College Football Championship 2015: Early Preview for Oregon vs. Ohio State
The College Football Playoff kicked off in stupendous style on New Year's Day. Oregon blew out the defending champion Florida State Seminoles 59-20, while Ohio State staged a rousing comeback to top Alabama 42-35 in the Sugar Bowl.
That sets the stage for the Buckeyes and the Ducks to battle it out for the national championship on January 12 at AT&T Stadium.
SportsCenter notes that Oregon is considered the favorite to start, which makes sense in light of its dominant outing in Pasadena:
.jpg?w=256 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
Recent history has seen the likes of Alabama and Florida State reach college football's mountaintop with a physical style of play, pro-style offensive principles and old-school grit. The new-age, flashy spread teams have often come up small on the big stage.
Such wasn't the case Thursday, and now the national title will be contested between two high-octane offenses that should have no trouble lighting up the scoreboard and providing a great show.
Prior to a more detailed early breakdown of the upcoming Oregon-Ohio State showdown, take a look at the viewing information for the epic finale of this new postseason format.
| Monday, January 12 | No. 2 Oregon vs. No. 4 Ohio State | 8:30 p.m. | ESPN | WatchESPN |
No. 2 Oregon vs. No. 4 Ohio State Preview
What's quite stunning about the Ducks' trouncing of Florida State is that Heisman Trophy winner Marcus Mariota missed some easy throws in the first half that could have broken the game open sooner.
Although the Seminoles helped Oregon by giving the ball away five times, Mariota and his offense demoralized FSU into a meltdown after a tight start.
This note from ESPN Stats & Info shows how little margin of error Oregon's opponents have:
The Buckeyes put themselves in an early 21-6 hole and committed two critical turnovers versus Alabama. Starting slowly against the Ducks may doom OSU, as it must establish a ground game led by Ezekiel Elliott.
Considering Elliott gashed the Tide's top-ranked rush defense for 230 yards on just 20 carries, that task seems feasible.
Bruce Feldman of Fox Sports highlighted how brilliant Elliott has been in carrying the offensive load for Ohio State amid a turbulent quarterback situation:
Third-string QB Cardale Jones has led the Buckeyes to wins in the Big Ten title game and in the Sugar Bowl, proving he can handle the spotlight. His demeanor shouldn't change now, but he'd have to play his best yet to outgun Mariota for the national championship.
Jones and the OSU offense stalled Thursday in the fourth quarter before Elliott saved the day with an 85-yard touchdown run. Nevertheless, it's been a brilliant coaching job by Urban Meyer to push the Buckeyes to the brink of a championship.
The following comments from Meyer suggest that the College Football Playoff's cap-off clash will have to be close (via Fox Sports' Stewart Mandel):
Feldman reports that electric Ducks wideout Devon Allen is expected to miss the national championship contest, so that will help Ohio State's secondary and aid the efforts of its top-flight pass rush.
In a game that may well come down to the final possession, Mariota should give the Ducks the edge to pull off a victory. The absence of Allen didn't hurt Oregon in the Rose Bowl, and its uptempo rushing attack racked up 301 yards and five touchdowns.
A triumph in this one would cap off a dream season for Mariota. He won't be able to run as well against the Buckeyes' athletic front seven, which features defensive end Joey Bosa and rangy linebacker Darron Lee, but Mariota's improvisational skills to produce big passing plays will be the difference.
As much deserved attention and acclaim as Meyer will continue to attract regardless of the result moving forward, Ducks coach Mark Helfrich would acquit himself as a most worthy successor to Chip Kelly, if he hasn't already.
Helfrich has kept Oregon on course since Kelly's NFL departure, and the Ducks, like their offense, are showing few signs of slowing down anytime soon.
Prediction: Oregon 35, Ohio State 31
.jpg?w=480 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
