Ever since Ohio State won last season’s College Football Playoff, Las Vegas odds have favored the Buckeyes to repeat as college football’s champion in 2015.
But after seven weeks of sloppy play, inconsistent performances and unforeseen close calls, Ohio State finally looked the part of college football’s championship favorite on Saturday.
Turning in its most complete performance of the season, Ohio State dominated Rutgers from start to finish in Piscataway, New Jersey, outgaining the Scarlet Knights 528 to 293 in what was ultimately a 49-7 Buckeyes road victory on prime-time television.
It marked the first time all season this Ohio State team looked like its predecessor from a year ago, and for good reason: The Buckeyes had their quarterback back, with J.T. Barrett making his first start of the season.
“Played very well,” Meyer said of Barrett’s performance in his postgame press conference. “Energized us.”
What the Cardale Jones experiment possessed in substance—Ohio State was 7-0 with the national champion-winning quarterback in its starting lineup this season—it lacked in style, as the Buckeyes eked out uninspiring victories over the likes of Northern Illinois and Indiana.
Ohio State remained college football’s No. 1 team and Las Vegas’ national champion favorite despite its surface struggles, but that was more due to the lack of a viable alternative than anything else.
When Barrett—who was Ohio State’s starter a year ago before breaking his…
Continue Reading: With J.T. Barrett, Buckeyes Look Like National Champion Favorites Once Again
