Ohio State Football: 5 Reasons Why the Buckeyes Will Get a Rose Bowl Berth

After an offseason full of turmoil and a rocky start to the season, the Buckeyes find themselves in an interesting position.  They still have a very legitimate shot at earning the Big Ten's automatic appearance in the Rose Bowl.

Although they are just short of controlling their own destiny in this process, winning out would almost assure Ohio State the Leaders division crown and a spot in the Big Ten Championship in Indianapolis.

The Easiest Stretch of the Schedule Is Next

Ohio State plays their next two games against Indiana and Purdue, neither of which are exceptional teams.  After which, the Buckeyes play Penn State at home and Michigan in Ann Arbor.

Indiana (1-7) will enter Columbus with just one win—against South Carolina State.  Assuming that nothing catastrophic happens, Ohio State will emerge with an easy victory.

Purdue (4-4)  is a team that severely lacks in talent and has a deceiving record.  Their win of quality was over an Illinois squad who played absolutely terrible in that game.  Look for the Buckeyes to win this game in a blow out as well.

Penn State (8-1) has had just as many issues offensively as the Buckeyes have had.  Their quarterback play has been poor and they have struggled to score points.  The Nittany Lions have played well on defense, but have had a far easier schedule than Ohio State up to this point.  Penn State still has games against Wisconsin, Ohio State and Nebraska.

After all of the talk preseason about how a conference title game could lessen the importance of "The Game," Ohio State's game against Michigan (7-1) could be the game that decides the postseason fate of both squads as Michigan is in the thick of a divisional race with Michigan State and Nebraska. 

Ohio State should have the power to push around the Michigan defense and the speed to stop Robinson, but nobody can really predict the outcome in this rivalry.

Penn State Will Lose Twice

If the Buckeyes win out, they still need Penn State to drop one more game in conference play to even the conference records of both teams.

With games against Nebraska and Wisconsin, at least one loss seems highly likely.

The Nittany Lions have had a lot of offensive struggles up to this point and lost their only real test against Alabama.

DeVier Posey Returns

For the Penn State game and beyond, senior receiver DeVier Posey will be eligible to play.  Ohio State has lacked a receiver who can consistently beat coverage and get open.  The presence of Posey on the field should help keep teams from stacking the box and blitzing constantly to stop the run.

Posey should help increase the the yards per carry of the running backs and help substantially on third downs.  He is one of the best receivers in the conference, and this will certainly show in the final games for the Buckeyes.

Ohio State Has Had Success Against the Legends Division

Despite the losses to Michigan State and Nebraska, Ohio State competed in both games.  The Buckeyes should be able to grab a win the second time around against either team.

The offense has improved since the Michigan State game.  Constant blitzes as were seen in their regular season meeting should not be as effective.  The offense will certainly be prepared for it the second time around.

Ohio State had Nebraska on the ropes before coughing up the lead late in the game.  After Miller fumbled and got hurt, the Buckeyes were not able to possess the ball at all.  The defense got extremely tired after shutting down the Nebraska offense most of the night and was one of the primary reasons Nebraska was able to score so much late in the game. 

The Team Is Constantly Improving

As the season has progressed, Ohio State has improved, just as you'd hope any young team would.  Miller has gotten better at making the right plays.  The offensive line has improved their overall play.  Both Herron and Hyde have been running the ball very well.  Hall as been fairly inconsistent but has shown the ability to be deadly in the open field.

On the defensive side of the ball, the line has done a great job of replacing the injured Nathan Williams.  John Simon has been the anchor, but young players like Johnathan Hankins have emerged as great players.  The secondary has been a bit shaky, but Roby has shown that he can be a number one cornerback.

Look for the Buckeyes to keep getting better and for it to show in their next several games.