Last December, the vibes could not have been lower for the Ohio State football team before they took on Tennessee in the first round of the College Football Playoff. Fans were not expecting a win and were calling for Ryan Day to be fired after yet another embarrassing loss to TTUN.
Instead, the Ohio State Buckeyes dominated the Vols, jumping out to a 21-0 lead in the first quarter. The blowout continued into the second half, and the Buckeyes won the game 42-10. It ended up being the last game Nico Iamaleava would play for Tennessee.
In the offseason, Iamaleava decided to try to get Tennessee to pay him more money. They did not, and he transferred to UCLA. Now, he returns to the place that signaled the beginning of the end for him in Knoxville. It's not a place he's going to play well at this time, either.
The Ohio State football team will once again be able to shut down Nico Iamaleava
In December, the Buckeyes were hitting Iamaleava so hard that his helmet was cracking. While that might not happen on Saturday night, he will still have issues finding open receivers. Ohio State owns the best defense in the country, and no one has been able to move the ball on them with any success.
UCLA's offense has looked better since promoting Jerry Neuheisel as the offensive coordinator, but it's not good enough to score a bunch of points on the best defense in the country. There's a very good chance that Iamaleava leaves Columbus disappointed again.
For Ohio State football fans, that's exactly what they want. Another dominating performance against Imaleava would put the Buckeyes one step closer to finishing the season undefeated, which is their goal. There's a better chance of UCLA being shut out than there is of them winning this game.
As long as the Buckeyes come with the intensity they've had all season, there's no reason Iamaleava won't leave the Shoe hating the place for the second straight year.