Michigan at Ohio State score: Buckeyes' comeback win in 2OT is an instant classic - CBS sports.com (blog)
via Google News using key phrase "Buckeyes".


Michigan at Ohio State score: Buckeyes' comeback win in 2OT is an instant classic
CBS sports.com (blog)
2 Ohio State made its best case for the College Football Playoff with a dramatic 30-27 double-overtime win against Michigan. The Buckeyes had to overcome two missed field goals (including a chip-shot attempt from 20 yards) and continue fighting through ...
Buckeyes in Playoff position after epic double-overtime win over MichiganComcast SportsNet Chicago
Nittany Lion fans give big cheer for Buckeyes' assistanceCentre Daily Times

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Get Tom Dienhart’s Best of Week 13 in the Big Ten
Tom Dienhart, BTN.com Senior Writer via Big Ten Network

The final weekend is in the books. And Ohio State showed it is the Big Ten’s best team. But the Buckeyes won’t even be in the Big Ten title game. This day also saw Northwestern, Illinois and Indiana become bowl eligible and Penn State wrap up the East.

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Puemple Pops Off on the Senators’ Coaching Staff
T6S via our good friends at Buckeye Battle Cry
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here



Following the Senators’ trade that sent Mika Zibanejad to New York for Derick Brassard, it was easy to circle November 27th on the calendar and look forward to the first opportunity for each of these players to face their former teams, but once Zibby was felled by a broken fibula, it felt like some of the air was let out of the balloon.

Thankfully, the recently claimed Matt Puempel has helped rekindle some of that.

Puempel, who was claimed by New York off waivers on Monday to help fill the void while Pavel Buchnevich and Zibanejad are out, scored in his first game as a Ranger and gushed to reporters after the game about the opportunity he’s receiving in New York.


Just in case you weren’t too familiar with Puempel’s development, it says a lot when these comments are probably the best defence that he’s played in years.

Inevitably, there are going to a variety of cynical fans who read these comments and use it as an opportunity to drop trou and shit all over the Senators organization for their handling of prospects and the way that the organization develops players. (As an aside, I read his comments as a general reflection on how he was handled as a prospect within the organization and not as something that is specific to Guy Boucher’s regime.)

The problem is that prospect development is not a one-size fits all situation where every prospect responds the same to a similar stimuli. Every prospect is unique and develops at different rates with there being no guarantee that a prospect will ever fulfill the projected ceiling that was placed on him during his draft year when the organization selected said prospect.

Should the organization shoulder some blame?

Maybe.

There’s no question that this organization has developed a reputation for giving opportunities to locally grown players or hardworking, blue-collar types whose character and professionalism are lauded.


Never mind that Puempel played more minutes in the Senators’ loss to Nashville just eight days before his first Rangers game, but his comments above do remind me of the time last year following the Dion Phaneuf trade when Tobias Lindberg made news by contrasting his experiences with the Toronto Marlies and the Binghamton Senators.


I get the fact that Puempel’s essentially already fighting for his NHL career and that he scored what’s arguably the most important goal of his life. I get that Puempel felt vindicated in the moment and his comments probably served as a defence mechanism for an insecure player who doesn’t want to take as much ownership for his situation as he should. And hell, I get that he’s probably using the opportunity to earn points with his new coaching staff and management in hopes that he’ll continue to get further opportunities down the road. They’re all pretty basic human reactions.

But at the same time, it’s important to keep in mind that Puempel turns 24 in January and that he’s been through three head coaches in Ottawa.

If there’s any self-awareness involved, he’s got to realize that it’s his own shortcomings as a player that have curbed his development as a player.

As a prospect whose strengths are limited to his shot, he has to realize as a player that top-six opportunities will fall by the wayside if his struggles away from the puck prevent his coaches from entrusting him to handle playing regular minutes against the opposition’s top lines.

Making matters worse is that Puempel’s essentially a trigger man who overly relies on his teammates for puck retrieval in the defensive zone and move the puck up ice. Whereas prospects like Ryan Dzingel, Mark Stone and Mike Hoffman started on the fourth line and worked their respective ways off thanks to their larger skillset, Puempel’s best skill was hampered playing alongside guys like Chris Neil will be pretty infrequent. He was essentially caught in a situation where his best skill would rarely be used on the fourth line and he wasn’t good enough away from the puck to play top-six minutes.

As much as Puempel wants to play up opportunities, his situation in Ottawa wasn’t created by the various coaching staffs. It was created through a combination of factors that point directly back to him.

Puempel’s production has fallen off a cliff since scoring 30 goals during his first season as a pro in Binghamton and without being privy to the private meetings between the players and the coaches, it’s impossible to know how much the Senators tried to emphasize the importance of skill and creativity.

I just know that a player like Mike Hoffman, who has been roundly criticized for his defensive aptitude at times, has his shortcomings overlooked because of his ability to carry the puck up ice and produce points. It wasn’t the smoothest of transitions from the bottom of the lineup to regular top-six minutes, but regardless of where Hoffman has been slotted in the lineup, he helped drive possession enough and score enough to warrant longer looks.

And that’s Puempel’s problem: he never did enough to positively change the perception of him as a player.

He needs to own up to that.



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Michigan pushed Ohio State to its desperate brink, but it amazingly wasn’t enough
Grant Freking via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here


The rivalry is officially back, y’all.

Many thoughts, plot lines, and narratives will be drawn from Ohio State’s deranged double-overtime triumph over Michigan on Saturday.

For the author, the impression I’m left with is that Ohio State now knows the desperation that Michigan has felt for the past 15 years.

There was one play that signaled that desperation to me: Urban Meyer’s decision to call a fake punt early in the second quarter with his team trailing by 10 points. The call reeked of desperation. There’s an argument to made for the call (the Buckeyes were reeling and in need of a game-altering play, and if Sam Hubbard had held his block a second longer, the play works) and against it (let Cameron Johnston eat; more on that below), but that Meyer felt compelled to make that decision with that much time remaining in the game was a rivalry-shifting moment.

It has been ages since the Buckeyes have found themselves in an extended moment of precariousness against Michigan, which controlled Saturday’s tilt for three-plus quarters. When that fake punt happened, that signaled to me that the rivalry is, indeed, ‘back’, because the Wolverines can now push the Buckeyes to the edge for quarters at a time.

The close calls, overtime, and Jim Harbaugh’s freakouts during and after the game were just the Scarlet and Gray, and Maize and Blue cherries on top for me.

In any case, this much is certain: “The Game” is back.

1. The punters


Weren’t expecting this, were you?

Quite frankly, Johnston and Michigan’s Kenny Allen (who also kicked two field goals) were the only consistent part of the game.

Allen: 7 punts, 47.4 yard average, long of 67, 5 punts inside the 20.

Johnston: 6 punts, 46.0 yard average, long of 60, 2 punts inside the 20.

Allen was on fire to start, pinning Ohio State on its own 8 and 11 to begin its first two drives. Even with the Buckeyes’ offense masquerading as Rutgers in the first half (81 yards on 29 plays), Johnston mitigated Michigan’s massive first-half field position advantage by averaging over 50 yards on his first four boots. The Thunder from Down Under also kept Jabrill Peppers at bay all day, as Michigan’s junior do-it-all maestro was forced into fair catch after fair catch, returning just one punt for five yards.

In the second half, Johnston’s punt that was fair caught at the Michigan 12 preceded Jerome Baker’s interception (which set up the Buckeyes’ second touchdown). And with Ohio State set to take over needing a field goal to send the game into overtime, Allen did his part, unleashing a 56-yard behemoth that went out of bounds at the OSU 18.

Not bad, gentlemen. Clearly the spirit of Tressel was with you both.

2. The always be closing Silver Bullets


After Michigan went up 17-7, its four drives to end regulation resulted in an interception and three punts. That chain of events matches what the Bullets have done all season, as they entered the day ranked No. 1 in the nation in fourth quarter defensive efficiency.

There are plenty of gold stars to award to individual players, with Raekwon McMillan (16 tackles, QB hurry that forced Malik Hooker’s pick-six), Baker (15 tackles, sack, INT), and Hooker (7 tackles, half tackle for loss, INT) logging big-time all-around performances. But more than anything else, Ohio State’s defense kept the game juuuuust within reach as the Buckeye offense needed three and half quarters to find itself.

Other defensive plays of note: Sam Hubbard’s stop of Peppers on 3rd-and-goal that forced a field goal on the Wolverines’ first red zone trip; Davon Hamilton recovering Speight’s dropped snap on the Ohio State 2 early in the third quarter despite being in a giant mass of humanity; Nick Bosa’s sack of Speight early in the fourth quarter; the entire unit forcing a field goal to begin the second overtime.

3. Ohio State’s power couple


Meyer’s desire to turn close games into rock fights and J.T. Barrett’s shortcomings in the passing game are fair criticisms at this point.

But, it’s also worth noting that Meyer is now 5-0 vs. Michigan (and 2-0 against Harbaugh, the Wolverines’ appointed savior) and has maneuvered the Buckeyes into prime position to qualify for the College Football Playoff despite being the least-experienced team in the country in terms of returning starters and navigating the program’s toughest schedule in years.

As for Barrett, even though his big-game performances aren’t exactly visually-appealing these days, he has nonetheless dragged Ohio State into playoff contention in spite of accuracy/downfield passing/offensive line/receiving corps issues. When the Buckeyes absolutely had to have points in the fourth quarter and overtime on Saturday, Barrett drove OSU 61 yards (missed field goal) and 77 yards (field goal) to end regulation, rushed for a touchdown in the first overtime, and narrowly converted a 4th-and-1 in the second overtime that preceded Curtis Samuel’s game-winning score.

Barrett is also 3-0 in his starts vs. Michigan. So he’s got that going for him, which is nice.

4. Tom Herman

Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports
Tom Herman during his days at Ohio State.

After three seasons developing quarterbacks and racking up points as Ohio State’s offensive coordinator, and two superb years at Houston (22-4 record, Peach Bowl win over Florida State), Herman is now the head coach at Texas.

Many Buckeye fans were hoping that Herman would eventually take over for Meyer, but the 41-year-old’s star rose too quickly for that scenario to ever become realistic. It will be interesting to see how Herman’s hiring affects Ohio State’s recruiting efforts in the Lone Star State.

5. What the Hook gone be!


With a little over four minutes remaining in the first half, Michigan faced its first real field position disadvantage of the first half. And despite his team being backed up to its own six and just feet away from The Horseshoe’s student-filled south stands, Jim Harbaugh dialed up a play-action pass, with Speight throwing from his end zone.

He chose poorly.

Speight—who was done no favors by his pass protection on the play—lofted the ball up to Michigan’s 15-yard-line, which is where Malik Hooker snatched it out of the air and housed it for his third—THIRD!!!—pick-six of the season.

6. Washington


Provided Alabama and Clemson win out, and Penn State wins the Big Ten title game, Ohio State’s chief competition for the fourth playoff spot would likely be Washington. The Huskies entered the weekend needing to beat Washington State in the Apple Cup and then win the Pac-12 title game next weekend to put their best playoff case forward.

Washington took care of objective No. 1 on Friday, terminating its rivals with extreme prejudice, 45-17. The tilt was over by the end of the first quarter with the Huskies ahead 28-3. In that first quarter alone, Washington owned a 274-64 yardage advantage and quarterback Jake Browning was 13-of-17 for 202 yards and three touchdowns.

In order to make up strength of schedule and quality win deficiencies to Ohio State, Washington needed to show out on Friday and follow that up with a conference championship. Step No. 1 of that task is complete.

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Photo clearly shows Buckeyes QB J.T. Barrett converted 4th-and-1 - 247Sports
via Google News using key phrase "Buckeyes".


Photo clearly shows Buckeyes QB J.T. Barrett converted 4th-and-1
247Sports
They're still talking about Ohio State's fourth-down conversion in double overtime that led to the Buckeyes' thrilling 30-27 win over Michigan on Saturday, a victory that likely catapulted Urban Meyer's team into the College Football Playoff. Trailing ...


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Power Rankings: Wisconsin moves up to No. 2 in season’s final poll
Tom Dienhart, BTN.com Senior Writer via Big Ten Network

Ohio State remains No. 1 in BTN.com senior writer Tom Dienhart's final Big Ten Power Rankings, presented by ArcelorMittal. There's a new No. 2 team, though, and it's Big Ten West champ Wisconsin.

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Ohio State’s linebackers made all the difference in the win over Michigan
Chuck McKeever via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here


Jerome Baker and Raekwon McMillan refused to let the Wolverines win on Saturday.

There’s a phenomenon in physics known as the Quantum Zeno Effect, in which certain systems behave differently under observation than they do when ignored. Certain radioactive elements, for example, cease decaying because they are being looked at under a microscope. The act of observing them influences what they do, freezing them in time.

Every sports fan knows this same feeling all too well, the idea that we might have some impact on the outcome of a game—however infinitesimally small—by virtue of our watching and cheering. We carry out our bizarre rituals of superstition, certain that without them, our team is doomed; we scream at the TV as though heard by the people miles away through the roar of the crowd that surrounds them.

It’s silly, but it feels true, doesn’t it? And in my lifetime, few moments have felt that way more than the final hour of this year’s Ohio State-Michigan game, The Game, one which ended the only way it could have, with enough drama to fill a lifetime. And it felt like we were all a part of it, all of us cheering until we were hoarse in every corner of the planet, our energy prevailing as we rode the crest of a high and beautiful wave. It was a magnificent thing to feel and to do and to be. Our own minor contributions aside, let’s take a look at who got the job done against Michigan on Saturday.

Blue chip stocks


Raekwon McMillan, LB: We wrote earlier this week that the Buckeyes were going to need a huge game from their star linebacker if they were going to beat Michigan. They got it. McMillan finished with 16 total tackles, including seven on his own. He was everywhere, leading the charge on gang tackle after gang tackle against the Wolverines’ talented cohort of rushers.

McMillan’s best play of the day wasn’t a tackle. With Michigan backed up close to its own goal line, No. 5 blitzed unchecked through the offensive line and rocked QB Wilton Speight as he let the ball go. The pass sailed, and Malik Hooker reeled it in for an interception that he took back to the house. It was an early bright spot for a team struggling to put points on the board, and it all started with Raekwon.

Jerome Baker, LB: Jerome Baker also nabbed himself an interception against the Wolverines, this one a drive-killer late in the third-quarter that he took back to the Michigan 13 yard-line. It set up an easy Buckeye touchdown that brought the game back within reach at the precise moment the team, foundering on offense, needed some juice.

Baker ended the day with 15 total tackles, including seven by himself. He also got to Speight for a key sack. His and McMillan’s efforts were part of a Herculean effort by the Buckeye run defense, which limited the talented Wolverines to just 2.1 yards a carry. No. 17 has the brightest of futures in Columbus.

Curtis Samuel, H-back: Samuel has had more eye-popping performances, numbers-wise, but he still made big plays when it counted against Michigan. He capped off an 86-yard offensive day with an exclamation point, scampering into the end zone with ease from 15 yards out to give the Buckeyes the walk-off win in double OT.

The Ohio State offense really struggled all afternoon to find its mojo against Michigan’s shutdown corners and speedy linebackers. It was Samuel who started finding space late in the game, when fatigue and/or improved playcalling started pushing the Buckeyes toward the end zone. He’s still not used often enough—we could probably reasonably say that at any number of touches less than 50—but when he does get the ball, there are few players in college football more capable of breaking a big one.


Samuel’s bizarre, multi-directional third-down scamper that set up the game’s controversial fourth-down result shouldn’t go unmentioned, either. Dude was running for what felt like six years on his way to the 25 yard-line.

Solid investments


Malik Hooker, S: In our humble and professional opinion, Hooker’s name not appearing among the three finalists for the 2016 Thorpe Award is straight trash. His pick-six to put the Buckeyes on the board was his third of the season, which isn’t anything to sneeze at. He’s as good at playing aggressively at the line as he is tracking receivers deep; he’s been a cornerstone of the Buckeye defense’s success this season.

Against the Wolverines, he was in on seven tackles (three solo), including 0.5 tackles for loss. This dude can flat-out play. He showed it at the biggest moments of the season’s biggest game, and deserves all the accolades you care to throw his way.

Junk bonds


Tyler Durbin, K: The roulette wheel of “inexplicable misses by college kickers” is a brutal one, and Ohio State was the victim on Saturday. Durbin’s two misses really stung, and almost cost the Buckeyes in a big way. No sense in piling on the young man any further—he hit the last one, and that’s what we should remember.

Buy/Sell


BUY: J.T. Barrett converting on 4th down. Listen not to the #truthers who don’t think Ohio State converted the most important play of the game. He got the first down.


SELL: Swing passes to the sideline. You can only watch Michigan’s elite defenders murdering Mike Weber behind the line of scrimmage so many times before you wonder why the Buckeyes even bother calling plays like that, you know?

BUY: Ohio State’s playoff chances. There are no guarantees, of course, given that the Buckeyes won’t be appearing in the Big Ten Championship Game, but that feels sort of irrelevant. They went 11-1 while playing in the better half of the country’s best conference (you read that right), they were ranked No. 2 before beating the No. 3 team in the country, and their résumé is better than several other teams hoping for a chance to appear in the Final Four. They deserve a shot.

BUY: Pancakes. On a day highlighted by several prominent failures by the Buckeye offensive line, we got a great reminder of what once was for the Ohio State’s big men up front.


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Inside the play: Best 8-yard catch-and-run you'll see sets up Buckeyes - ESPN (blog)
via Google News using key phrase "Buckeyes".


Inside the play: Best 8-yard catch-and-run you'll see sets up Buckeyes
ESPN (blog)
But the Buckeyes probably never would have been in position to punch in that clinching score if not for Samuel's extra effort on a third-and-9 play that looked destined to fail from the outset. Lined up in the backfield to the right of J.T. Barrett ...
Best photos from The Game - Michigan vs. Ohio StateUSA TODAY

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Ohio State Buckeyes fans celebrate win over Michigan - NBC4i.com - NBC4i.com
via Google News using key phrase "Buckeyes".


Ohio State Buckeyes fans celebrate win over Michigan - NBC4i.com
NBC4i.com
COLUMBUS (WCMH) — Fans celebrated across the city after the Buckeyes beat that Team Up North Saturday afternoon. Moments after the win in double ...

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Beat goes on for Buckeyes in win over UM - Toledo Blade
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Beat goes on for Buckeyes in win over UM
Toledo Blade
With Michigan ahead 27-24 in double overtime, the Buckeyes faced a fourth-and-1 on which Barrett ran to the left and into Michigan's defense squarely at the 15-yard line — the line he needed for the first down. The Wolverines thought Barrett was short ...
Michigan's Charlton, Wormley boost NFL Draft stock despite loss to BuckeyesCBSSports.com
'Bitter' Harbaugh lashes out at refs after lossESPN
Michigan's Jabrill Peppers shoves an Ohio State fan after Buckeyes' wild winCBS sports.com (blog)
cleveland.com -OregonLive.com
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yall think Meyer will be 9-1 in THE GAME?

Maybe 10-0...?

Ohio State kicker Tyler Durbin found redemption on senior day: Buckeyes notes, quotes and nuggets - cleveland.com
via Google News using key phrase "Buckeyes".


Ohio State kicker Tyler Durbin found redemption on senior day: Buckeyes notes, quotes and nuggets
cleveland.com
COLUMBUS, Ohio -- Until the make, a couple of wide lefts off of the foot of Ohio State kicker Tyler Durbin were likely all Buckeyes fans were going to remember from a loss to Michigan. Durbin had been everything you could possibly ask of a walk-on ...

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Cardale Jones actually wore his Ohio State helmet to watch Buckeyes play Michigan on TV - For The Win
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Cardale Jones actually wore his Ohio State helmet to watch Buckeyes play Michigan on TV
For The Win
As you're probably aware, there's a huge, massive, gargantuan, insert-your-own-big-adjective-here game going on in Columbus on Saturday in which longtime rivals Ohio State and Michigan face each other with playoff hopes on the line. So with a matchup ...

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LOOK: Ohio State fans storm field after Buckeyes beat Michigan in double-overtime thriller - Landof10.com
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LOOK: Ohio State fans storm field after Buckeyes beat Michigan in double-overtime thriller
Landof10.com
5 hours ago · Paul Finebaum: 'No way' Ohio State can be left out of College Football Playoff after 'one of the best ever' wins. 6 hours ago. Ohio State fans had one place to be after the Buckeyes beat Michigan: the field. Buckeyes fans stormed the ...


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Nittany Lion fans give big cheer for Buckeyes' assistance - Centre Daily Times
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Nittany Lion fans give big cheer for Buckeyes' assistance
Centre Daily Times
The Buckeyes did their part, and now it was Penn State's turn. For some of the Nittany Lions, they figured out right away why the place erupted — when there was a timeout on the field and no reason to cheer. “I just assumed that's what it was,” coach ...

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Ohio State women’s basketball edges Syracuse, 77-72
Ben Martens via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here


The Buckeyes had just enough to hold off the Orange on Saturday night and move on to the Gulf Coast Showcase championship game.

In an early season battle between No. 8 Ohio State and No. 11 Syracuse, the Buckeyes edged the Orange 77-72 Saturday night in the Gulf Coast Showcase in Estero, Florida.

Ohio State may have found its heir apparent running mate for Kelsey Mitchell after Ameryst Alston’s graduation at the end of last season, as Sierra Calhoun broke out for the second time in the past three games. The Duke transfer scored 19 in the game to go along with seven rebounds, and seems to have found her niche within the offense.

Mitchell led the Buckeyes with 24 points, and hit another milestone in her career, eclipsing the 1,900-point mark in just a shade over two seasons.

It was the second straight hard-fought win for the scarlet and gray, who improved to 5-1 in the young season and will face Baylor, the fifth-ranked team in the country, in the tournament’s final on Sunday night.

The early story was the three-point shooting of Syracuse, which knocked down five in the first quarter, and the full-court pressure of the Orange, which caused five Ohio State turnovers in the first ten minutes.

Mitchell went 4-for-8 in the frame, scoring 10 of the Buckeyes’ points, and Syracuse went cold late in the quarter, making just two of their final 11 shot attempts, as the two sides finished the period tied 18-18. The Buckeyes held the Orange to just 25 percent shooting, but were outrebounded 18-10.

A 7-0 run sparked by Calhoun and Kiara Lewis staked Ohio State to a 34-27 lead midway through the second quarter, and a late spurt of 17-7 extended it, with the Buckeyes going to the locker room up 44-34.

The Buckeyes got 12 from Mitchell in the half to lead all scorers, and 11 from Calhoun, shooting 51.4 percent from the floor as a team while holding Syracuse to just 30 percent. Alexis Peterson had 10 to lead the Orange, while Briana Day added nine points and six rebounds.

Ohio State stretched the lead 15 points early in the third quarter, but a 2-for-12 span allowed Syracuse all the way back into a tie game, 58-58, with under two minutes to go in the period. Calhoun scored 10 in the frame, but Mitchell was held to just a pair of free throws, and with one quarter to go, the Buckeyes held a 60-58 lead.

The Orange took their first lead since the first quarter at 62-60, but Mitchell broke the 1,900 career point mark with a deep three to put Ohio State back on top, and then followed that up with another to push the lead back out to 66-62.

It was push and shove the rest of the way, but Mitchell hit a ridiculous runner falling out of bounds and a pair of free throws in the final minute and a half to get the Buckeyes, barely, to the finish line on the right side of the scoreboard.

Peterson finished with 29 for Syracuse in the loss, and Brittney Sykes had 16 to go along with 11 rebounds.

Ohio State will now play in the tournament’s championship game on Sunday against the Bears from Waco, Texas. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. ET at Germain Arena.

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Watch: Phil Knight Talked To The Buckeyes After Their Win Over Michigan - The Spun (press release) (blog)
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Watch: Phil Knight Talked To The Buckeyes After Their Win Over Michigan
The Spun (press release) (blog)
Phil Knight addressed the Buckeyes in the locker room after their win over Michigan. Oregon isn't the only school Phil Knight and Nike is a fan of. The co-founder of Nike talked to the Buckeyes in the locker room after the Buckeyes knocked off Michigan ...

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Barrett, Buckeyes survive Michigan in double overtime - Times Record News
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Barrett, Buckeyes survive Michigan in double overtime
Times Record News
That's pretty much all Buckeyes coach Urban Meyer wanted to talk about. Everything else about the second-ranked Buckeyes' 30-27 victory over the third-ranked Wolverines on Saturday was almost too overwhelming for Meyer to sort out so soon after what he ...

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Doesn't matter I had Sex!

Bowl projections: Ohio State's probably headed to the playoff or Rose Bowl
Matt Brown via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here


After beating Michigan, OSU’s postseason fate is simpler than it may seem.

The Buckeyes didn’t control their own destiny, but they took care of everything within their control today, storming back to beat Michigan 30-27 in double overtime. With the win, the Buckeyes finish the regular season 11-1, 8-1 in Big Ten play.

Despite that sterling record, and a probable #2 spot in the Playoff rankings which will be released on Tuesday, Ohio State can’t win the Big Ten. Thanks to Penn State beating Michigan State, the Nittany Lions win the tie-breaker in the Big Ten East, winning the division. Penn State will face Wisconsin in the Big Ten championship game. The Badgers struggled, but beat Minnesota to finish their regular season today.

So, can Ohio State still make the playoff? And if not, where could they go? Let’s take a closer look.

Ohio State could still make the playoff


After all, the Buckeyes are ranked second in the playoff rankings, and just knocked off the #3 team in the country. It seems highly likely that when the rankings come out this week, Ohio State will still be #2, with Clemson (assuming they beat South Carolina) and Washington rounding out the top four.

Alabama, Clemson and Washington all still have one more game to play, and Ohio State doesn’t. But the Buckeyes’ resume, which includes wins over Michigan, Wisconsin, Oklahoma and Nebraska, is substantially better than Wisconsin or Penn State.

The Selection Committee has never picked a non-conference champion to the Playoff, and being overly declarative one way or the other doesn’t seem prudent. The committee could, after all, decide to elevate the Big Ten champ. But given Ohio State’s overall body of work, it seems possible, perhaps even probable, that the Buckeyes will remain in the top four. If Clemson or Washington loses their conference championship game, their chances should get even better.

Ohio State could go to the Rose Bowl


In the event that Ohio State doesn’t go to the Playoff, they would be overwhelmingly likely to go to the Rose Bowl, which is obligated to match up a Pac-12 team with a Big Ten team. It would be very hard to imagine a second Big Ten team jumping Ohio State in the rankings, and given Ohio State’s huge fan base, the Rose Bowl would probably want to welcome them back anyway.

Assuming Washington makes the Playoff, Ohio State’s Rose Bowl opponent would be either Colorado or USC.

Ohio State probably won’t go anywhere else


The Big Ten will probably earn multiple other spots in the New Year’s Six. The Orange Bowl is obligated to grab either a Big Ten or Big 12 team, and a third Big Ten team will almost assuredly be ranked above the loser of the Oklahoma/Oklahoma State game. But with an 11-1 record, it’s hard to see a scenario where Ohio State falls this far. This game could be a landing spot for Penn State or Wisconsin to take on either Louisville or Virginia Tech.

Who should Ohio State fans root for?


Wisconsin will probably be ranked behind Penn State in the next playoff rankings, so Buckeyes should probably root for them. After all, the Badgers don’t have a head to head win over Ohio State, and the lower ranked team should be less likely to jump the Buckeyes. Ohio State fans should probably also root for Clemson or Washington to lose their championship games, freeing up more potential spots for non-conference champions to grab a spot in the field. If that’s what the committee has to do, it would be nearly impossible to argue another non-champion had a superior profile to the Buckeyes.

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Penn State, not Ohio State, will represent the Big Ten East at the conference championship game
Luke Zimmermann via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here


Ohio State’s next game will almost assuredly come around the new year.

Say what you will about James Franklin’s in-game management or the benefit of not playing any of the best teams from the Big Ten’s West division, but a pretty good 10-2 Nittany Lions team will ride a big win over Michigan State to the 2016 Big Ten Championship Game.

By beating the Spartans, PSU clinches a share of the Big Ten East division crown along with Ohio State but will head to Indianapolis in lieu of the Buckeyes by virtue of their come from behind head-to-head win over the Bucks.

Though Ohio State beat Michigan, a team that beat Penn State by 39 points, OSU failing to hold on to a lead on the road in State College will prohibit Urban Meyer from winning his second Big Ten conference crown in five years at the helm of OSU. He’ll have to settle for a possible College Football Playoff berth.

Should Penn State prevail over the Big Ten West’s champions, Wisconsin, the playoff committee will have a difficult decision on their hands. The CFP’s rather short two year precedent says conference championships are as valuable of a tiebreaker as exists, but Ohio State went 11-1 in the regular season while Penn State has two-losses, the blowout loss to Michigan and a loss to four-loss in-state rival Pitt.

Is two-losses with a head to head victory more valuable than 11-1 with a win over won of the teams that beat the one that defeated you? We’ll find out Sunday, December 4 when the College Football Playoff unveil the four teams set to participate in the 2016-17 playoff.

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Buckeyes in Playoff position after epic double-overtime win over Michigan - Comcast SportsNet Chicago
via Google News using key phrase "Buckeyes".


Buckeyes in Playoff position after epic double-overtime win over Michigan
Comcast SportsNet Chicago
Ohio State might not compete for a Big Ten championship, but the Buckeyes put themselves in position for a spot in the College Football Playoff on Saturday. Curtis Samuel scampered into the end zone from 15 yards out in double overtime to send Ohio ...

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Dienhart: Ohio State gets ‘pulsating and heart-stopping’ win vs. Michigan
Tom Dienhart, BTN.com Senior Writer via Big Ten Network

Ohio State’s pulsating and heart-stopping 30-27 double-overtime win vs. Michigan adds another delicious chapter to an already illustrious rivalry steeped in lore. The Buckeyes domination in a series known simply as “The Game” continues, as they are 13-2 since 2001.

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Buckeyes win opener over Falcons, 46-28 - Athens Messenger (registration)
via Google News using key phrase "Buckeyes".


Buckeyes win opener over Falcons, 46-28
Athens Messenger (registration)
Buckeyes win opener over Falcons, 46-28. By Kevin Wiseman Messenger sports editor; 1 hr ago; 0. ALBANY -- The Buckeyes' season opener didn't get off to the best offensive start. Thank you for reading! Please log in, or sign up for a new account and ...


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