Ohio State's playoff victory raises fun questions about a certain loss

Chuck Culpepper
| Washington Post

Columbus, Ohio — Ohio State looked like such a sparkling constellation as strangulation of Tennessee, 42-17, Saturday night that the Buckeyes made it seem like they were capable of treating America to one of the funniest philosophical questions in sports.

Question: If Ohio State won a national football championship but lost unthinkably to Michigan on the way to that championship, is that season considered successful?

Could some of the Buckeyes’ surly fan base answer no?

Could someone take a survey?

As crazy as the question may seem, it hangs and seduces on the horizon as the Buckeyes advance to a delicious national quarterfinal at the Rose Bowl on Jan. 1 against undefeated Oregon, a rematch of their Donnybrook 32-31 d October in Eugene.

Although Ohio State (11-2) looked utterly fabulous in this first round of the College Football Playoff – fabulous at quarterback, running back, wide receiver, offensive line, defense – it is clear that he was still going through the crisis of the previous three weeks and his stupefaction. 13-10 home defeat (and fourth consecutive annual defeat) against the rival that their fans rather hate.

Their motley tangle of thoughts was aptly described by eloquent senior offensive lineman Donovan Jackson, who said, “Of course, this is going to be with us for the rest of our lives, but we can’t dwell on it- on it now.” In the context of a rivalry within a sport, this seems logical: They have to live with 13-10 for the rest of their lives, but the 12-team playoff means they can’t live with that for the moment.

Quarterback Will Howard, speaking of an offensive line that kept him from being sacked against a stellar Tennessee defensive line and allowed the 24-for-29 performance he delivered with precision, referred to the scapegoated his protectors up front when he said, “I’m so proud of these guys, man. I’ve had to listen to them being” – and here he briefly searched for a word – “harassed for the last three weeks. I had to sit here and pretend it didn’t affect me.

Coach Ryan Day, that rare case of a man both 67-10 and struggling, said, “The first week (after 13-10) was identifying the problems. You don’t just leave this match. He used the phrase “real conversations.” And three weeks after standing at the same lectern looking like a zombie, he said: “To say it doesn’t weigh on you, it weighs on you. We have a lot of pride. These guys have a lot of pride.

That’s why everything from relief to recovery to joy to exuberance looked the same in the fourth quarter with the score 42-10 and the game resolved, when Day’s stoic face on the The touch gave way to a big smile when he noticed defensive end Jack Sawyer approaching from his left. “I just said (to Day), ‘All Day Long,'” Sawyer said. “I’m trying to make it a slogan for him. He’s going through so much. And: “Coaches Day is awesome. We all love him.

Love hasn’t been dominating the atmosphere lately, although a 10-2 and a home playoff game might attract love in some areas. On Saturday night, a lack of love could have contributed to some striking scenes for anyone who had made several visits to Ohio Stadium in their life.

Normally, visiting fans heading to the famous Horseshoe quietly carry their gear and pride. They are just a droplet of the crowd on the sidewalks. They may seem acutely aware of impending defeat.

But now – now the Tennessee orange was thriving downtown. It dominated certain bars and restaurants. There were shouts and screams in the streets. He sat in the driver’s seats of at least two cars with the windows rolled down to 28 degrees outside and with “Rocky Top,” Tennessee’s perennial anthem, wafting merrily through the sound systems.

He drove en masse along the sidewalks. And when he took his place in the stadium, he could have made the jaws of the regulars drop with the way he created enough clustered oranges amid Ohio State’s customary scarlet that the grandstand has come to resemble so many peak season autumn leaves. While Tennessee fans marveled at the availability and affordability of tickets to their team’s first playoff run in the postseason era and reveled in the coolness, Ohio State fans allowed the popular intrusion either out of anger (at 13-10) or out of horror (at 13-10). meant something deeper than just a 13-10), or apathy (to a sixth-place playoff finish in 11 playoff seasons).

Then, as the stadium filled with agitation and doubt, Day’s players resonated something else: “You could tell from the jump,” he said, “they had their eyes in the eyes they were going to win.”

They got a break early on on a third-and-2 when a 13-yard sack by Howard that promised a punt was negated with a facemask penalty for a first down, and they took off from there . They would take a 21-0 lead at 3:27 of the first quarter. They would lead to yardage 191 at minus-6. Their linemen exhorted the crowd of 102,819 – well, the scarlet majority, anyway. They would lead in yards 251-16. Their dream receivers were rushing the facility at angles maddening for the defender, and freshman Jeremiah Smith earned Day’s description as “dynamic again” with his six catches for 103 yards and superb movement during of a fourth and four conversions. The great Emeka Egbuka would catch five for 81. Running back TreVeyon Henderson would muster 80 rushing yards and 54 catches and look so good.

Tennessee (10-3) would get within 21-10 at halftime, lending some scare portions even though a hamstring injury to its big running back Dylan Sampson limited Sampson’s carries to two. Day would say, “We knew coming out of the second half we had to win the next four to five minutes. » They would earn those minutes in an act of reaffirmation, with a stop to open, then with a six-play, 65-yard drive rich in beauty, especially Howard’s 22-yard touchdown pass to Smith near the left edge of the end . area.

“I thought we did a heck of a job not letting off the gas,” Howard said, shortly after Day, that former quarterback coach, said of Howard: “I thought his footwork was good. We worked hard on some of those throws. He was accurate today. And what’s important for Will is his footwork. than anyone in the country He certainly looked like. someone capable of lasting leadership.

We are therefore at the mop-up stage. The orange sections of Tennessee finally began to clear up in the 21-degree temperature of the start of the fourth quarter. Day had his moment with Sawyer. Ohio State fans opted for the mockery: “SEC!” SECOND!” Tennessee had 183 total yards when it began its final drive, and after scoring on that score, as the clock stopped at 1:56, the public address briefly played a few chords of “Rocky Top” for evil trolling.

The teams took to the field for handshakes. Day looked elated. Howard looked elated while carrying a rose. The interview room gathered and the first question asked: “Where was this performance hiding?”

It was a classic question from a demanding environment, one for which another classic question almost arose two years ago – when Ohio State lost to Michigan but came close to winning. ‘a national title – and could still land here shortly.