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Justin Fields Expected to Play Through Injury vs. Alabama, Says OSU's Ryan Day
Rob Goldberg
January 4, 2021

Despite suffering a rib injury against Clemson, Ohio State quarterback Justin Fields is expected to be on the field against Alabama for the national championship game.

"We definitely expect him to play," head coach Ryan Day told reporters Monday.

Day said he would not get into details about the specifics of the injury.

Fields took a big hit from Clemson's James Skalski, resulting in the linebacker being ejected for targeting. The quarterback stayed in the game but received treatment on the sideline, including multiple shots for pain tolerance.

"It's pretty much my whole right torso that's messed up and a little bit of my hip but they didn't really give me a diagnosis," he said after the game.


"After each and every throw, my ribs hurt," Fields added.

The pain didn't seem to affect Fields' play as he finished with 385 passing yards and six touchdowns to go with 42 rushing yards on eight carries.

It lifted the Buckeyes to a 49-28 upset victory and the school's first trip to the national title game since 2014.

"He's as tough and competitive of a guy as I've ever been around," Day said of Fields Monday.

Ohio State will need him once again to stick with Alabama, which has one of the best offenses in recent years with an average of 48.2 points per game and several elite playmakers like DeVonta Smith and Najee Harris.

If Fields cannot play in next Monday's game, the Buckeyes have few options considering no one else has thrown a pass for the team this season. C.J. Stroud does have a rushing touchdown this season and could be the next man up if needed.

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Report: OSU vs. Alabama CFP Final Could Be Rescheduled Amid COVID-19 Concerns
Tyler Conway
anuary 5, 2021

The scheduled Jan. 11 date of the 2021 college football national championship game could be in jeopardy because of COVID-19 issues at Ohio State.

John Talty and Matt Zenitz of AL.com reported Ohio State could be without a position group for the game. Alabama, Ohio State, the SEC, the Big Ten and the College Football Playoff have all been in contact about how to handle the situation.

The game would be moved to Monday, Jan. 18, if it is postponed.

An Ohio State spokesperson denied any changes are being discussed.

"Game on. Ohio State is preparing to play on Monday," the spokesperson told Austin Ward of Lettermen Row.

"There are no changes to report," CFP executive director Bill Hancock added, per Stadium's Brett McMurphy. "The game is scheduled Jan. 11 as planned, and we look forward to it."

Alabama athletic director Greg Byrne also gave the game a vote of confidence:

"We're following the same protocols we followed all season long. We intend to play on January 11th, and we continue to communicate with the Big Ten and now the CFP...So at this point in time, we see the game being played. But who knows what tomorrow will bring? That's COVID. We're on track right now," Ohio State athletic director Gene Smith told Adam Rittenberg of ESPN.

Aaron Suttles of The Athletic reported SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey is "pushing hard" against any postponement.

Any player who tests positive for COVID-19 would be ineligible for the national championship game, even if the game is moved back a week. SEC rules require a 10-day absence followed by a four-day acclimation period. The Big Ten requires players who test positive to quarantine for 17 days.

Ohio State was limited to five regular-season games because of COVID-19 issues with its program and others in the Big Ten. Alabama had only one postponement (vs. LSU), and that game was made up later in the season.

Concern over the status of the game further calls into question the NCAA's decision to not create a bubble environment for its playoff. The NCAA announced Indiana as a hub for the men's basketball tournament this week and previously said the women's basketball tournament would also happen in one location, likely San Antonio.

Given the potential embarrassment (and safety issues) that could come from a compromised national championship in football, the worst-case scenario could be playing out.

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Nick Saban Confirms Talks of Postponing Alabama vs. OSU CFP Title Game
Scott Polacek
January 7, 2021

Alabama head coach Nick Saban confirmed there were at least discussions about moving Monday's College Football Playoff National Championship game back because of COVID-19 concerns with Ohio State.

"There were discussions as to whether it was fair to continue or to move the game back and all that," he said, per John Zenor of the Associated Press.

However, Saban pointed to the fact Jan. 18 is the deadline for underclassmen to declare for the NFL draft and suggested doing so "would have been a tough management" even while granting "player safety on either team as the most important factor in this decision."

There have been questions about how many players the Buckeyes will have available because of COVID-19 concerns.

On Thursday, Dan Patrick reported a source told him "Ohio State is very close to the availability limit right now." However, Austin Ward of Letterman Row reported the Buckeyes have continued practicing and have not closed their facilities this week, which he wrote would have happened if they were "very close" to the limit.

Head coach Ryan Day told reporters on Thursday "plenty of players" will be available even if he is unsure how many will be sidelined.

Playing the Crimson Tide would be a difficult enough task for Ohio State even if it were fully healthy. After all, quarterback Mac Jones, wide receiver DeVonta Smith and running back Najee Harris were all Heisman Trophy candidates with Smith taking the trophy home.

The Buckeyes looked up to the task when they handled Clemson with ease in the semifinals in a 49-28 victory. Justin Fields remained in the game following a hard hit from Clemson linebacker James Skalski and threw for six touchdowns in a brilliant individual performance.

Ohio State will likely need him to be equally as good if not better to win the national title, especially if it is shorthanded.

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Ryan Day Says Ohio State Is on Track to Play Alabama in CFP Title Game Monday
Adam Wells
January 7, 2021

Amid COVID-19 concerns with the Ohio State Buckeyes, head coach Ryan Day believes his team will be ready for the College Football Playoff National Championship on Monday.

Day said "correct" when asked by reporters if his team was on track to play Monday against Alabama.

"We'll have plenty of players," he added.

John Talty and Matt Zenitz of AL.com reported Tuesday there have been "concerns related to Ohio State’s player availability for the game" after the Buckeyes "informed key parties involved it could be without a position group due to COVID-19 testing and related protocols."

Talty and Zenitz noted officials from Ohio State, Alabama, the SEC, the Big Ten and the College Football Playoff have had discussions about potentially postponing the game.

However, Bill Hancock, the executive director of the College Football Playoff, told ESPN's Heather Dinich on Tuesday the game will be played as scheduled.

"I can tell you there are no changes," Hancock said. "The game is scheduled for Jan. 11, as planned, and we look forward to it."

Radio host Dan Patrick reported Thursday morning that Ohio State "is very close to the availability limit right now" and that the Big Ten is pushing for the game to be postponed.

A College Football Playoff spokesperson told Kyle Rowland of The Blade last month that conference COVID-19 testing protocols will apply to teams in the playoff.

The Big Ten's adjusted rules require players who test positive to sit out at least 17 days. Games during the regular season were canceled if a team had a positivity rate of at least 5 percent.

Ohio State played the Big Ten Championship Game against Northwestern on Dec. 19 without 22 players, including three starters, because of COVID-19 issues.

The Buckeyes beat Clemson 49-28 in the College Football Playoff semifinals on Jan. 1.

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Radio host Dan Patrick reported Thursday morning that Ohio State "is very close to the availability limit right now" and that the Big Ten is pushing for the game to be postponed.

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OSU 'Likes' Tweet About Jim Harbaugh's Reported Michigan Contract Extension
Scott Polacek
January 7, 2021

Ohio State football must be a fan of Bleacher Report's college football content.

That has to be it. Why else would the official Buckeyes' Twitter account post a tongue-in-cheek image of running back Trey Sermon smirking in response to the news that their chief rival is on the verge of signing its head coach to a five-year contract extension?

Oh wait, that's right.

Because Ohio State absolutely owns Jim Harbaugh and the Michigan Wolverines.



The dominance apparently extends beyond the field and onto the Twittersphere, as Ohio State's tweet was an amusing reminder that Harbaugh has yet to defeat the Buckeyes since he took over as the Michigan head coach prior to the 2015 season.

While they did not play this season, the Scarlet and Gray won the last two matchups by a combined 52 points and are playing in Monday's College Football Playoff National Championship Game against Alabama.

Harbaugh will have to watch on television, which is where he has had to watch every Big Ten Championship Game since taking over for the Wolverines as well.

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Alabama vs. Ohio State CFP Final to Be Played as Scheduled Despite Rumors

Rob Goldberg
January 8, 2021

Despite concerns about availability for Ohio State players, the College Football Playoff National Championship Game will be played Monday night as scheduled, according to Heather Dinich of ESPN.

"As I have said all week the game is on. Alabama’s team will be traveling to Miami tonight, Ohio State will be arriving [Saturday]," CFP executive director Bill Hancock said Friday. "We look forward to a great night of college football."

Alabama athletic director Greg Byrne said his team is "good to go" after receiving their COVID-19 test results. Dinich reported the Crimson Tide will arrive in Miami tonight, while the Buckeyes are set to travel tomorrow.

blah, blah, blah...

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CFB's Wildest Season Ends with Comfort and Familiarity of Alabama vs. Ohio State
Adam Kramer
January 10, 2021

What happens next will actually feel quite normal. The restlessness surrounding the college football season's final act, whether you have a horse in the race or not, will surface like it normally does. There will be a sense of history. There will be a sense of sadness. Of pride and appreciation. It will be euphoric and empty all at once. All of it, in a way, will feel deeply familiar.

The matchup that will carry us to the offseason is rich in storylines and possibilities. But the fact that we are here, on the cusp of the final game, is nothing short of a minor miracle.

{COVID blather deleted}

And yet, here we are.

What happens next is familiar. And with Alabama and Ohio State, it can be about football.

There are two elite quarterbacks with vastly different styles and journeys.

Justin Fields began his career at Georgia as a 5-star recruit. He ends it at Ohio State, with a wealth of NFL interest surrounding his immense physical gifts, and with a rib cage that may or may not be completely healed after the brutal hit he took (and played through) against Clemson.

Mac Jones was never supposed to be here. He wasn't expected to start or star after taking over for Tua Tagovailoa last season when he went down with an injury. A 3-star QB in a football machine that normally welcomes and molds 5-stars, Jones' path to stardom is loud, unexpected and welcomed.

Two remarkable running backs with vastly different physiques and techniques.

Najee Harris is 230 pounds—part bowling ball, part ballerina. He can run through a team's best linebacker or hurdle its best defensive back. No matter his performance in what is certain to be his final game at Alabama, Harris will leave a legacy that few running backs at the school have left. Given the competition and those that came before him, that's saying something.

Trey Sermon is a football comet. He left Oklahoma for Ohio State this offseason, only to spend much of the year getting healthy. In the past two games, he's run for 524 yards. As Ohio State has found new life, Sermon has seen his profile explode. His emergence has come at just the right moment, especially considering the unknowns surrounding Fields.

Two collections of wideouts capable of taking a game over at any moment.

DeVonta Smith is a Heisman winner. That says it all. A wide receiver who was never the biggest or the fastest or the most talked-about, a theme that carried into this season. He will leave as one of the most decorated and celebrated players in the history of Alabama. And, as has been the case this season, he is likely to flash one last time.

While Ohio State doesn't necessarily have a DeVonta Smith—and this year, no one did—Chris Olave and Garrett Wilson aren't far off. They are plenty capable of having that kind of impact. Clemson saw that firsthand. This is an exceptional duo.

Two head coaches at different points in their personal and professional lives.

Nick Saban has been here. He has won this game six times. A seventh would only further cement him as the greatest coach in college football history. While the questions surrounding his coaching future will always exist until the 69-year-old finally retires, this doesn't feel like his last chance. It's just another in a long line of championship moments.

His opponent, Ryan Day, is just 41. But youth and inexperience has yet to hinder a coach who owns a 23-1 record. His offensive bag of tricks is plenty deep. And for as much as Saban has to counter, this is an entirely different challenge.

This is why we watch. Two elite coaches. Two elite offenses. Two rosters stockpiled with future NFL players. Two of the sport's biggest brands matching up in a game that will carry history forward.

To get here, the two teams played a different number of games. The discrepancies, while well documented, no longer matter. The controversy surrounding the playoff and its participants has subsided. The question as to whether a wide receiver can really win the Heisman has been answered.

There are no more questions. Just a single game and a single outcome. But we know how much it took to get here, and we are thankful for those who made it possible.

It will feel the same, look the same and sound the same, but we know better. We, like the teams, players and coaches, have been along for the ride. But given all that it has taken to get us here—uncertainty that will linger up until the vey end—Alabama-Ohio State is a fitting final chapter.

For the first time in a long time, it feels right.

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Request:

It’s just a game so let’s keep the ribbing good-natured.