Jamie Sabau/Getty Images The Ohio State Buckeyes are the overwhelming favorites to win the 2015 College Football Playoff national championship. The oddsmakers in Las Vegas have put 12/5 odds on Ohio State repeating as national champions this year – for reference, the team with the next best odds is Alabama at 7/1. On top of that, the Buckeyes received 62 out of 64 first place votes in the recently released USA Today Coaches poll. The excitement and optimism didn’t last very long, however. On the same day that the coaches poll was released, Buckeyes head coach Urban Meyer took to the podium for the first day of Big Ten Media Days and announced that four of the teams top players had been suspended for the team’s season opener against Virginia Tech. Among the four players who will be missing for the team’s first game is Joey Bosa, who was an All-American and the Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year in 2014. Bosa, who is arguably the best defensive player in the country, will be joined on the sidelines by wide receivers Jalin Marshall, Corey Smith, and Dontre Wilson, who are all expected to be significant contributor to the Buckeyes’ offense in 2015. The suspensions of Marshall, Smith, and Wilson open the door for Braxton Miller, who is moving from quarterback to wide receiver for his final season in Columbus. Miller is one of the most dynamic and explosive athletes in the country, and while there will surely be a few hiccups involved in his position change, his game-breaking ability with the ball in his hands makes Ohio State losing three wide receivers seem a lot less painful. Bosa, on the other hand, is one of the most irreplaceable players in college football. …
Continue Reading: Are the Odds Stacking Up Against a Repeat Title For Ohio State?
