its first points of the game on a field goal. It was an awful call, as Jackson was only flagged because he tackled Iamaleava while the quarterback left his feet to make a pass, making the hit look much harder than it actually was.
Two bad calls changed what could have been a 28-0 Ohio State lead to a 21-3 game, and gave Tennessee a little bit of momentum before halftime. Luckily, they wouldn’t be able to maintain it into the second half.
The Ugly
Kirk Herbstreit
It was an awful night in the booth for the failed Ohio State quarterback, as Kirk Herbstreit spent much of the second half attacking Buckeyes fans who had an issue with their head coach losing a game to the worst Michigan team of the last several decades, calling folks with rightfully high standards for their football team the ‘lunatic fringe’ of the fanbase. It was an incredibly weird stance to take, and it was clear that it was a personal attack from a guy who had his feelings hurt by the program.
It has been a tough week for Herbstreit, who is still reeling after Ohio State’s coaching staff failed to call and congratulate his 0-star son — who did not have an offer from the Buckeyes — for committing to the program’s biggest rival. How dare Ryan Day and his staff, who were busy both preparing for a College Football Playoff game and attempting to navigate the transfer portal for next season, not take time out of their days to recognize the child of a program legend who threw five touchdowns and 11 picks in his career and went winless against Michigan.
Ohio State fans should not be attacked for wanting more from their program, and Buckeye Nation has a right to be upset after four-straight losses in The Game, especially this most recent loss to a bad Wolverines squad without its two best players. Herbstreit taking several minutes during an OSU blowout in a CFP game to attack the fanbase is a bad look for both himself and ESPN.
Narratives
It was a rough night for Tennessee fans, but maybe an even worse night for SEC fans.
All weekend long we had to listen to fans of teams like Alabama and Ole Miss — and Lane Kiffin himself — and even a large swath of national media folks whining and moaning on social media that Indiana and SMU did not deserve their spots in the playoff, only for the Volunteers to suffer an even worse loss than the Hoosiers. Tennessee, by the way, beat the Crimson Tide this season, and the Rebels lost to a 4-8 Kentucky team AND and five-loss Florida.
Strangely enough, while the talking heads spent the aftermath of the Indiana and SMU losses discussing how those teams ‘didn’t belong’ in the College Football Playoff, it doesn’t seem like that same energy exists for a Tennessee team that was a garbage-time score away from losing by 32 points in Columbus. The prevailing ideology that the SEC is this dominant conference whose 9-3 teams are just as good as 11-1 teams in other conferences comes crashing down when you watch a 10-2 SEC team gets pants’ed on national television by a Big Ten team that did not even win the B1G.
The reality of the situation is that blowouts happen, and it doesn’t take away from the impressive seasons by Indiana or SMU. Both of those programs were more than deserving of their spot in the 12-team field, and those on the outside looking in should have simply won their games if they wanted to earn the right to compete for a title. All four first-round games resulted in blowouts, but so were the majority of games in the four-team CFP, so what are we even talking about?
Maybe it was less about being ‘undeserving’ for Indiana, SMU and Tennessee and more about dominant performances for Notre Dame, Penn State and Ohio State.
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LGHL Uncut: ‘They had a look in their eye that they were gonna win,’ Ryan Day on blowout win
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Uncut: ‘They had a look in their eye that they were gonna win,’ Ryan Day on blowout win
Matt Tamanini via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
Ryan Day, Chip Kelly, Jim Knowles, Will Howard discuss 42-17 win over Tennessee
Throughout the year, the Land-Grant Podcast Network will be bringing you uncut audio primarily from Ohio State press conferences, but also from individual interview sessions.
Listen to the episode and subscribe:
Subscribe: RSS | Apple | Spotify | iHeart Radio
On today’s episode of “Land-Grant Uncut,” we are bringing you unedited audio from the early morning, Sunday, Dec. 22 press conference following Ohio State’s 42-17 victory over the Tennessee Volunteers in the first round of the College Football Playoff. Before head coach Ryan Day started his Q&A with the assembled media, the Buckeyes were officially invited to participate in the Rose Bowl. Ohio State will next play against No. 1 Oregon in Pasadena on New Year’s Day.
Following the informal ceremony, Day discussed what it took for his team to blowout the Volunteers as convincingly as they did. He was followed at the podium by offensive coordinator Chip Kelly, defensive coordinator Jim Knowles, and starting quarterback Will Howard.
All four discussed what the last three weeks have been like following the loss to Michigan, how they turned the page, and the fact that they have a lot of football left to play this season.
Watch the full press conferences on Ohio State’s official Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/buckeyes/live_videos
Contact Matt Tamanini
Online Profile: https://authory.com/MattTamanini
Continue reading...
Matt Tamanini via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
Ryan Day, Chip Kelly, Jim Knowles, Will Howard discuss 42-17 win over Tennessee
Throughout the year, the Land-Grant Podcast Network will be bringing you uncut audio primarily from Ohio State press conferences, but also from individual interview sessions.
Listen to the episode and subscribe:
Subscribe: RSS | Apple | Spotify | iHeart Radio
On today’s episode of “Land-Grant Uncut,” we are bringing you unedited audio from the early morning, Sunday, Dec. 22 press conference following Ohio State’s 42-17 victory over the Tennessee Volunteers in the first round of the College Football Playoff. Before head coach Ryan Day started his Q&A with the assembled media, the Buckeyes were officially invited to participate in the Rose Bowl. Ohio State will next play against No. 1 Oregon in Pasadena on New Year’s Day.
Following the informal ceremony, Day discussed what it took for his team to blowout the Volunteers as convincingly as they did. He was followed at the podium by offensive coordinator Chip Kelly, defensive coordinator Jim Knowles, and starting quarterback Will Howard.
All four discussed what the last three weeks have been like following the loss to Michigan, how they turned the page, and the fact that they have a lot of football left to play this season.
Watch the full press conferences on Ohio State’s official Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/buckeyes/live_videos
Contact Matt Tamanini
Online Profile: https://authory.com/MattTamanini
Music by: www.bensound.com
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LGHL All the news, analysis from Ohio State’s 42-17 playoff win over Tennessee
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All the news, analysis from Ohio State’s 42-17 playoff win over Tennessee
Matt Tamanini via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
Photo by Jason Miller/Getty Images
All the Buckeye news thats fit to re-print.
Look, we get it. Your days are busy and you don’t have time to read all of the stories and tweets from the three dozen websites dedicated to covering Ohio State athletics, or the 237 Buckeye beat writers churning out hot takes and #content on a daily basis. But that’s ok, that’s what your friends at Land-Grant Holy Land are here for.
Monday through Friday, we’ll be collecting all of the articles, tweets, features, interviews, videos, podcasts, memes, photos, and whatever else we stumble across on the interwebz and putting them in our daily “Why is this News?” article. That way, you’ll have a one-stop shop for all of the most important Buckeye news, jokes, and analysis.
You’re welcome!
Subscribe to the Land-Grant Podcast Network for all of your Ohio State needs
Matt Tamanini, Land-Grant Holy Land
Subscribe: RSS | Apple | Spotify | iHeart Radio
Ohio State Seals a 42-17 Victory over Tennessee
Ohio State Athletics
Buckeyes rout Tennessee, advance to Rose Bowl meeting with No. 1 Oregon
Bill Rabinowitz, The Columbus Dispatch
Total Domination: Ohio State buries Tennessee 42-17 to advance in CFB Playoff
Steve Helwagen, Bucknuts
Ohio State Makes Statement, Blows Out Tennessee 42-17 in First Round of College Football Playoff
Dan Hope, Eleven Warriors
Rose Bowl-bound Buckeyes trounce Tennessee in first round of College Football Playoff
Spencer Holbrook, Lettermen Row
Ryan Day, Ohio State silence critics with dominant win against Tennessee in College Football Playoff
Cody Nagel, 247Sports
No. 8 Ohio State romps over No. 9 Tennessee 42-17, advances to College Football Playoff quarterfinals
Presser Bullets: Ryan Day Says Ohio State Came Out With a More Aggressive Game Plan, Left No Doubt Against Tennessee
Andy Anders, Eleven Warriors
Ohio State Set for Rematch with Oregon at College Football Playoff Quarterfinals at Rose Bowl
Dan Hope, Eleven Warriors
Oregon opens as slight underdog against Ohio State in Rose Bowl
James Crepea, The Oregonian
How much more did Ryan Day, staff earn with OSU’s win over Tennessee?
Joey Kaufman, The Columbus Dispatch
Josh Heupel: Buckeyes’ Skill ‘as Good As You’ll See’
11W Staff, Eleven Warriors
/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25801840/Screenshot_2024_12_22_at_7.42.38_AM.png)
Snap Judgments: Buckeyes claim dominant playoff win over Tennessee
Austin Ward, Dotting The Eyes
5 things we learned from Ohio State’s trouncing of Tennessee
Joey Kaufman, The Columbus Dispatch
Crushing Tennessee doesn’t absolve Ryan Day, but it presents a path forward
Andy Staples, On3
Ohio State Lives Up to “Leave No Doubt” Mantra in Dominant College Football Playoff Opener vs. Tennessee
Dan Hope, Eleven Warriors
Helmet Stickers: Cool quarterback, hot defense as Ohio State stomps Vols
Jeremy Birmingham, Dotting The Eyes
Buckeyes report card: How did Ohio State grade against Tennessee?
Brian White, The Columbus Dispatch
Ohio State Defensive Ends Jack Sawyer, JT Tuimoloau Post Best Combined Effort of Career Against Tennessee
Andy Anders, Eleven Warriors
Fans of the Game Tennessee
Ohio State Athletics
Continue reading...
Matt Tamanini via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
Photo by Jason Miller/Getty Images
All the Buckeye news thats fit to re-print.
Look, we get it. Your days are busy and you don’t have time to read all of the stories and tweets from the three dozen websites dedicated to covering Ohio State athletics, or the 237 Buckeye beat writers churning out hot takes and #content on a daily basis. But that’s ok, that’s what your friends at Land-Grant Holy Land are here for.
Monday through Friday, we’ll be collecting all of the articles, tweets, features, interviews, videos, podcasts, memes, photos, and whatever else we stumble across on the interwebz and putting them in our daily “Why is this News?” article. That way, you’ll have a one-stop shop for all of the most important Buckeye news, jokes, and analysis.
You’re welcome!
For your Earholes...
Subscribe to the Land-Grant Podcast Network for all of your Ohio State needs
Matt Tamanini, Land-Grant Holy Land
Subscribe: RSS | Apple | Spotify | iHeart Radio
Recapping Ohio State’s 42-17 playoff win over Tennessee
Ohio State Seals a 42-17 Victory over Tennessee
Ohio State Athletics
Buckeyes rout Tennessee, advance to Rose Bowl meeting with No. 1 Oregon
Bill Rabinowitz, The Columbus Dispatch
Total Domination: Ohio State buries Tennessee 42-17 to advance in CFB Playoff
Steve Helwagen, Bucknuts
Ohio State Makes Statement, Blows Out Tennessee 42-17 in First Round of College Football Playoff
Dan Hope, Eleven Warriors
Rose Bowl-bound Buckeyes trounce Tennessee in first round of College Football Playoff
Spencer Holbrook, Lettermen Row
Ryan Day, Ohio State silence critics with dominant win against Tennessee in College Football Playoff
Cody Nagel, 247Sports
No. 8 Ohio State romps over No. 9 Tennessee 42-17, advances to College Football Playoff quarterfinals
- Samuel Cipriani, The Lantern
News From Ohio State’s 42-17 playoff win over Tennessee
Presser Bullets: Ryan Day Says Ohio State Came Out With a More Aggressive Game Plan, Left No Doubt Against Tennessee
Andy Anders, Eleven Warriors
Ohio State Set for Rematch with Oregon at College Football Playoff Quarterfinals at Rose Bowl
Dan Hope, Eleven Warriors
Oregon opens as slight underdog against Ohio State in Rose Bowl
James Crepea, The Oregonian
How much more did Ryan Day, staff earn with OSU’s win over Tennessee?
Joey Kaufman, The Columbus Dispatch
Josh Heupel: Buckeyes’ Skill ‘as Good As You’ll See’
11W Staff, Eleven Warriors
Analyzing Ohio State’s 42-17 playoff win over Tennessee
Snap Judgments: Buckeyes claim dominant playoff win over Tennessee
Austin Ward, Dotting The Eyes
5 things we learned from Ohio State’s trouncing of Tennessee
Joey Kaufman, The Columbus Dispatch
Crushing Tennessee doesn’t absolve Ryan Day, but it presents a path forward
Andy Staples, On3
Looking at the Performances From Ohio State’s 42-17 playoff win over Tennessee
Ohio State Lives Up to “Leave No Doubt” Mantra in Dominant College Football Playoff Opener vs. Tennessee
Dan Hope, Eleven Warriors
Helmet Stickers: Cool quarterback, hot defense as Ohio State stomps Vols
Jeremy Birmingham, Dotting The Eyes
Buckeyes report card: How did Ohio State grade against Tennessee?
Brian White, The Columbus Dispatch
Ohio State Defensive Ends Jack Sawyer, JT Tuimoloau Post Best Combined Effort of Career Against Tennessee
Andy Anders, Eleven Warriors
Fans of the Game Tennessee
Ohio State Athletics
And Here It Is, Your Moment of Zen
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LGHL OHIO STATE GAMEDAY: It’s a bad day to be a Tennessee Volunteer
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OHIO STATE GAMEDAY: It’s a bad day to be a Tennessee Volunteer
Gene Ross via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
Adam Cairns/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
The Buckeyes host a first round College Football Playoff game on Saturday.
Wake up, everyone. It’s Ohio State game day!
The Buckeyes are back in action on Saturday night to host a College Football Playoff game, as Ohio State will take on Tennessee in the first round. The winner of tonight’s matchup will earn a date with Oregon in the Rose Bowl, but there is a lot more on the line for Ryan Day and company than just advancing to the next stage of the postseason. The stakes are maybe higher than ever for this staff, and the Buckeyes will need to play like it to come away victorious against the Volunteers in Columbus.
Over the past week, our talented group of writers and podcasters have put together preview pieces, analytical breakdowns, and everything in-between.
If you missed out on any of the coverage, we have you... well, covered. Below, each type of story is categorized. If you’re looking for podcasts and previews we’ve done, you can find them; if you’re looking for the betting lines and non-football topics, they are there, too.
Enjoy the day everyone. As always, Go Bucks!
Continue reading...
Gene Ross via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
Adam Cairns/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
The Buckeyes host a first round College Football Playoff game on Saturday.
Wake up, everyone. It’s Ohio State game day!
The Buckeyes are back in action on Saturday night to host a College Football Playoff game, as Ohio State will take on Tennessee in the first round. The winner of tonight’s matchup will earn a date with Oregon in the Rose Bowl, but there is a lot more on the line for Ryan Day and company than just advancing to the next stage of the postseason. The stakes are maybe higher than ever for this staff, and the Buckeyes will need to play like it to come away victorious against the Volunteers in Columbus.
Over the past week, our talented group of writers and podcasters have put together preview pieces, analytical breakdowns, and everything in-between.
If you missed out on any of the coverage, we have you... well, covered. Below, each type of story is categorized. If you’re looking for podcasts and previews we’ve done, you can find them; if you’re looking for the betting lines and non-football topics, they are there, too.
Enjoy the day everyone. As always, Go Bucks!
Podcasts
- Hangout in the Holy Land: We finally get to play some football again
- Silver Bullets: Ohio State news and Tennessee preview
- Power Two: Are you sure SMU can’t beat Penn State?
- I-80 Football Show: Can the Big Ten go 3-0 in first-round playoff games?
- In Conversation: Vegas insider Adam Burke hopes Ryan Day lets his players do their thing
Previews
- Ohio State v. Tennessee: 2024 game preview and prediction
- Life in Simulation: EA CFB 25 predicts Ohio State vs. Tennessee
- What Ohio State needs to do on both sides of the ball to beat Tennessee
Sports Betting
- Ohio State opens as 7.5-point favorites over Tennessee
- MC&J: Picks for Tennessee-Ohio State and the rest of the CFP first round
- MC&J: The next segment of non-CFP bowls features Rutgers, Syracuse, and more
Mens Basketball
- Ohio State needs more from its transfer class if they have NCAA aspirations
- Ohio State takes care of business at home, beating Valpo 95-73
- Uncut: Diebler gets emotional over Valpo roots, Homer Drew, OSU’s resiliency
- Bucketheads: Manager mania! Ohio State men’s basketball managers join the show
- Which college basketball coaches are going to end up on Santa’s naughty list?
Women’s Basketball
- No. 11 Ohio State ends home non-conference play, defeats Grand Valley State 82-57
- No. 11 Ohio State women’s basketball has complete performance over Stanford 84-59
- ‘I just couldn’t stop smiling,’ the Thierrys reflect on a matchup four years in the making
Recruiting
- No. 1 OT visits Ohio State; Buckeyes lose transfer portal target to Oregon
- Ohio State offers former Cal Poly offensive lineman
- BOOM! Minnesota offensive line transfer Phillip Daniels commits to Ohio State
- OSU interested in transfer portal TE; RB target transfers elsewhere
Ask LGHL
Other Columns
- Using CFB 25 to predict the College Football Playoff
- Ohio State’s returning draft-eligible players have just one remaining goal
- Ohio State needs double-digit transfer additions this offseason to even compete in 2025
- B1G Thoughts: Is Ohio State’s Season Already Over or Can They Bounce Back?
- Which Tennessee player are you most worried about?
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LGHL Ohio State men blow out No. 4 Kentucky 85-65 as Thornton shines at MSG
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Ohio State men blow out No. 4 Kentucky 85-65 as Thornton shines at MSG
justingolba via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
John Jones-Imagn Images
With the return of Aaron Bradshaw and Ques Glover, the Buckeyes played its most complete game of the season
The Ohio State Buckeyes (8-4, 1-1) pulled off the upset against the No. 4 Kentucky Wildcats (10-2, 0-0) 85-65 on Saturday evening in the CBS Sports Classic at the iconic Madison Square Garden.
The Buckeyes’ roster was a bit in flux after they were shorthanded earlier this week against Valparaiso when they were down four rotation players. As he was against Valpo, Meechie Johnson Jr. is still away from the team as he handles personal matters, and Colin White is still out with an injury. However, both Aaron Bradshaw and Ques Glover returned to OSU’s lineup tonight and each made an impact on the proceedings.
Ohio State's starters were Bruce Thornton, John Mobley, Micah Parrish, Sean Stewart, and Devin Royal. Kentucky starters were Andrew Carr, Amari Williams, Otega Oweh, Lamont Butler, and Jaxson Robinson.
Freshman guard John Mobley Jr. got the scoring going with a deep three-pointer to give Ohio State a 3-0 lead.
At the 17:30 mark in the first quarter, former Wildcat and current Buckeye center Aaron Bradshaw checked into the game in place of starter Sean Stewart and he made the second shot of the game for the Buckeyes off an assist from Bruce Thornton. Bradshaw then made another basket to get to four quick points, and Kentucky led 8-7 at the first media timeout.
The teams continued to trade baskets for the next 10 minutes leading to a 21-20 Kentucky lead. However, from there, the Buckeyes went on an 8-0 run to take a 28-21 lead with four minutes remaining in the first half. Bradshaw made a three-pointer to give the Buckeyes a 31-23 lead.
Buckets from Evan Mahaffey and Thornton saw the Buckeyes take a 35-25 lead. The two teams traded baskets until Ohio State took a 39-30 lead heading into halftime.
Kentucky was led by Wake Forest transfer Andrew Carr in the opening half with nine points, but the team was only 8-for-22 from the field and 2-for-10 from three-point range, which is generally the Wildcat’s strength.
Ohio State was led by Bradshaw and Thornton in the first half, with nine and eight points respectively. Bradshaw was 4-for-4 from the field off the bench in his return to play.
Ohio State held Kentucky to 30 first-half points, its lowest scoring half of the season thus far.
To start the second half, The Buckeyes went on an early run, scoring six straight points on buckets from Bradshaw, Mobley, and Royal to go up 45-30. Kentucky answered with a quick 6-0 run of its own to cut the deficit back into single digits at 45-36.
The teams then traded baskets and Ohio State took a 51-39 lead into the under-16 media timeout. Out of the break, Kentucky’s Kobe Brea — who shoots 53.6% from distance on the season, good for fourth nationally — knocked down a three-pointer.
Otega Oweh made another layup for the Wildcats and made a free throw to cut the lead to six. Oweh was only 2-for-7 from the field at this point but was 11-for-11 from the charity stripe.
Six points and a bucket from Mobley saw Ohio State go on a fast 8-1 run and take a 59-47 lead. The Buckeyes led 59-51 lead at the under-12 media timeout.
It was at that point that Thornton started to take over the game as he recorded four quick points to give Ohio State a 64-51 lead with 9:31 left in regulation. Mobley made another field goal as Ohio State went on a 7-0 run and Kentucky missed seven straight field goals. Jaxson Robinson broke the drought with a three-pointer to cut the Ohio State lead to 12 points at the under-8 timeout.
Ohio State was able to force Kentucky into fouls and was in the bonus with six minutes left in the contest. John Mobley made two free throws and Ques Glover knocked down a step-back three-point shot to give Ohio State a 73-61 lead at the under-4 timeout. Out of the timeout, Bruce Thornton made two free throws to push the lead to 75-61. At this point in the game, Kentucky was two for its last 14 from the field and 5-for-20 on layups.
Ohio State took a 79-63 lead with 1:30 left after two Bruce Thornton free throws. Ohio State made its free throws down the stretch and won the game 85-65.
Bruce Thornton led the Buckeyes with 30 points on 8-for-13 from the field, while John Mobley Jr. and Aaron Bradshaw added 15 and 11 points, respectively.
Otega Oweh finished with 21 points on 13 free throws, while Andrew Carr and Jaxson Robinson added 12 and 11 points, respectively.
The CBS Sports Classic is an annual American men’s college basketball event that began in 2014. This year’s participants include Kentucky, North Carolina, Ohio State, and UCLA.
Each team has played one game each year (except for 2021 due to COVID cancellations), and the four teams have completed a doubleheader.
Ohio State is 5-4 all-time in the CBS Sports Classic, with the 2021 matchup getting canceled due to COVID-19. The Buckeyes are 2-0 against Kentucky, 3-1 against UCLA, and 0-3 against North Carolina. North Carolina is 6-4 all-time, Kentucky is 5-5 all-time, and UCLA is 3-6 all-time.
Ohio State defeated No. 4 Kentucky 74-67 in 2015 at the Barclays Center, and No. 5 Ohio State defeated No. 6 Kentucky 71-65 in 2019 at T-Mobile Arena.
Ohio State will return to play after the Christmas Break with its final non-conference game of the season. They will host Indiana State on Sunday, Dec. 29 at 12 noon ET. on the Big Ten Network. Indiana State is 8-4 on the season.
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justingolba via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
John Jones-Imagn Images
With the return of Aaron Bradshaw and Ques Glover, the Buckeyes played its most complete game of the season
The Ohio State Buckeyes (8-4, 1-1) pulled off the upset against the No. 4 Kentucky Wildcats (10-2, 0-0) 85-65 on Saturday evening in the CBS Sports Classic at the iconic Madison Square Garden.
The Buckeyes’ roster was a bit in flux after they were shorthanded earlier this week against Valparaiso when they were down four rotation players. As he was against Valpo, Meechie Johnson Jr. is still away from the team as he handles personal matters, and Colin White is still out with an injury. However, both Aaron Bradshaw and Ques Glover returned to OSU’s lineup tonight and each made an impact on the proceedings.
Ohio State's starters were Bruce Thornton, John Mobley, Micah Parrish, Sean Stewart, and Devin Royal. Kentucky starters were Andrew Carr, Amari Williams, Otega Oweh, Lamont Butler, and Jaxson Robinson.
Freshman guard John Mobley Jr. got the scoring going with a deep three-pointer to give Ohio State a 3-0 lead.
At the 17:30 mark in the first quarter, former Wildcat and current Buckeye center Aaron Bradshaw checked into the game in place of starter Sean Stewart and he made the second shot of the game for the Buckeyes off an assist from Bruce Thornton. Bradshaw then made another basket to get to four quick points, and Kentucky led 8-7 at the first media timeout.
The teams continued to trade baskets for the next 10 minutes leading to a 21-20 Kentucky lead. However, from there, the Buckeyes went on an 8-0 run to take a 28-21 lead with four minutes remaining in the first half. Bradshaw made a three-pointer to give the Buckeyes a 31-23 lead.
Buckets from Evan Mahaffey and Thornton saw the Buckeyes take a 35-25 lead. The two teams traded baskets until Ohio State took a 39-30 lead heading into halftime.
Kentucky was led by Wake Forest transfer Andrew Carr in the opening half with nine points, but the team was only 8-for-22 from the field and 2-for-10 from three-point range, which is generally the Wildcat’s strength.
Ohio State was led by Bradshaw and Thornton in the first half, with nine and eight points respectively. Bradshaw was 4-for-4 from the field off the bench in his return to play.
Ohio State held Kentucky to 30 first-half points, its lowest scoring half of the season thus far.
To start the second half, The Buckeyes went on an early run, scoring six straight points on buckets from Bradshaw, Mobley, and Royal to go up 45-30. Kentucky answered with a quick 6-0 run of its own to cut the deficit back into single digits at 45-36.
The teams then traded baskets and Ohio State took a 51-39 lead into the under-16 media timeout. Out of the break, Kentucky’s Kobe Brea — who shoots 53.6% from distance on the season, good for fourth nationally — knocked down a three-pointer.
Otega Oweh made another layup for the Wildcats and made a free throw to cut the lead to six. Oweh was only 2-for-7 from the field at this point but was 11-for-11 from the charity stripe.
Six points and a bucket from Mobley saw Ohio State go on a fast 8-1 run and take a 59-47 lead. The Buckeyes led 59-51 lead at the under-12 media timeout.
It was at that point that Thornton started to take over the game as he recorded four quick points to give Ohio State a 64-51 lead with 9:31 left in regulation. Mobley made another field goal as Ohio State went on a 7-0 run and Kentucky missed seven straight field goals. Jaxson Robinson broke the drought with a three-pointer to cut the Ohio State lead to 12 points at the under-8 timeout.
Ohio State was able to force Kentucky into fouls and was in the bonus with six minutes left in the contest. John Mobley made two free throws and Ques Glover knocked down a step-back three-point shot to give Ohio State a 73-61 lead at the under-4 timeout. Out of the timeout, Bruce Thornton made two free throws to push the lead to 75-61. At this point in the game, Kentucky was two for its last 14 from the field and 5-for-20 on layups.
Ohio State took a 79-63 lead with 1:30 left after two Bruce Thornton free throws. Ohio State made its free throws down the stretch and won the game 85-65.
Bruce Thornton led the Buckeyes with 30 points on 8-for-13 from the field, while John Mobley Jr. and Aaron Bradshaw added 15 and 11 points, respectively.
Otega Oweh finished with 21 points on 13 free throws, while Andrew Carr and Jaxson Robinson added 12 and 11 points, respectively.
The CBS Sports Classic is an annual American men’s college basketball event that began in 2014. This year’s participants include Kentucky, North Carolina, Ohio State, and UCLA.
Each team has played one game each year (except for 2021 due to COVID cancellations), and the four teams have completed a doubleheader.
Ohio State is 5-4 all-time in the CBS Sports Classic, with the 2021 matchup getting canceled due to COVID-19. The Buckeyes are 2-0 against Kentucky, 3-1 against UCLA, and 0-3 against North Carolina. North Carolina is 6-4 all-time, Kentucky is 5-5 all-time, and UCLA is 3-6 all-time.
Ohio State defeated No. 4 Kentucky 74-67 in 2015 at the Barclays Center, and No. 5 Ohio State defeated No. 6 Kentucky 71-65 in 2019 at T-Mobile Arena.
What’s Next
Ohio State will return to play after the Christmas Break with its final non-conference game of the season. They will host Indiana State on Sunday, Dec. 29 at 12 noon ET. on the Big Ten Network. Indiana State is 8-4 on the season.
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LGHL Ohio State’s outcome against the Vols depends on which version of Ryan Day shows up
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Ohio State’s outcome against the Vols depends on which version of Ryan Day shows up
Matt Tamanini via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
Adam Cairns/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
Will it be scared, turtle Ryan Day or aggressive, angry Ryan Day?
If you’ve seen “Avengers: Infinity War,” you know that there is a near-infinite set of outcomes for any given situation. Fortunately for the fate of the world, Dr. Strange was able to identify the only possible scenario in which Earth’s mightiest heroes were able to defeat Thanos, thus saving half of the known universe.
I am hoping that such an interdimensional effort is not needed in Ohio Stadium this evening for Ryan Day and the No. 6 Ohio State Buckeyes to defeat the No. 7 Tennessee Volunteers in the first round of the College Football Playoff.
However, there are two possible results that I see as the most likely outcomes for the win-or-go-home contest tonight under the lights in The Horseshoe. Both of them will break the hearts of certain segments of the Ohio State fanbase, but I know which one I am specifically rooting for.
/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25800710/2187648548.jpg "Michigan v Ohio State")
Photo by Aaron J. Thornton/Getty Images
This one doesn’t need much explaining, we’ve seen it before. Hell, we saw it the last time the Buckeyes were on the field when they lost what is almost certainly the worst loss in program history, falling 13-10 to the Michigan Wolverines. But we’ve also seen it in countless other big games as well; unfortunately, we are well acquainted with scared, timid, conservative Ryan Day.
All too often, Ohio State’s head coach becomes so singularly focused on trying to prove his team is tough and can win in a traditional three-yards-in-a-cloud-of-dust way, that it bites him in the ass. I understand why Day gets so hung up on this; Josh Gattis and Jim Harbaugh embarrassed him and challenged his manhood, and the Buckeye coach has never been able to get over that.
Day wants to prove the former Michigan coaches wrong and show that his team can bully opponents and run them over en route to a victory. I also understand why that would be an attractive game plan tonight when the temperatures in Columbus will feel like they are in the single digits.
But obviously, we know that would be an absolutely horrific and fireable decision from Ohio State’s head coach. Not only has Day not built his team to play bully ball, but they don’t even have a solidified starting offensive line, so you can’t simply line up and run between the tackles and expect to be successful.
You know that’s a recipe for disaster, I know that’s a recipe for disaster, and yet — time and again — Ryan Day not only doesn’t see the impending disaster but steers his team directly into it. So, despite the fact that there was reportedly a players-led meeting imploring the coaches to trust them, and Day has repeated the phrase “Whatever it takes” nearly every other sentence since the playoff matchup was announced, there is no real reason to trust that he will actually make the obvious changes necessary to put his team in the best possible position to win.
It also doesn’t help that Tennessee’s defense is excellent, especially up front, meaning that tif Ohio State does decide to try to run it up the middle repeatedly, it will undoubtedly fail as much as it ever has before. The Vols are fourth nationally in yards allowed per ground attempt, giving up only 2.83 per carry. They are also seventh in FBS averaging 7.75 tackles for loss per game, many of them coming by stopping running backs behind the line of scrimmage. If Ryan Day tries to force-feed TreVeyon Henderson and Quinshon Judkinsbetween the tackles, it will be a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day across Buckeye Nation.
The one saving grace in this scenario is that I do not see a realistic situation in which Tennessee is able to score routinely against the Buckeye defense. The Vols are a ground-heavy team, and the Silver Bullets are incredibly stout against the run. Ohio State is fifth nationally, allowing only 2.85 yards per attempt — just slightly behind Tennessee. And while running back Dylan Sampson was the SEC Offensive Player of the Year, he was a high-volume back, averaging only 5.8 yards per carry, good for just 68th in the FBS this season.
So, while I expect he will get his fair share of yards thanks to the number of rushes he will accumulate via Tennessee’s high-octane offense, I don’t see a situation in which he will be a dominant force picking up huge chunks and scoring at will against the Buckeye defense.
That would mean that Tennessee redshirt freshman quarterback Nico Iamaleava will have to make up the difference. The Vols have only thrown the ball on 39% of their offensive plays this season, and are 62nd nationally with just 230.9 ypg. Iamaleava is only completing 65.7% of his passes and has 19 touchdowns and five interceptions on the season. The team’s leading receiver Dont’e Thornton averages just 53.9 ypg.
So, in the potential outcome in which Ryan Day decides to once again handcuff his offense and play a style of offensive football that is not especially conducive to the players on his roster, I imagine that it will be a frustrating, hard-nosed, tedious ordeal to watch. Ohio State could potentially win a game like that, but Tennessee is far more adept at winning a grind-it-out type of game.
And, since this is the worst-case scenario, obviously Tennessee would have come out on top for it to be that bad. So, in this imagined reality where Ohio State clearly does not defeat Thanos (is Ryan Day Thanos in this analogy?), I would foresee the Volunteers advancing to the Rose Bowl against the Oregon Ducks thanks to a 17-10 victory over the beleaguered Buckeyes in Day’s final game as OSU’s head coach.
/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25800717/2186523145.jpg "Indiana v Ohio State")
Photo by Jason Mowry/Getty Images
For me, the struggles of Ohio State’s football team over the past few seasons have been all the more frustrating because, in large part, they have not been because the Buckeye players weren’t good enough to meet the team’s goals. Instead, they have been because the head coach has been routinely incapable of trusting himself, his staff, and his players in the biggest moments.
Ohio State’s roster is arguably the best in all of college football, and it has been for well over a decade. That should be the hard part; if a team’s issue is that it just simply doesn’t have the horses to compete at the highest levels, then that takes time to fix. While that calculus has changed a bit in the Transfer Portal Era, it is still usually not an instantaneous switch; it’s tough to make that type of improvement in-season, let alone in-game.
But that has not been Ohio State’s problem. They have the blue-chip players to beat anyone they play. They have the future NFL stars to win conference and national titles. Instead, it is been the head coach’s mental blocks that have gotten in their way.
However, what is so mind-numbingly maddening is that at any moment, Ryan Day could theoretically wake up, realize he is being an idiot, and go back to the version of himself that we saw as Urban Meyer’s play-caller, in his first few seasons as head coach, and in a small number of big games including against Georgia in the 2022-23 playoff.
We know he’s capable of it (or at least once was). So the potential for a creative, up-tempo game plan that gets the ball to the Buckeyes’ best weapons and catches an opponent off-guard is possible.
But is it likely for this game? Hell, man, I don’t know.
I want to believe that it is. In every big situation and following every bad loss, Day and company say all of the right things. So I convince myself, “This is it! They finally got it all figured out. We are back, baby!”
I get myself excited thinking about all of the explosive possibilities that Jeremiah Smith, Emeka Egbuka, Carnell Tate, Henderson, Judkins, et. al could bring to the game. But, just like Charlie Brown trying to kick the football, I get myself all revved up, and just as I’m racing toward the ball, ready to kick it through the uprights,Ryan Day Lucy snatches it away from me, and I land on my ass — hurt, embarrassed, and confused.
While I can be mad at Lucy, ultimately it is my fault for believing that she would ever let me kick the ball. Lucy is who Lucy is, and it is foolish for me to expect her to change.
Yet, here I am. In the multiverse in which the Avengers pull it off and the Buckeyes play their best possible game tonight against Tennessee, Day absolutely has to be true to his word and do “whatever it takes to win.”
I still don’t imagine a scenario in which the Vols are able to put up a ton of points against Ohio State. But if Day really does pull out all of the stops, the Buckeyes should be able to core more than Tennessee has allowed so far this year. Currently, the Georgia Bulldogs have that high-water mark, having scored 31 in mid-November.
To do so, the Buckeyes’ game plan tonight — regardless of weather — should be to pass to set up the run. If the Ohio State offense is able to execute a scheme that gets the ball out of Will Howard’s hands quickly with screens, slants, crossing routes, mesh routes, etc. it should be able to move the ball well against Tennessee. The Vols’ edge rusher James Pearce Jr. is a menace and Ohio State needs to avoid giving him too many opportunities to hit Howard.
Then, once the passing game loosens up the Vols' defense, you can run the ball to the outside. Get Henderson and Judkins in space and allow them to make guys miss rather than having to rely on the offensive linemen to create holes for them to run through.
There is no reason why Smith and Egbuka aren’t targetted a dozen times apiece tonight, nor is there any reason that Howard isn’t a bigger part of the running game. Of course, I don’t want to see him taking hits like he did against Michigan, but in intelligently designed plays — RPOs, traditional options, even some delayed draws — his legs can be a game-changing weapon, and Day and Kelly should use them.
If Ryan Day and company read this article and decide to take all of my advice, that could absolutely lead to the best possible outcome in tonight’s game, and I think it would lead to a score along the lines of 38-10 in favor of the Buckeyes, setting up a rematch with the No. 1 Oregon Ducks on New Year’s Day.
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Matt Tamanini via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
Adam Cairns/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
Will it be scared, turtle Ryan Day or aggressive, angry Ryan Day?
If you’ve seen “Avengers: Infinity War,” you know that there is a near-infinite set of outcomes for any given situation. Fortunately for the fate of the world, Dr. Strange was able to identify the only possible scenario in which Earth’s mightiest heroes were able to defeat Thanos, thus saving half of the known universe.
I am hoping that such an interdimensional effort is not needed in Ohio Stadium this evening for Ryan Day and the No. 6 Ohio State Buckeyes to defeat the No. 7 Tennessee Volunteers in the first round of the College Football Playoff.
However, there are two possible results that I see as the most likely outcomes for the win-or-go-home contest tonight under the lights in The Horseshoe. Both of them will break the hearts of certain segments of the Ohio State fanbase, but I know which one I am specifically rooting for.
Worst Case Scenario:
This one doesn’t need much explaining, we’ve seen it before. Hell, we saw it the last time the Buckeyes were on the field when they lost what is almost certainly the worst loss in program history, falling 13-10 to the Michigan Wolverines. But we’ve also seen it in countless other big games as well; unfortunately, we are well acquainted with scared, timid, conservative Ryan Day.
All too often, Ohio State’s head coach becomes so singularly focused on trying to prove his team is tough and can win in a traditional three-yards-in-a-cloud-of-dust way, that it bites him in the ass. I understand why Day gets so hung up on this; Josh Gattis and Jim Harbaugh embarrassed him and challenged his manhood, and the Buckeye coach has never been able to get over that.
Day wants to prove the former Michigan coaches wrong and show that his team can bully opponents and run them over en route to a victory. I also understand why that would be an attractive game plan tonight when the temperatures in Columbus will feel like they are in the single digits.
But obviously, we know that would be an absolutely horrific and fireable decision from Ohio State’s head coach. Not only has Day not built his team to play bully ball, but they don’t even have a solidified starting offensive line, so you can’t simply line up and run between the tackles and expect to be successful.
You know that’s a recipe for disaster, I know that’s a recipe for disaster, and yet — time and again — Ryan Day not only doesn’t see the impending disaster but steers his team directly into it. So, despite the fact that there was reportedly a players-led meeting imploring the coaches to trust them, and Day has repeated the phrase “Whatever it takes” nearly every other sentence since the playoff matchup was announced, there is no real reason to trust that he will actually make the obvious changes necessary to put his team in the best possible position to win.
It also doesn’t help that Tennessee’s defense is excellent, especially up front, meaning that tif Ohio State does decide to try to run it up the middle repeatedly, it will undoubtedly fail as much as it ever has before. The Vols are fourth nationally in yards allowed per ground attempt, giving up only 2.83 per carry. They are also seventh in FBS averaging 7.75 tackles for loss per game, many of them coming by stopping running backs behind the line of scrimmage. If Ryan Day tries to force-feed TreVeyon Henderson and Quinshon Judkinsbetween the tackles, it will be a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day across Buckeye Nation.
The one saving grace in this scenario is that I do not see a realistic situation in which Tennessee is able to score routinely against the Buckeye defense. The Vols are a ground-heavy team, and the Silver Bullets are incredibly stout against the run. Ohio State is fifth nationally, allowing only 2.85 yards per attempt — just slightly behind Tennessee. And while running back Dylan Sampson was the SEC Offensive Player of the Year, he was a high-volume back, averaging only 5.8 yards per carry, good for just 68th in the FBS this season.
So, while I expect he will get his fair share of yards thanks to the number of rushes he will accumulate via Tennessee’s high-octane offense, I don’t see a situation in which he will be a dominant force picking up huge chunks and scoring at will against the Buckeye defense.
That would mean that Tennessee redshirt freshman quarterback Nico Iamaleava will have to make up the difference. The Vols have only thrown the ball on 39% of their offensive plays this season, and are 62nd nationally with just 230.9 ypg. Iamaleava is only completing 65.7% of his passes and has 19 touchdowns and five interceptions on the season. The team’s leading receiver Dont’e Thornton averages just 53.9 ypg.
So, in the potential outcome in which Ryan Day decides to once again handcuff his offense and play a style of offensive football that is not especially conducive to the players on his roster, I imagine that it will be a frustrating, hard-nosed, tedious ordeal to watch. Ohio State could potentially win a game like that, but Tennessee is far more adept at winning a grind-it-out type of game.
And, since this is the worst-case scenario, obviously Tennessee would have come out on top for it to be that bad. So, in this imagined reality where Ohio State clearly does not defeat Thanos (is Ryan Day Thanos in this analogy?), I would foresee the Volunteers advancing to the Rose Bowl against the Oregon Ducks thanks to a 17-10 victory over the beleaguered Buckeyes in Day’s final game as OSU’s head coach.
Best Case Scenario:
For me, the struggles of Ohio State’s football team over the past few seasons have been all the more frustrating because, in large part, they have not been because the Buckeye players weren’t good enough to meet the team’s goals. Instead, they have been because the head coach has been routinely incapable of trusting himself, his staff, and his players in the biggest moments.
Ohio State’s roster is arguably the best in all of college football, and it has been for well over a decade. That should be the hard part; if a team’s issue is that it just simply doesn’t have the horses to compete at the highest levels, then that takes time to fix. While that calculus has changed a bit in the Transfer Portal Era, it is still usually not an instantaneous switch; it’s tough to make that type of improvement in-season, let alone in-game.
But that has not been Ohio State’s problem. They have the blue-chip players to beat anyone they play. They have the future NFL stars to win conference and national titles. Instead, it is been the head coach’s mental blocks that have gotten in their way.
However, what is so mind-numbingly maddening is that at any moment, Ryan Day could theoretically wake up, realize he is being an idiot, and go back to the version of himself that we saw as Urban Meyer’s play-caller, in his first few seasons as head coach, and in a small number of big games including against Georgia in the 2022-23 playoff.
We know he’s capable of it (or at least once was). So the potential for a creative, up-tempo game plan that gets the ball to the Buckeyes’ best weapons and catches an opponent off-guard is possible.
But is it likely for this game? Hell, man, I don’t know.
I want to believe that it is. In every big situation and following every bad loss, Day and company say all of the right things. So I convince myself, “This is it! They finally got it all figured out. We are back, baby!”
I get myself excited thinking about all of the explosive possibilities that Jeremiah Smith, Emeka Egbuka, Carnell Tate, Henderson, Judkins, et. al could bring to the game. But, just like Charlie Brown trying to kick the football, I get myself all revved up, and just as I’m racing toward the ball, ready to kick it through the uprights,
While I can be mad at Lucy, ultimately it is my fault for believing that she would ever let me kick the ball. Lucy is who Lucy is, and it is foolish for me to expect her to change.
Yet, here I am. In the multiverse in which the Avengers pull it off and the Buckeyes play their best possible game tonight against Tennessee, Day absolutely has to be true to his word and do “whatever it takes to win.”
I still don’t imagine a scenario in which the Vols are able to put up a ton of points against Ohio State. But if Day really does pull out all of the stops, the Buckeyes should be able to core more than Tennessee has allowed so far this year. Currently, the Georgia Bulldogs have that high-water mark, having scored 31 in mid-November.
To do so, the Buckeyes’ game plan tonight — regardless of weather — should be to pass to set up the run. If the Ohio State offense is able to execute a scheme that gets the ball out of Will Howard’s hands quickly with screens, slants, crossing routes, mesh routes, etc. it should be able to move the ball well against Tennessee. The Vols’ edge rusher James Pearce Jr. is a menace and Ohio State needs to avoid giving him too many opportunities to hit Howard.
Then, once the passing game loosens up the Vols' defense, you can run the ball to the outside. Get Henderson and Judkins in space and allow them to make guys miss rather than having to rely on the offensive linemen to create holes for them to run through.
There is no reason why Smith and Egbuka aren’t targetted a dozen times apiece tonight, nor is there any reason that Howard isn’t a bigger part of the running game. Of course, I don’t want to see him taking hits like he did against Michigan, but in intelligently designed plays — RPOs, traditional options, even some delayed draws — his legs can be a game-changing weapon, and Day and Kelly should use them.
If Ryan Day and company read this article and decide to take all of my advice, that could absolutely lead to the best possible outcome in tonight’s game, and I think it would lead to a score along the lines of 38-10 in favor of the Buckeyes, setting up a rematch with the No. 1 Oregon Ducks on New Year’s Day.
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Game Thread Rose Bowl, #8 tOSU vs #1 Oregon, Jan 1, 5:00 ET on ESPN
- By BB73
- 2024 Football Season Capsule
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LGHL Ohio State vs. Tennessee: Land-Grant’s experts make their picks
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Ohio State vs. Tennessee: Land-Grant’s experts make their picks
Matt Tamanini via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
Photo by Emilee Chinn/Getty Images
Every week, we will be picking the score, MVP, and major storyline for each Buckeye game.
Being the Buckeye beat’s black sheep blog, we here at Land-Grant Holy Land like to pat ourselves on the back. So, throughout the season, members of our staff will be making predictions about that day’s game. They will go on the record with what they think the final score will be, who the game’s MVP will be, and what the major storyline will be coming out of the day.
The No. 6 Ohio State Buckeyes will host the No. 7 Tennessee Volunteers in a rare, late-December night game in Ohio Stadium. The game is scheduled to kick off sometime after 8 p.m. ET and will be aired in various forms on ABC, ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNU, ESPNEWS, SEC Network, and ESPN Deportes.
As of this article’s writing, the Bucks are 7.5-point favorites according to FanDuel Sportsbook. College football’s gold-standard advanced analytics model SP+ is predicting a score of 26-20 in favor of Ohio State.
Check out what our staff members think and then let us know your thoughts on the game in the comments below. As we move forward with the season, you will be able to keep up with just how well our prognosticators do on a weekly basis HERE.
Score Prediction: Tennessee 24, Ohio State 20
Game MVP: Will Howard
Major Storyline: Ryan Day still can’t win big games.
Score Prediction: Ohio State 31, Tennessee 21
Game MVP: Emeka Egbuka
Major Storyline: It is simple; Ohio State bounces back from the loss to Michigan to win a playoff game and set up a rematch with Oregon. I think the Buckeyes will get off to a fast start and show that The Game is behind them and they can move forward in hopes of winning a national title.
Score Prediction: Ohio State 31, Tennessee 27
Game MVP: Jeremiah Smith
Major Storyline: Ohio State’s offense gets back on track with multiple touchdowns through the air and on the ground. The defense still has some questions.
Score Prediction: Tennessee 17, Ohio State 14
Game MVP: Nico Iamaleava
Major Storyline: Tennessee plants a flag at midfield in Ohio Stadium, figuratively... or perhaps literally too.
Score Prediction: Tennessee 24, Ohio State 17
Game MVP: Dylan Sampson
Major Storyline: If Ohio State does not win the first December home game in program history, the main storyline will become the coaching search that will begin the minute the clock hits 0:00. Even after losing to Michigan, there was a path to salvation for Ryan Day if he was able to find success in the playoff — going one-and-done was not it.
Score Prediction: Ohio State 24, Tennessee 20
Game MVP: Caleb Downs
Major Storyline: Ohio State grinds out a win in a lively Ohio Stadium on Saturday night, setting up a rematch with Oregon in the Rose Bowl. In a game where every yard was earned, the Buckeyes will be a little bit tougher, channeling some anger from the criticism they heard since losing to Michigan. Caleb Downs seals the win with an interception late in the fourth quarter.
Score Prediction: Tennessee 17, Ohio State 10
Game MVP: James Pearce Jr.
Major Storyline: Ohio State’s offensive line rotation proves to be the train wreck everyone thought it would be, and the Buckeyes can’t get anything going offensively. Ohio State gets little on the ground and Will Howard doesn’t get much of any time to throw. Ohio State’s defense plays well, but the Ryan Day Era comes to a close as the clock strikes midnight.
Score Prediction: Ohio State 31, Tennessee 13
Game MVP: Cody Simon
Major Storyline: While I do expect Ryan Day and Chip Kelly to get their collective shit together and call a much better offensive game for the Buckeyes tonight, I believe that this game will be won by the Silver Bullets. The Vols have run the ball 61% of the time this season, and I do not expect that to change in the potentially single-digit temperatures in Columbus tonight. This defense has been very good against the run, and as impressive as Dylan Sampson has been, he is a high-volume runner. His 5.8 yards per carry is only good for 68th in FBS (TreVeyon Henderson’s 6.95 is tied for 17th).
So, with the threat of the passing game relatively minimal, I expect Jim Knowles to rely on his defensive line, linebackers, and nickel back to limit Tennessee’s ability to move the ball. I’m throwing in a defensive touchdown for good measure to make this a sound, and thorough victory that propels the Buckeyes onto a traditional, yet very non-traditional Rose Bowl matchup on New Year’s Day.
Score Prediction: Ohio State 38, Tennessee 17
Game MVP: Jeremiah Smith
Major Storyline: The major storyline leaving this game will be Jeremiah Smith dominating the Vols with the best game of his young career. The defense will hold Tennessee through much of the game, but after three weeks off, people will get a quick reminder of how talented Jeremiah Smith is as a true freshman.
Continue reading...
Matt Tamanini via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
Photo by Emilee Chinn/Getty Images
Every week, we will be picking the score, MVP, and major storyline for each Buckeye game.
Being the Buckeye beat’s black sheep blog, we here at Land-Grant Holy Land like to pat ourselves on the back. So, throughout the season, members of our staff will be making predictions about that day’s game. They will go on the record with what they think the final score will be, who the game’s MVP will be, and what the major storyline will be coming out of the day.
The No. 6 Ohio State Buckeyes will host the No. 7 Tennessee Volunteers in a rare, late-December night game in Ohio Stadium. The game is scheduled to kick off sometime after 8 p.m. ET and will be aired in various forms on ABC, ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNU, ESPNEWS, SEC Network, and ESPN Deportes.
As of this article’s writing, the Bucks are 7.5-point favorites according to FanDuel Sportsbook. College football’s gold-standard advanced analytics model SP+ is predicting a score of 26-20 in favor of Ohio State.
Check out what our staff members think and then let us know your thoughts on the game in the comments below. As we move forward with the season, you will be able to keep up with just how well our prognosticators do on a weekly basis HERE.
Michael Citro
Score Prediction: Tennessee 24, Ohio State 20
Game MVP: Will Howard
Major Storyline: Ryan Day still can’t win big games.
Justin Golba
Score Prediction: Ohio State 31, Tennessee 21
Game MVP: Emeka Egbuka
Major Storyline: It is simple; Ohio State bounces back from the loss to Michigan to win a playoff game and set up a rematch with Oregon. I think the Buckeyes will get off to a fast start and show that The Game is behind them and they can move forward in hopes of winning a national title.
Dan Hessler
Score Prediction: Ohio State 31, Tennessee 27
Game MVP: Jeremiah Smith
Major Storyline: Ohio State’s offense gets back on track with multiple touchdowns through the air and on the ground. The defense still has some questions.
Jami Jurich
Score Prediction: Tennessee 17, Ohio State 14
Game MVP: Nico Iamaleava
Major Storyline: Tennessee plants a flag at midfield in Ohio Stadium, figuratively... or perhaps literally too.
Connor Lemons
Score Prediction: Tennessee 24, Ohio State 17
Game MVP: Dylan Sampson
Major Storyline: If Ohio State does not win the first December home game in program history, the main storyline will become the coaching search that will begin the minute the clock hits 0:00. Even after losing to Michigan, there was a path to salvation for Ryan Day if he was able to find success in the playoff — going one-and-done was not it.
Brett Ludwiczak
Score Prediction: Ohio State 24, Tennessee 20
Game MVP: Caleb Downs
Major Storyline: Ohio State grinds out a win in a lively Ohio Stadium on Saturday night, setting up a rematch with Oregon in the Rose Bowl. In a game where every yard was earned, the Buckeyes will be a little bit tougher, channeling some anger from the criticism they heard since losing to Michigan. Caleb Downs seals the win with an interception late in the fourth quarter.
Gene Ross
Score Prediction: Tennessee 17, Ohio State 10
Game MVP: James Pearce Jr.
Major Storyline: Ohio State’s offensive line rotation proves to be the train wreck everyone thought it would be, and the Buckeyes can’t get anything going offensively. Ohio State gets little on the ground and Will Howard doesn’t get much of any time to throw. Ohio State’s defense plays well, but the Ryan Day Era comes to a close as the clock strikes midnight.
Matt Tamanini
Score Prediction: Ohio State 31, Tennessee 13
Game MVP: Cody Simon
Major Storyline: While I do expect Ryan Day and Chip Kelly to get their collective shit together and call a much better offensive game for the Buckeyes tonight, I believe that this game will be won by the Silver Bullets. The Vols have run the ball 61% of the time this season, and I do not expect that to change in the potentially single-digit temperatures in Columbus tonight. This defense has been very good against the run, and as impressive as Dylan Sampson has been, he is a high-volume runner. His 5.8 yards per carry is only good for 68th in FBS (TreVeyon Henderson’s 6.95 is tied for 17th).
So, with the threat of the passing game relatively minimal, I expect Jim Knowles to rely on his defensive line, linebackers, and nickel back to limit Tennessee’s ability to move the ball. I’m throwing in a defensive touchdown for good measure to make this a sound, and thorough victory that propels the Buckeyes onto a traditional, yet very non-traditional Rose Bowl matchup on New Year’s Day.
Jordan Williams
Score Prediction: Ohio State 38, Tennessee 17
Game MVP: Jeremiah Smith
Major Storyline: The major storyline leaving this game will be Jeremiah Smith dominating the Vols with the best game of his young career. The defense will hold Tennessee through much of the game, but after three weeks off, people will get a quick reminder of how talented Jeremiah Smith is as a true freshman.
Continue reading...
