The Ohio State Buckeyes dominated the Tennessee Volunteers from start-to-finish, and as a result, picked up a win in the first-round of the College Football Playoff.
For nearly three weeks, Ohio State fans have been blasting their program — and their head coach Ryan Day — for losing to Michigan for yet another year. The Buckeyes, who didn't make it to the Big Ten championship game, had to sit during conference title weekend and await their placement in the College Football Playoff.
Then, in the lead-up to the game, there were threats of an orange invasion in Ohio Stadium. Tennessee fans went out and bought up thousands of tickets to make their presence felt in Ohio State, even if it was a road game for the Volunteers.
There were questions heading into this one if Ohio State even had the motivation to right the ship, especially after the heavy backlash Ryan Day had faced. There were legitimate national analysts sharing that they were unsure that Day would be the coach at Ohio State next year. Then, the game itself got here.
Ohio State jumped out to a 21-0 lead and never looked back. The Buckeyes thoroughly dominated Tennessee in every single aspect of the game. They were the more physical team, they were the faster team, they were the more talented team, and they were the better coached team.
Frustrations changed to jubilee in Columbus and all felt right in the world. But, what about the elephant in the room?
Is all forgiven for Ryan Day?
While no one knows for certain what will happen the rest of the way, it would be next to impossible for Ohio State to fire Ryan Day now. If Day had lost in the first-round and finished the season with back-to-back losses, there might be a case to be made. But, with a win in the first-round — and potentially more on the way depending on the Buckeyes' performance the rest of the way — there's no reason to believe that Day is going anywhere.
Ohio State will now get its rematch with Oregon in the second-round of the College Football Playoff. The game will be played in the Rose Bowl on January 1.