College Football Playoff 2018: Irish force way into picture post-Week 5

Ohio State on top of Big Ten

In an incredible Big Ten showdown, No. 4 Ohio State and No. 9 Penn State faced off in “White Out” State College. The game taught us a lot about both teams, but the biggest thing we learned was that these teams can actually play defense. Ultimately, Ohio State won, 27-26 as the game came down to the wire.

But back to the learning point about defense. Before the game, Ohio State had been averaging nearly 55 points per game. So the offensive ability was never in question. What we were unsure about was the Buckeye’s ability to play defense against a quality opponent. Ohio State showed it could hold the number one offense in the country to 26 points in their own stadium.

With Urban Meyer back on the sidelines, and two quality wins on the biggest stages against TCU and Penn State, the Buckeyes have earned their right to be number two in the College Football Playoff ranking.

The Buckeyes get a slight break next week when they play Indiana at home. However, Indiana will be coming to play, so Ohio State still has to prepare appropriately.