By Andrea Hoffman, HoffmanA@Findlay.edu
On Monday, Jan. 15, Ohio State University will play in the NCAA Division I Football National Championship since their stride in the 2021 season. The Buckeyes haven’t claimed the title since the first National Championship in the CFP era back in 2014.
On Jan. 20, the eighth seeded Buckeyes face off against the seventh seeded Notre Dame Fighting Irish for the College Football Playoff’s Orange Bowl in Atlanta, GA. Both teams fought hard in the fourth quarter wins from their semifinal matchups.
Last week, the Buckeyes defeated Texas 28-14 when Jack Sawyer returned a fumble from the Longhorns quarterback Quinn Ewers. With a little over two minutes left in the game Sawyer’s 83-yard touchdown posted the longest fumble return in CFP history and put the Buckeyes in the lead. The Buckeyes posted the semifinal victory in the same stadium where ten years ago they clinched their last national championship, punching their ticket to potentially reclaim the title in the first season with an expanded 12-team field.
In similar fourth quarter action, the Fighting Irish punched their ticket to the national championship with seconds remaining in the game. The score was tied 24-24 with just 33 seconds left in the fourth quarter when Penn State’s quarterback Drew Allar threw an interception to Notre Dame’s Christian Gray at the Nittany Lions’ 42-yard line. In the last seven seconds the Fighting Irish’s kicker Mitch Jeter buried a 41-yard field goal to lead them to a 27-24 victory over the Nittany Lions’.
The Buckeyes head coach Ryan Day received criticism from both the media and fans after a 13-10 loss in the last game of the regular season to longtime rival Michigan. Uproar rang out questioning his coaching ability after the Buckeyes inability to defeat unranked Michigan.
“A National Championship win would solidify Ryan Day’s leadership in this program now, and in the future despite the criticism he received after the loss against Michigan,” said UF student, and lifelong Buckeye fan Andrew O’Toole.
The loss may have cost them a spot in the Big Ten championship game, but they were still selected for the first ever 12-team CFP. The Buckeyes were back on their feet in the first round against #9 Tennessee posting a 42-17 win, which landed them in the quarterfinals against #1 Oregon. They continued their stride to the semifinals after a 41-21 win against the Ducks.
With an overall record of 13-2, the Buckeyes haven’t let their loss against rival Michigan stop them from reaching the goal of winning the CFP National Championship. On the defensive side of the ball OSU ranks number one in the FBS according to SP+ allowing just 161.1 passing yards per game this season. Offensively the Buckeyes also rank in the top 10 in success rate, EPA/play and marginal efficiency.
Findlay native Luke Montogomery has been assisting the Buckeyes success on the offensive line. Montgomery graduated from Findlay High School in 2022, and in 2023 was one of only four true freshmen on the Buckeyes squad to letter. He has played in 12 games this season including all three playoff games so far.
Former UF football head coach Rob Keys now assists the Buckeyes special team’s unit. Keys spent 11 years as head coach at UF accumulating a 75-42 record, and led the Oilers to a pair of appearances in the NCAA Division II playoffs. This is his third season as a quality control kicking coach at OSU.
With various ties back to the Findlay community this National Championship stride for the Buckeyes hits close to home.
The National Championship game will broadcast nationally on ESPN at 7:30 p.m. ET. The game can also be live streamed on ESPN+, the ESPN app and Fubo.