Oregon vs. Ohio State: Stats, Box Score for College Football Championship 2015
Numbers say the Oregon Ducks should have taken down the Ohio State Buckeyes.
Las Vegas' line said it. A higher-scoring offense, passing attack and the fact the Buckeyes trotted out a third-string quarterback Monday night all said it, too.
Call the Buckeyes a team of destiny, though.
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It helps that Ezekiel Elliott ran wild for 246 yards and four scores. Cardale Jones threw for 242 yards and accounted for a pair of touchdowns. Heisman Trophy winner Marcus Mariota threw for 333 yards and a pair of scores, but drops and rough line play birthed a disaster.
Oregon struck first, but as the box score shows, Ohio State took an early lead and played keep-away. There are a few key statistical areas to highlight in what may be one of the top national championship stories of all time.
College Football Championship 2015 Box Score
| Oregon | 7 | 3 | 10 | 0 | 20 |
| Ohio State | 14 | 7 | 7 | 14 | 42 |
Stats to Know
The Silencing of the Ducks
For a brief moment, the Buckeyes appeared never to have a chance.
Conventional wisdom before the game suggested that if Mariota and the Ducks could grab an early lead, they could keep the pedal to the floor and hoist the program's first-ever title.
It looked that way, too, as the Ducks stormed out of the gate faster than California Chrome, going a gaudy 75 yards on 11 plays in just 2:39 to take a 7-0 lead.
Yahoo Sports broke down just how quick the Ducks started:
Then, well, nothing.
Urban Meyer's defense, led by rushers Joey Bosa and Adolphus Washington as well as tackle Michael Bennett, made adjustments and shut down the Ducks in a major way.
Digest this, per ESPN Stats & Information—the Ducks scored one touchdown and averaged south of five plays per drive the rest of the contest.
Former NFL scout John Middlekauff puts it best:
Granted, the lone Oregon touchdown after the opening salvo came on a 70-yard touchdown pass by Mariota to Byron Marshall, but the point stands.
The Ohio State defense stood tall, silencing arguably one of the best quarterbacks in collegiate football history after seeing the best he had to offer right away.
Individual Hardware Means Little
Heisman winners stand no chance against the Buckeyes.
A note by ESPN, linked above, says it all: "Ohio State is the first school in college football history to defeat the top three Heisman vote-getters in the same season."
Remember what a tough task the Big Ten Championship against Wisconsin was supposed to be? Running back Melvin Gordon, who ran for 2,587 yards and 29 touchdowns this year, gained just 76 yards on a 2.9-yards-per-carry average against the Buckeyes in that contest.
Alabama wideout Amari Cooper, who posted a gaudy 124 catches for 1,727 yards and 16 scores, caught nine passes for 71 yards and two scores, not enough in a 42-35 loss in the College Football Playoff semifinal.
Then there is Mariota. One of the most dominant Heisman winners in history thanks to 40 touchdowns and three picks through the air entering Monday night as well as 15 more scores on the ground simply could not get it done.
To be fair to Mariota, he was without three of his top five receivers. Then again, his line was healthier than it had been all season.
Regardless, Ohio State's impressive streak against Heisman winners finishes with an exclamation point.
Cardale Jones' Booming Arm
Tired of hearing about Jones' arm strength yet?
Sorry, but Monday night only validated the chatter. His aforementioned final numbers in no way jump off the page, but his ability to hit targets deep is something the Oregon defense was ill-prepared to counter.
It was also an embodiment of Ohio State's philosophy change with Jones under center rather than J.T. Barrett. From ESPN:
"Cardale Jones completed 4-of-6 passes thrown 20 yards or longer against Oregon, the most completions the Ducks allowed in a game this season. Since Jones took over as Ohio State's starter, the Buckeyes have gained 55% of their passing yards on throws of 20 yards or longer; they had gained 25% of their passing yards on deep passes in their first 12 games, primarily with J.T. Barrett at quarterback.
"
So much for Mariota's high-flying attack hogging the spotlight, right?
Jones' arm is the reason his top four wideouts on the night averaged more than 10 yards per catch:
| Corey Smith | 2 | 76 | 38.0 | 0 | 50 |
| Michael Thomas | 4 | 53 | 13.3 | 0 | 23 |
| Jalin Marshall | 5 | 52 | 10.4 | 0 | 26 |
| Devin Smith | 1 | 45 | 45.0 | 0 | 45 |
Not bad for a quarterback who made his third career start Monday night, the fewest by any at his position in history to win the national championship.
Ezekiel Elliott's Dash to the Record Books
Where to start with Elliott?
His 33-yard touchdown dash in the first quarter tied things up at seven apiece and kept the Buckeyes in it until the defense made the aforementioned adjustments.
The run also happens to be the longest touchdown allowed by a stout Oregon defense all season.
That is just the beginning, though, as the offensive MVP of Monday's affair set a few records, too:
"With all the stuff we went through to get here, it's just crazy," Elliott said, per ESPN.com. "It doesn't feel real."
What is real is Elliott's place in history, albeit one that has a "to be continued' asterisk next to it.
See, Elliott's performance Monday, improving down the stretch as he did on the season as a whole to lift the Buckeyes to a title, is just the beginning.
Elliott is no longer the most underrated back in the country. Now, he resides at the top, and as a sophomore, he will be back in Columbus for at least one more season to take another shot at the CFP and the record books—and maybe pop a Heisman pose along the way.
Statistics and info courtesy of ESPN.com unless otherwise specified.
