Will Howard Says Ohio State Played 'Pissed Off' in Blowout CFP Win Over Tennessee

Ohio State sat stewing in the anger and bitterness created by its loss to Michigan for nearly a month and then took it out on Tennessee in the first round of the College Football Playoff, and quarterback Will Howard believes the team has to take the same approach in its quarterfinal showdown against Oregon.

"We played pissed off, we played angry, and you could see it," he told reporters Monday. "And I think when we play like that, we're hard to beat and we have to keep that same mentality. And I think that's really what the difference was, was that anger that pissed off, that chip on our shoulder that we played with, and that's going to be crucial in this game."

While some Buckeyes fans were surely left wondering where that anger was against the Wolverines after losing the previous three straight to their hated archrivals, the Scarlet and Gray looked like a completely different team against the Volunteers.

They jumped out to a 21-0 lead in the first quarter, were a missed pass interference call in the end zone away from likely going up 28-0 and then steamrolled the SEC opponent in the second half on the way to a 42-17 victory that wasn't even as close as the final score indicated thanks to a garbage-time Tennessee touchdown against the victors' backups.

Howard threw for 311 yards and two touchdowns, TreVeyon Henderson and Quinshon Judkins each ran for two scores, and the defense held an offense from the supposedly mighty SEC to a grand total of 3.4 yards per pass and 3.9 yards per rush.

That version of Ohio State is difficult to beat, and it should have plenty of anger-fueled motivation against the Ducks considering Oregon won the first matchup by a single point in the regular season.

It's not a stretch to suggest the Ducks and Buckeyes are the two most talented teams in the country, and the victor of Wednesday's Rose Bowl will be just two wins away from the sport's mountaintop in the first-ever 12-team CFP.

That should be plenty of motivation for Howard and Co.