Ohio State entered the College Football Playoff coming off a devastating loss to Michigan.
The 13-10 loss against the Wolverines on Nov. 30 was the fourth-straight for the Buckeyes against their biggest rival and cranked the heat on head coach Ryan Day up to nuclear levels. There were more than a few analysts and even Ohio State fans who thought the team had no chance to make noise in the Playoff with Day leading the way.
So far though, those people have been wrong. Ohio State blasted Tennessee by 25 in the first round of the College Football Playoff before thumping No. 1 and previously unbeaten Oregon by 20 in the quarterfinal at the Rose Bowl on New Year’s Day. That win set up a date with Texas in the semis Friday night at the Cotton Bowl in Arlington, Texas.
Ohio State has been playing at an incredibly high level the last two weeks, and former Buckeye head coach Urban Meyer said a recent philosophical change has made a difference.
On “The Triple Option” podcast Monday, Meyer hinted at some tweaks along the offensive line, but declined to go into detail about what they were.
“My understanding is Ohio State simplified things with the offensive line. That’s the one area that has struggled,” Meyer said.
The obvious change the Buckeyes made up front involves a new three-man rotation at guard. Ohio State’s offensive line has been hit with injuries throughout the season, causing some reshuffling in the unit.
Heading into the Playoff, offensive line coach Justin Frye made the decision to begin mixing in Luke Montgomery more at offensive guard, rotating him in with starters Austin Siereveld and Tegra Tshabola.
“We just felt like last week that was a good match,” Frye said about the decision. “They (Tennessee) were so big and powerful inside to be able to wear those guys down as much as we could. So, it was good. And then Luke had been getting better and getting closer. And it’s like, you know what? We can use him. And he went out and performed.”
If there were any other alterations made behind the scenes that Meyer was referring to, we probably won’t know what they are until after the season ends.
If Ohio State continues playing the way it has, this season will conclude with them winning the program’s first national championship in 10 years.
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