Ohio State proved a lot of doubters wrong, myself included.
They lost to Virginia Tech. They survived Penn State. They struggled with Indiana and fought off a valiant effort from Michigan. Yet the Buckeyes conquered the college football world with offensive and defensive lines that just kept getting better, a battery ram of a running back named Ezekiel Elliott, and a third string quarterback that looked every bit like a seasoned veteran.
So, with the first ever College Football Playoff trophy headed to Columbus, what did we learn from this season?
Let's start with the most obvious: love him or hate him, Urban Meyer can coach. He delivered an undefeated season in Utah. He won two titles at Florida and now he's brought a title to Ohio State. The depth of the Buckeyes, notably at quarterback, was simply astounding. Ohio State threw a lot of fresh bodies when they could against the high speed Oregon attack. The result? While Oregon usually is the fresher team that overwhelms their opponents in the fourth quarter, the Buckeyes gave the Ducks a piece of their own medicine. Nick Saban will have to take a step back for now; Meyer's the guy to beat.
Most of the media, along with fans all over the country, declared this year as the end of the SEC, which now has to settle for having won eight of the last 10 national titles. While the first national title game in the playoff era lacked a certain Southeast flavor, it's premature to announce the ultimate demise of the SEC. The league had one great team in Alabama and a lot of very good, just not great teams following in line, similar to the Pac-12, who had a great team in Oregon and then a lot of very good, but not great teams behind. The Big 10 had one awesome team in Ohio State, a great team in Michigan State and some good teams down from that.
What does that tells us? There's no doubt that the rest of the country has caught up to the SEC and that an era of dominance the league had during the BCS era will be nearly impossible for any league to match in the playoff era. The league did go 7-5, 2-2 against the Big Ten in bowls, 1-1 against them in the regular season. They're down, just not out.
The league that is down? The Big 12. Yes, TCU showed they were certainly worthy of a spot in the college football playoff, but other than that, what did that conference do? Oklahoma State was the only other team in the conference to win a bowl game. Clemson humiliated Oklahoma. Arkansas went to the Texas Bowl and stomped Texas in the process. West Virginia lost to A&M, joining Texas Tech in the "0-2 vs. the SEC" column. Kansas State put up a fight, yet still lost. Finally, Baylor, fresh off the burn of not gaining one of the four coveted playoff spots, choked a big lead against Michigan State. So, the Big 12 for 2015 looks to be TCU, Baylor behind them and then a free for all afterwards.
Fast, no-huddle offenses are all the rage in college football right now. However, we learned again this season that, without a solid defense, those offenses can win you games but not titles. Oregon struggled mightily against Ohio State's defense, especially in the red zone. Last year's runner-up, Auburn, struggled as well defensively, causing them to limp through the end of the season. Gus Malzahn has figured it out, bringing in Will Muschamp to shore up his defensive woes. The question for Oregon will be what to do on defense to finish the championship quest that still eludes them. One solution? Maybe both teams should look into how TCU molds athletes into solid defensive players; it could solve problems quicker than expected.
Finally, what we learned is that the College Football Playoff needs to go to eight teams and soon. TCU finished third in the final polls, yet it's tough to see where they could've fit into one of the final four spots when the selections were made. Alabama, ranked No. 1, had to have a spot. Oregon, ranked No. 2, had to have a spot. Florida State, as the only undefeated team, had to be in. Ohio State won the title. It's hard to argue with the members of the CFP selection committee for their selections. Yet, the thought of Ohio State vs. TCU is way too good to pass up. Eventually, four won't be enough. Eight will be.
We're a little over seven months away from the start of a new season and new, passionate debates to argue about the future of the sport. However, you have to hand it to the 2014 season. For sheer entertainment, it delivered.
Leave a Comment