The Ohio State football team plays the biggest game of their season on Wednesday afternoon. They get to take on the only undefeated team left in the country, the Oregon Ducks. The Buckeyes have been waiting for another shot at them since losing in October.
These are not the same Ohio State Buckeyes who came to Eugene two months ago. This team has a rebuilt defense and an offense that is carrying a lot of confidence into this game. We saw how quickly they were able to strike against Tennessee, and they will be looking to do the same on Wednesday.
There's a good chance that these are the two most talented football teams in the country. It's a shame that they have to play each other in a quarterfinal matchup. Both teams are going to come into this game prepared and ready to do battle. The winner very well could win the national championship.
Ohio State has a lot riding on this game. If they lose this game, questions about Ryan Day's job security will once again pop up. However, winning this game might be enough to keep him safe for another year. The pressure is extremely high for the Buckeyes to win.
As we've done for every game this season, we give you some bold predictions for this game. The first bold prediction has to do with Ohio State's passing game, specifically a wide receiver's output.
1. Jeremiah Smith will have over 100 yards receiving
In the first matchup between these two teams, Jeremiah Smith had nine catches for 100 yards and a touchdown. As he has most games this season, he was the best weapon that the Buckeyes had on the field. A similar output from him is going to be needed in this game.
Smith is such a dangerous player. He can run pretty much any route he wants and gets open with ease. Ohio State is going to want to take some deep shots to him. He told the Ducks to expect as much if they play man-to-man while he was speaking to the media on Monday.
Even if Oregon is able to keep Smith from having success with deep shots, Ohio State will make sure to move him around so he gets the ball in different spots on the field. They need to target him as much as possible. That puts pressure on Oregon to single-cover someone else, and that matchup can be exploited.
Smith is too good to be shut down. The only time he was contained this season was when Ohio State's own coaches decided not to throw him the ball. That won't be the case in this game. Expect another aggressive game plan from Chip Kelly, just as he had against Tennessee.
The next bold prediction for this game has to do with what Ohio State will be able to get out of in the run game.