INDIANAPOLIS – Ohio State suffered a stunning 13-10 defeat to indiana in the Big Ten Championship game Saturday, jeopardizing their playoff seeding but not their playoff hopes. The loss marks the second consecutive season the buckeyes have entered the College Football Playoff with a recent defeat, mirroring last year’s loss to Michigan before ultimately winning the national championship.
Ohio State coach Ryan Day expressed confidence his team will respond positively. “This is not going to sit well with anybody,” Day said. “But we can use it as an opportunity to get better and grow. … To walk off that field without a championship is going to hurt. There’s a lot of guys in our locker room that are pissed off right now.”
The game, a battle of unbeatens between the nation’s top two teams, saw the Buckeyes squander two crucial opportunities in Indiana territory.A controversial spot on a third-and-1 quarterback sneak by Julian Sayin at the Indiana 5-yard line resulted in a turnover on downs. Later, a 27-yard field goal attempt by Jayden Fielding with 2:48 remaining was missed – his first career miss from inside 30 yards after 13 triumphant attempts, according to ESPN Research.
“We went down there two times and ended up with zero points,” Day stated. “That’s how you lose the game.”
Despite the loss, Ohio State (13-1) is expected to still receive a first-round bye in the College Football Playoff. The Buckeyes haven’t won the Big Ten title as 2020, but are aiming for their first back-to-back national championships in program history.
Freshman quarterback Julian Sayin pointed to last year’s team as an example. “I just saw that group stick together,” Sayin said. “That’s going to be a big part for us.”
(Reporting by Jake Trotter, who previously covered college football for the Middletown (Ohio) Journal, Austin American-Statesman and Oklahoman newspapers before joining ESPN in 2011. He is a 2004 graduate of Washington and Lee University.Contact: jake.trotter@espn.com, X: @Jake_Trotter)
