Why Ohio State is better than most of Swinney’s top 10
By Zane Harris
#1: Clemson
The final team that Ohio State has a quality argument of being better than this season that Dabo would have put in the playoffs in front of OSU is his own Clemson Tigers. It is clear that the crusade Dabo went on to do everything he could to keep the Buckeyes out of the playoffs came from a spot of insecurity that he would not be able to beat the Buckeyes two years in a row.
Coming into the season, the Buckeyes were one of the most feared teams in the country. After they played half of a season, their rankings suffered and opposing teams used it as an excuse to avoid them in the postseason.
While this is Ohio State’s only major flaw, there are a few rough spots that the Tigers have as well. For starters, they lost a game. It went to double overtime against a top-five team, however, they still lost and Ohio State still has not.
Clemson controlled their own destiny this season and they likely would not have anything to say about the Buckeyes if they would have run the table and finished the season undefeated. However, they didn’t and their title hopes came down to a must-win in the conference championship.
Nick Saban who also finished the season undefeated said that while he believes there should be added value for 10 or 11 wins. However, he also said Ohio State still earned their spot because of the talent on the roster and what they have shown on the field.
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In the stats, Clemson and Ohio State are neck and neck. Clemson had a much stronger strength of schedule and slightly edged the Buckeyes out in game control. However, the Buckeyes Have the Tigers slightly edged out in strength of record, FPI rank, FPI rating, and most importantly an undefeated record going into the college football playoff.