In the wake of Ohio State’s loss to Michigan, Justin Frye told the team’s offensive line: “We’re all we’ve got, but we’re all we need.” That’s how Tegra Tshabola remembered the moment in an interview with
“We’re down to the eight and ninth guys in the room, and with any other college football team, if that happens, your season’s done,” McLaughlin told Thamel. “For the way we had a lot of guys step up that were not expected to ever play this season at the beginning of the year, and they’re playing really well, I think that’s a testament to how hard those guys worked. And Coach Frye, I think Coach Frye is a hell of a coach, the best in the business.
Thamel admitted the analogy “is a bit clunky, as four consecutive losses to Michigan isn’t the same as Virginia basketball’s historic loss to UMBC” and “Virginia stewed for a year, whereas Ohio State simmered for a month.” Still, he noted similarities between the teams and their head coaches, explaining that both Tony Bennett and Day experienced “torrents of criticism that didn’t align with their high winning percentages.” Bennett ended that narrative with Virginia’s national title in 2019.
“He’s a pro,” Marotti told Thamel. “He’s the coach at The Ohio State University. He knows the expectations. He knows what comes with the job. He never wavered, and the team never wavered.”Because of the hard conversations and hard times at the Woody, because Ohio State never wavered, the Buckeyes have looked like the best team in college football this postseason.
“Texas has to survive the first quarter. Ohio State jumped out 21-0 on Tennessee and then 34-0 on Oregon. Those are the leads in the first two playoff games. If that’s the case , it’s a wrap. Both of those games were a wrap. Tennessee was not coming back from a 21-point deficit. Oregon was not coming back from a 34-point deficit. That is not happening – in particular against that Ohio State defense.