Tag: Ohio State vs. Alabama

What Ryan Day and Nick Saban said as final thoughts heading into the CFP national title game

Ohio State head coach Ryan Day and Alabama’s Nick Saban met with the media one last time to provide final thoughts prior to CFP title game.

Ohio State and Alabama are both in Miami, just one day ahead of the College Football Playoff national championship game. To say that it’s been a long road to get to this point might actually be the understatement of the 2020 year in sports.

At this point, all of the preparation and practice is about wrapped up, and now it’s all about the execution and play on the field. It’s two amazing teams, two historical blue-bloods of the sport, and two fantastic coaches.

Both of those head coaches met with the media one last time ahead of the game for some final thoughts. We know you are wondering what each head coach said leading into the game and we’ve got the full transcripts for you.

But first, if you’d prefer to listen to it, we’ve got audio for you thanks to the folks from the College Football Playoff.

NEXT … Full Saban and Day comments from CFP head coaches presser

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LOOK. Ohio State arrives in Miami for national championship game

The Ohio State football team has officially touched down in Miami as it prepares to take on Alabama in the CFP national championship game.

They’re here.

The Ohio State football team touched down in Miami just after sunset, and quickly shared a brief video of someone walking off the plane, down the stairs, and onto the tarmac. We assume the rest of the team is with whomever the mystery player is.

Of course, what does remain to be seen is who made the trip and who is still unavailable because of injury or positive COVID-19 testing results. But we know that both the Buckeyes and the Crimson Tide passed their last round of testing and were cleared to travel for the game.

We’ll get an availability report from Ohio State just prior to game time on Monday night, but until then, check out the short video of OSU’s arrival. As we have more footage from the folks with the College Football Playoff, we’ll share it as well.

Game time for the seventh College Football Playoff national championship game between Ohio State and Alabama is set to kick off at 8 p.m. EST from Hard Rock Stadium in Miami, Florida.

Five reasons Ohio State will beat Alabama in the College Football Playoff national championship game

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Urban Meyer and Joel Klatt preview national championship game between Ohio State and Alabama

Former Ohio State head coach and FOX College Football analyst Joel Klatt preview Ohio State vs. Alabama in the CFP title game.

Two days. That’s how close we are to the College Football Playoff national championship game between Ohio State and Alabama. It’s only been a little over a week since the Buckeyes silenced Dabo Swinney and Clemson, but it sure feels a lot longer.

We’ve already had a slew of interviews, previews, and hype for this game, and everyone is ready to get the party in Miami started at this point. But be patient. It’s not quite time yet. In fact, with just a couple of more days to go, you are sure to see even more previews and build up.

On that note, we ran across a preview from FOX College Football’s Joel Klatt and Urban Meyer that is a pretty good one. Of course, anytime we can hear from the former Ohio State coach, we’re listening, and it’s no different here.

Watch the below and see what both Klatt and Meyer have to say about the upcoming contest and what they believe are keys to the game.

As a reminder, Ohio State and Alabama are set to do battle Monday night at 8 p.m EST in Hard Rock Stadium down in Miami.

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Ohio State drops national championship game trailer narrated by LeBron James and John Legend

The Ohio State football team dropped the trailer for the national championship game and had a little help from LeBron James and John Legend.

The Ohio State creative team is just that, creative. We’ve seen a slew of amazing football trailers throughout the last few years, and each seems to be bigger and better than the last. This time, OSU went big time and recruited two of the biggest worldwide stars that also happen to be Buckeye fans. I mean, what else do you do for the College Football national championship game.

If you are a fan of these things like we are, we know you have been looking to see what type of hype video gets put together. Click on the below and watch the cinematic masterpiece that talks about the journey a champion has to go through, especially in the unprecedented year of 2020.

Ohio State and Alabama will face off Monday night at 8 p.m. in Hard Rock Stadium down in Miami.

Five reasons Ohio State will beat Alabama in the College Football Playoff national championship game

Contact/Follow us @BuckeyesWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Ohio State news, notes and opinion.

Download the USA TODAY SportsWire app to follow Buckeyes Wire and your other favorite teams in the Apple Store for iPhones and Google Play for Android devices.

Ohio State and Alabama both pass COVID-19 testing, cleared to travel to CFP title game

Per reports, both Ohio State and Alabama have passed COVID-19 testing and are all set to travel to Miami for the CFP national championship.

If you’ve been close to any of the sourced information of what’s been coming out from the Ohio State football program, there have been rumors of the Buckeye program still dealing with some COVID-19 issues. So much so, that things blew up a bit in the media this week with accusations of OSU trying to delay the game so that Justin Fields would be more healthy.

Those same rumors of postponement were debunked by Ohio State, but it didn’t stop the keyboard warriors from posting conspiracy theories to social media platforms like Twitter and Facebook.

Now, OSU may very well still be dealing with a portion of the team in COVID-19 protocols because that’s the world we live in, but we can now put the rumors of a postponement to rest. That’s because according to AL.com’s John Talty, both Ohio State and Alabama have finished their final rounds of COVID-19 testing and have both been cleared to travel for the game.

It is still unknown just how many players will be out for Ohio State, or what position groups might be hit, but we can now pretty safely say that the game is going to be available for your viewing pleasure on Monday night at 8 p.m. EST. This all comes on the tails of OSU athletic director Gene Smith and Ryan Day both pointing to plans for the game to still go on as scheduled.

So again, if you’re counting or just trying to be better in life, remember, just because something is said on social media does not make it true. I’m going to take that last sentence, copy it on a forever clipboard virtually paste it when needed randomly.

Ohio State vs. Alabama college football national championship preview and prediction

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Five reasons Ohio State will beat Alabama in the College Football Playoff national championship game

Ohio State and Alabama are just a few days away from facing off in the CFP national championship game. Here are 5 reasons the Buckeyes win.

OK. It’s getting ever so closer. After over a week of buildup with press conferences from both Ohio State and Alabama, a thousand different ways to preview the game, and everything else that goes with the biggest college football game of the year, we’re about to hopefully witness one whale of a final act to a crazy and bizarre college football season. Yes, the College Football Playoff national championship game is on the doorstep.

The Buckeyes will once again be a heavy underdog against a team perceived to be much better than they are. That was the case against Clemson in the Sugar Bowl, and they are again about a touchdown dog to Alabama.

But OSU seems to do its best work when it is completely counted out. Add that to the fact that Ohio State seems to be playing its best football at the right time and there’s reason to believe that this one could go the other way than what the experts think once again.

Here are five reasons the Buckeyes will beat Alabama in the CFP national championship game on Monday night.

NEXT … The offensive line

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Ohio State vs. Alabama national championship game key matchups: Coaches Ryan Day vs. Nick Saban

The most important matchup for Ohio State vs. Alabama in the CFP national championship game is Ryan Day versus Nick Saban.

We continue our look at some of the key matchups when Ohio State and Alabama meet on Monday in the College Football national championship game.

Of all of them, the most important matchup will be between two people who won’t wear a helmet, Ryan Day and Nick Saban. The two men wearing the headsets on the sidelines are going to be a huge part of the game. Saban is legendary in the college ranks, and Day is considered a young, rising star in his own right. The matchup has already started and will continue to the final whistle.

Saban has an electric offense, but he historically has been a defensive coach. He’ll have the task of trying to slow down the potent Ohio State offense while Steve Sarkisian will control the explosive Alabama offense. Saban has been known for making solid adjustments in-game, but at times will stick to his guns a little too long when what he wants isn’t working.

Day has had some questions of his own, but the game against Dabo Swinney shows just how far he has come as a head coach. There were questions about Day’s ability to adjust in-game and time management. Where Day excels is pre-game preparations and game-planning. He will come out against Alabama trying to throw off what Saban thinks has been his tendencies.

Saban tends to want to exert his team’s “will” early on and force adjustments. He is adept at getting his team prepared and knowing what to do in specific game situations. Should Ohio State surprise Alabama early, Saban will start to adjust and try to wear down the Buckeyes.

Day will most likely try to break his tendencies to confuse Alabama early, then fall back into the strengths of his team to wear down the Crimson Tide. He’ll probably focus on forcing Alabama to stop the run and forcing the Crimson Tide to beat them over the top as it opens up.

WATCH what Alabama head coach Nick Saban said about Ohio State in his College Football Playoff media appearance

Alabama coach Nick Saban met with media today to discuss his team and what he sees from Ohio State before CFP national championship game.

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We are just a few days away from Ohio State and Alabama facing off in Miami for the College Football Playoff national championship game. Leading up to it, both Buckeye and Crimson Tide players and coaches are meeting with the media to preview and discuss the upcoming titanic clash.

Anytime you talk about figures that represent Alabama, first in line is of course head coach Nick Saban. He took his time in front of the media virtually Thursday and had plenty to say about the matchup. In fact, Saban had a lot of very complimentary things to say about the team he’ll match up with, Ohio State.

We’ve got the entire audio and video of his comments below thanks to the fine folks at the College Football Playoff, and if reading the comments is more your style, we also have the full transcript of his remarks.

Watch the below video and listen to Saban discuss how talented Ohio State is, the health and availability of wide receiver Jaylen Waddle, the key to preparation, and more.

NEXT … Complete Nick Saban CFP press conference transcript

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Ohio State vs. Alabama national championship game key matchups: OSU DT Haskell Garrett vs. ‘Bama center Chris Owens

We examine a key matchup of OSU vs. Alabama before the national championship game between Haskell Garrett and Alabama center Chris Owens.

We are continuing our look and preview of key matchups heading into the College Football national championship game between Ohio State and Alabama. It must be noted that there are rumors of some COVID-19 casualties as it relates to players perhaps being out for OSU, but we don’t know who or how many at this point.

One of the best matchups for the Buckeyes on defense is that between defensive tackle Haskell Garrett and Alabama center Chris Owens. Owens is a really solid center but was not the starter this season after losing his job to Landon Dickerson before the season started. Ownes has played this season, but primarily in a backup role and as a blocking tight end.

With Owens being thrust into a starting spot at center, Haskell Garrett presents a difficult matchup for him. Owens has a solid first punch, but may not have the experience, nor balance, for the first step and hand usage of Haskell Garrett. Alabama may slide a guard to help Owens which will help the linebackers hit gaps a little easier.

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To counter Garrett’s ability against the pass, Alabama may decide to focus on the run where Owens is a better lineman. The problem will be for Alabama if Garrett can get penetration against Owens consistently. Garrett can get disruptive and learns quickly to take advantage of a flaw once he discovers it.

If Garrett can get the penetration in the passing game, it could force Mac Jones to have to move around more, which is not his strength. Filtering Jones to the edge and have to throw on the run is where the Buckeyes could take advantage of the average arm strength of Jones. This is a key matchup that will evolve over the game and could decide the game at some point.

Ohio State football’s national championships through the years

Cardale Jones claps back at Nick Saban’s daughter for critical tweet of Ohio State COVID-19 rumors

Former Ohio State QB Cardale Jones had perfect response to Nick Saban’s daughter after accusations that OSU was using COVID-19 to buy time.

We could all learn a lesson from the missteps of many, especially when it comes to social media habits. In case you’ve been away recently, let us bring you up to speed.

Reports and rumors have been running around about some issues Ohio State has had still with COVID-19 infections. So much so that — according to a report from AL.com — the College Football Playoff, Alabama, and Ohio State have at least had initial discussions about what the potential of postponing the national title game would entail.

Well, once that got out there, the criticism hit the Buckeye program faster than an Ohio State receiver through a porous Clemson defense (too early?). So much so that even Nick Saban’s daughter sent out a Tweet accusing the Buckeyes of trying to buy more time so that Justin Fields is fully healthy.

Remember, the OSU QB took a vicious hit from Tigers’ linebacker James Skalski, but remained in the game and toughed out what appeared to be some pretty significant pain.

But, Kristen Saban Setas went all conspiracy theory on everyone with the below Tweet.

OK? I mean, it’s not like Ohio State has been dodging infections all along in a very hard hit part of the country or anything right? And, in the midst of a global pandemic, this is the narrative we want pushing?

Anyway, to make a long story even longer, Saban Setas deleted the tweet just ten minutes after she sent it out into the Twitterverse for everyone to see, log, and screenshot

for eternity. She has since apologized, but the damage is done.

Not one to let things go quietly into the night, former Ohio State quarterback Cardale Jones had the perfect response. He drummed up his own past exploits against Alabama and had slung arrows straight back.

Ouch. Of course, the end of the 2014 season has nothing to do with what we’re about to witness, but it’s still a good comeback from 12-gauge.

Oh yeah, and about jumping to conclusions — Ohio State and the College Football Playoff have confirmed that the game is still on for Monday. Somewhere in there is a good lesson about jumping to conclusions and pausing before you hit the post button. This goes for Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and any other social media post.

When will folks learn?