Ohio State is ready for its rematch with Oregon
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Jake Trotter, ESPN Senior Writer
COLUMBUS, Ohio — The fourth quarter had just begun when the chants around the Horseshoe started.
“We want Oregon.”
In the tunnel underneath the Ohio State student section, Rose Bowl staffers readied red roses for the locker room celebration, as Brutus emerged from the catacomb with the first bouquet.
The Ohio State backups still had several minutes to play before Tennessee was officially put away. But the Buckeyes had already mentally moved on to their looming rematch against Oregon in the Rose Bowl quarterfinal on New Year’s Day.
With its empathic 42-17 victory over the Volunteers in the first round of the College Football Playoff, Ohio State set the stage for a second showdown with the Ducks, who defeated the Buckeyes 32-31 in Eugene on Oct. 12 on the way to an undefeated regular season, Big Ten championship and the CFP’s No. 1 overall seed.
The Buckeyes had every chance to win that October game. But with Ohio State driving in the final seconds, star freshman wideout Jeremiah Smith was flagged for a controversial offensive pass interference call, pushing the Buckeyes out of field goal range. Quarterback Will Howard then inexplicably slid as time expired, ending the game at the Oregon 26-yard line.
“We’ve all been looking forward to this one and for another crack at these guys,” said Howard, who had a rose stem in his teeth as he congratulated teammates coming off the field after the victory over Tennessee. “The way that last one ended doesn’t sit right with me. It still bugs me.”
The Ohio State defense has been a different unit since that first crack at the Ducks.
Oregon quarterback Dillon Gabriel threw for 341 yards and two touchdowns, as Ohio State’s talented defensive front failed to sack him once and generated quarterback pressures just twice. Oregon’s wide receivers also won their one-on-one matchups, most notably against cornerback Denzel Burke, resulting in a barrage of big plays. But since then, the Buckeyes have dominated the opposition. Since the Oregon game, they rank No. 1 nationally in fewest yards allowed per play (3.8), yards given up per game (234.4) and points surrendered per game (11.7).
“We’re looking forward to the opportunity because it was not a great game for us,” defensive coordinator Jim Knowles said of the first Oregon outing. “Quite frankly, the guys got pissed off and it led to a run for us. They used that game as motivation.”
2:47
Ohio State steamrolls Tennessee to set up Oregon rematch
Ohio State impresses in a thumping 42-17 win over Tennessee to set up a date with Oregon in the College Football Playoff.
Ohio State’s explosive offense came out motivated Saturday night after a listless performance in its regular-season finale, a 13-10 loss to Michigan. The Buckeyes also showed what they’re capable of when, as offensive coordinator Chip Kelly put it, they’re “clicking on all cylinders.”
Facing one of the SEC’s top defenses, the Buckeyes produced touchdowns on their first three drives. Tennessee couldn’t cover Smith, who scored a pair of touchdowns and had a game-high 103 receiving yards. The Vols also couldn’t tackle running back TreVeyon Henderson, who generated 134 yards of offense with two scores.
“We called this game more aggressively — there’s no question about that,” coach Ryan Day said. “But also, I think we did some things that maximized what we have in terms of our strengths and minimized our deficiencies.”
Ohio State maximized Howard and the downfield passing attack by featuring arguably college football’s top receiving duo in Smith and wideout Emeka Egbuka, who added 81 receiving yards on five receptions.
Howard responded to the challenge and his poor play against Michigan by completing 24 of 29 passes for 311 yards. His lone interception came on Ohio State’s fourth drive with the Buckeyes already up 21-0. Howard tried to zip a pass to Smith at the back of the end zone. Officials could’ve called defensive pass interference on Tennessee linebacker Arion Carter, who was draped all over Smith. Instead, Tennessee’s Will Brooks was able to corral the tipped ball for the pick before crashing out of bounds.
“I liked the call, I liked how aggressive we were,” Day said. “When you call the game aggressively, something like [that] happens. You have to be willing to live with it.”
The contrast of these past two games underscored how Ohio State’s offense is at its best when it’s aggressive. Combine that with a defense playing as well as any in college football, and it’s easy to see why Buckeyes will head to Pasadena with revenge on their mind — and a national championship run in their sights.
“Yeah, I’m excited, man,” Howard said. “We’re going to go out there and have some fun and let it rip.”
HOUSTON — Los Angeles Angels outfielder Taylor Ward was carted off the field after crashing face-first into the metal scoreboard in left field trying to make a catch in the eighth inning Sunday against the Houston Astros.
Ward was sprinting to try to make the catch on a double hit by Ramon Urias before running into the wall and being knocked to the ground. He quickly got up but immediately signaled for help. Someone came out of the bullpen and handed him a towel, which he pressed to his face.
Angels personnel quickly ran to him and he stood in the outfield as they and paramedics tended to him.
He was bleeding and appeared to have a cut above his right eye. He held a smaller cloth to his head as he was slowly carted off the field while resting his head on the shoulder of a team employee who rode the cart with him.
Ward was taken to a hospital by ambulance where interim manager Ray Montgomery said he would receive stitches to close the cut and be evaluated.
“Obviously he hit the wall pretty good,” Montgomery said. “He’s got a cut above his eye.”
Montgomery said he didn’t know if Ward had been evaluated for a concussion.
Fellow Angels outfielder Jo Adell said the team was shaken up by Ward’s injury and that a wall like that is a danger to players.
“The bottom line, and I’ve talked about this before, but there should be no out-of-town metal scoreboard anywhere on the baseball field,” Adell said. “It’s the big leagues. Like this is ridiculous. A guy goes back to make a play, and he’s got to worry about a metal fence. That’s crazy.”
Christian Moore entered the game to play second base after Ward left, while Luis Rengifo moved from second base to left field.
The Philadelphia Phillies signed veteran right-hander Walker Buehler to a minor league contract, the team announced on Sunday.
Buehler was assigned to Triple-A Lehigh Valley by Philadelphia. The Phillies plan to use Buehler, who will be eligible to pitch in the postseason, in their starting rotation, a source told ESPN’s Buster Olney.
Buehler, who got the final out in the Los Angeles Dodgers‘ World Series victory last season and was expected to be a key member of the Boston rotation this year, was released on Friday after the Red Sox concluded he couldn’t help their playoff push from the bullpen.
Buehler, 31, has struggled since signing a $21.05 million contract with Boston, going 7-7 with a 5.45 ERA. He made 22 starts before he was demoted to the bullpen last week; in his only relief appearance since earning a save in Game 5 of the Series, he allowed two runs in 2⅓ innings in a loss to the New York Yankees.
A two-time All-Star and two-time World Series champion, Buehler is 54-29 in 144 starts over eight major league seasons. He struggled last year coming off a second Tommy John surgery but pitched a perfect ninth in the Series clincher two days after pitching five shutout innings as the starter in Game 3.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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