COLUMBUS, Ohio — Ohio State didn’t get to control its destiny regarding the College Football Playoff after losing to Big Ten rival Michigan at the end of the regular season.
No matter. The Buckeyes are in the postseason, and they’re yearning for redemption.
Coach Ryan Day said his No. 4 Buckeyes (11-1) had productive practices last week and realize the opportunity they have in front of them with a semifinal showdown against top-ranked Georgia (13-0).
“I think the guys have really had good urgency about them,” Day said. “We’re going to start making the transition into game planning here soon, and then we get down to bowl week, so we have three phases when we talk about bowl practice, but the energy has been really, really good.”
The Buckeyes took the back door into the four-team playoff, benefiting from the University of Southern California’s second loss this year to Utah in the Pac-12 title game.