Indiana and Ohio State Clash In Big 10 Title Game

Indiana and Ohio State met in the Big Ten Conference Championship on Saturday night. This was a clash of number one against number two, a rarity for a conference championship game. In one sense, this game meant everything. It was a clash of the top two teams and featured Hoosier Quarterback Fernando Mendoza and Ohio State Quarterback Julian Sayin, who are the top competitors for the Heisman Trophy.

On the other hand, both of these teams will make the College Football Playoff. Who prevailed?

Indiana Beats Ohio State

Here is a scoring summary from the game. In the first quarter, Indiana Kicker Nico Radicic kicked a 29-yard field goal. The Hoosiers led 3-0. Then, Carnell Tate caught a touchdown pass, and it was 7-3, Ohio State. This touchdown was set up by a Davison Igbinosun interception. That is how the first quarter ended.

In the second quarter, Radicic missed a 40-yard field goal, which is odd. It was his first field miss of the year. It remained 7-3 Ohio State. Jayden Fielding then kicked a 30-yard field goal. It was 10-3 Ohio State, but they missed a golden opportunity on this drive to score a touchdown. At any rate, it was now 10-3 Ohio State. Then, Radicic hit a 32-yard field goal. The Ohio State lead was 10-6.

In the third quarter, in the third quarter Elijah Sarratt caught a touchdown to help Indiana take a 13-10 lead. In the fourth quarter, Fielding missed a 28-yard field goal. Can you believe that? Indiana got the ball back with 2:28 left and was leading 13-10. That was how the game ended. Ohio State’s 16-game winning streak is over.

News and Notes

• Hoosier Head Coach Curt Cignetti has been to the Big Ten Conference Championship Game twice.
• For the first time in more than 10 years and just the third time since conference championship games were standardized, the nation’s top-ranked teams played for a title. The two previous top-ranked conference title games were in the Southeastern Conference in 2008-09, when Florida and Alabama went back-to-back.
• Cignetti was on Nick Saban’s Alabama coaching staff. “A year late,” Cignetti joked after Indiana punched its ticket by routing Purdue. “I had the opportunity to be part of a couple of those at Alabama when we played Florida and (Tim) Tebow and Urban (Meyer) two years in a row. It’s going to be a great atmosphere. I think — no, I know — you’re playing this game for a reason. A Big Ten championship means an awful lot.”
• Ohio State made its seventh Big Ten Championship Game appearance, the most of any school. The Buckeyes were 5-1 in their previous six Big Ten Championship Games with five straight wins.

A True Matchup Game, That May Be Meaningless

There are no two teams in the nation more balanced offensively and defensively than Ohio State and Indiana. It is uncanny. The Buckeyes feature the No. 1 scoring, total, and yards per play defense in the country. Indiana is No. 2, 4, and 8 in those same categories. Indiana’s offense is No. 2 in scoring, No. 5 in total, and No. 6 in yards per play, while Ohio State is No. 13, 24, and 14.

Heavyweight matchups existed all over the field in this game. Ohio State features the best linebacker tandem in the country with Big Ten Linebacker of the Year Arvell Reese, the werewolf, and fellow first-team All-Big Ten performer Sonny Styles patrol behind the Buckeyes’ defensive line. But Indiana’s rushing attack is potent, landing 11th nationally in yards per carry (5.6). This is but one of the big matchups in this game.

Conclusion 

Ohio State was favored to win the game against the highly skilled Indiana team. Offense wins games and defense wins championships. OSU will await the decision of the College Football Playoff Committee tomorrow.

The Buckeyes are unlikely to fall much lower than third in the rankings. Indiana, on the other hand, will be ranked No. 1. We will have to see how the playoff bracket shapes up, but the road to the championship may be easier for the third-ranked team than for the first-ranked team.