The Ohio State Buckeyes aren't the No. 1-ranked team in the College Football Playoff rankings. Still, many see OSU as the clear top team in the 12-team field, even above the Indiana Hoosiers, who just bested the Buckeyes in the Big Ten Championship Game, 13-10.
CBS Sports' Thomas Casale believes Ohio State is not only superior to No. 1 Indiana, but also the SEC Champions, the No. 3 Georgia Bulldogs -- even if Casales thinks "there isn't much of a dropoff from Ohio State to the Bulldogs."
Casale made it clear that the drop-off is about one to two points on the spread, with the Buckeyes being a favorite in any matchup against any team in the entire field.
"Ohio State is the top team heading into the playoff. The Buckeyes rank ahead of Indiana by the slimmest of margins. Yes, the Hoosiers won the head-to-head matchup in the Big Ten Championship. However, if the two teams meet again on a neutral field, I would still make the Buckeyes small favorites," Casale wrote.
"Ohio State would also open as a slight favorite over Georgia in a potential semifinal matchup. The Buckeyes stumbled late in the season but from a betting perspective, they are still the No. 1 team in the country."
"The first time the Hoosiers played Ohio State, they were a 3.5-point underdogs. If they meet again, I would open Ohio State -1.5 or -2."
"The Bulldogs will likely face Ole Miss in the quarterfinal with a potential heavyweight showdown against Ohio State waiting in the semifinal. Similar to Indiana, I would make Georgia a small 1.5 or 2-point underdog in that matchup."
Given how often upsets have occurred since the dawn of nationalized mobile sports betting, maybe being the favorite isn't the preferable option. OSU seems to have everyone convinced that the Buckeyes are the team to beat, even after the B1G title game loss.
Indiana had least impactful conference championship team and Heisman winner
Coming out of the Big Ten Championship Game, everyone is convinced the loser is actually the better team. Coming out of Heisman weekend, all the focus is on the top runner-up, Vanderbilt Commodores quarterback Diego Pavia, making a scene in New York, and whether or not fellow runner-up Julian Sayin was part of the anti-Hoosiers scene, not trophy-winner Fernando Mendoza.
Has there ever been a less impactful conference championship win? And not to undermine Mendoza, but has there ever been a less hyped up winner? All eyes were on the College Football Playoff the second the regular season ended, not on what the Hoosiers accomplished.
It's a shame, too. Curt Cignetti is a miracle worker in Bloomington. If the miracle isn't the CFP title, though, most around the sport are uninterested.