Ohio State football pulled away late to win at the Big House against Michigan. Here are three takeaways from the rivalry victory by the Big Ten East champions.
Rivalries are always funny affairs. Ohio State had already locked up a trip to Indianapolis for the Big Ten championship game. They also had a tall task of getting back into the College Football Playoff race, even if they beat Wisconsin in the title game. That meant their visit to Ann Arbor was the purest of grudge matches.
Michigan made life difficult for the Buckeyes on their trip to the Big House. The two teams were tied 14-14 at halftime, and the Wolverines took a 20-14 lead in the third quarter. But the talent from Columbus proved too hard to contain for a full four quarters for the young Michigan side, and Urban Meyer’s squad eventually pulled away for the 31-20 victory on the road.
The win gave Ohio State its 10th victory of the season, but it also raised some questions about where the Buckeyes are in the national picture. What did we learn from the 115th edition of The Game? Keep reading for three takeaways from the Buckeyes victory on Saturday afternoon in early Week 13 action.
3. Ohio State is no College Football Playoff contender in 2017
Yes, Ohio State won on Saturday. But their struggle to pull away from the Wolverines revealed a painful truth for Buckeyes fans. Quite simply, Urban Meyer’s crew does not deserve a place in the College Football Playoff discussion this season.
Even if they knock off Wisconsin for the Big Ten title, an 11-2 Ohio State squad would still have those two losses hanging over its head. The first, on its home turf against Big 12 contender Oklahoma, wouldn’t be damning on its own. But the second should be an immediate disqualifier that takes the Buckeyes out of the Playoff picture.
That loss, of course, was a 55-24 blowout in Iowa City against the 7-5 Hawkeyes. That loss revealed the Buckeyes to be contenders rather than pretenders. And given the way that Ohio State struggled to take down Michigan on the road, that 11-point margin of victory is a mirage that should not blind the College Football Playoff selection committee.
No matter what happens in Indianapolis, Meyer’s crew is almost certainly headed to a New Year’s Six bowl game. And we’ve seen the committee give the Buckeyes the benefit of the doubt in the past. But a hot-and-cold regular season from Ohio State hardly merits a spot in the top four, even though they could still earn a bid to the Rose Bowl or the Sugar Bowl.
2. The rebuild at Michigan is still a work in progress for Jim Harbaugh
Jim Harbaugh’s team has put in a valiant effort all season long. The Wolverines entered 2017 with one of the youngest teams in the entire country, after losing over a dozen starters from last year’s squad. Contending for the Big Ten was always going to be a longshot, but things got even tougher when starting quarterback Wilton Speight was injured early in the season.
In its regular-season finale against rival Ohio State, the Wolverines put in an impressive first half. But inexperience and a lack of depth ultimately proved costly for Michigan, as they ran out of steam in the upset bid against the Buckeyes.
In the first half, Michigan traded punches with the Buckeyes. But they also failed to capitalize on key opportunities, such as a surefire interception that was dropped a few plays before Barrett ran in for Ohio State’s first touchdown of the game. A blocked extra point took the wind out of their sails after the Wolverines took the lead in the third quarter.
A bowl game still lies in the future for the Wolverines. And this season helped build valuable experience for the first few Harbaugh recruiting classes. But the rebuilding efforts are still incomplete in Ann Arbor. Michigan proved in 2017 that they remain behind other Big East contenders like the Buckeyes, Penn State, and Michigan State.
1. J.T. Barrett has no business being in the Heisman discussion
A lot of hype was bestowed upon J.T. Barrett coming into the showdown against Michigan. He became the first quarterback to go 4-0 against the rival Wolverines. He also drew level for the school record in quarterback wins, and could surpass that mark with a win over Wisconsin and/or a victory in the postseason. But Barrett was hardly instrumental to the victory in Ann Arbor.
Before exiting the game with what appeared to be a knee injury, Barrett continued the Jekyll-and-Hyde act that has plagued his game all season long. Barrett completed just three of his eight passing attempts, throwing for 30 yards before being sidelined. Though he did throw a touchdown pass, it was hardly an impressive performance through the air.
Barrett redeemed himself on the ground, running for 67 yards and a touchdown on 15 carries. He failed, however, to put in the kind of performance that would have been necessary to keep himself in the Heisman race. He already lost the head-to-head battle against Oklahoma frontrunner Baker Mayfield. He lacks the kind of numbers to leap ahead of even other quarterbacks like McKenzie Milton.
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Barrett threw for over 300 yards just thrice during the regular season, and he never posted a single game with at least 100 rushing yards. For a guy touted as a dual-threat quarterback, that just wasn’t going to cut it in the race. He might get some pity votes from Midwestern voters, but Barrett has no business in the Heisman race after being outplayed by backup Dwayne Haskins in the Michigan win.