Buckeyes hit break with eye on passing improvements

In winning the Big Ten, Penn State could celebrate an achievement unto itself. “All along, I believed we were one of the best four teams in the country”.

Does this sound familiar?

Penn State: 4th trip to Rose Bowl, 46th bowl game overall.

“How long it was going to take us to get to one of these games, I did not have a number on it”, Franklin said. The playoff hit them early. “It’s on you now, the committee”. Hocutt also said the decision to take Washington over the Nittany Lions came after “a detailed conversation that went on for hours and hours”.

The USC Trojans enter a college football game.

The Buckeyes had a lot to prove and the players delivered.

Alabama is in the playoff for the third straight season, while Ohio State, which won the first CFP title, and Clemson are both making their second CFP appearances.

This validated the inclusion of OSU into the Playoff and ended the argument for the Horned Frogs or the Bears.

The mantra around the Ohio State program is “nine units strong”, meaning that all position groups — quarterback, running back, receivers, tight ends, offensive line, defensive line, linebackers, cornerbacks and safeties — must be up to the task.

The situation is certainly different for the Scarlet and Gray this time around.

THE SERIES: Clemson and Ohio State have played twice before, both in bowl games.

College football proclaims to care about its regular season more than any other sport.

The announcement of the four teams for the College Football Playoff on Sunday elicited hand-wringing, cries of foul play, cries of favoritism for Ohio State and calls for an eight-team playoff.

It still insane the conference champion, from the country’s best conference is not in.

It’s a credit to Coach Urban Meyer that Ohio State (11-1) is in the playoff for the second time in three years considering the Buckeyes brought back just six starters off last year’s team, the fewest of any school in the country.

Hancock was asked about Big 12 commissioner Bob Bowlsby asking about importance of conference championship game (Ohio State didn’t need one) and the strength of non-conference schedule (Washington’s was questioned). Penn State lost to Pitt and MI (by 39) before closing the season with nine straight victories. The Nittany Lions outscored the Badgers 24-3 in the second half to escape with the win.

It’s hard to get much better in this college football landscape than the Big Ten, which has supplanted the SEC as the best top-to-bottom conference in college football.

Wisconsin (10-3) had an outside chance to crack the top CFP playoffs, but lost the Big Ten title game to Penn State on Saturday.

OSU’s focus will not be on proving its merit to anyone.

It has been 443 days since Alabama last lost a game _ a 43-37 loss to Ole Miss on September 19, 2015 _ and for 96 of those days, the Crimson Tide have been the top ranked team in the country.

The victor of the Ohio State-Clemson matchup will take on the victor of the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl between the top-ranked Alabama Crimson Tide and No. 4 Washington Huskies in the College Football Playoff National Championship Game at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida, on Monday, January 9.

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