Ohio State was nursing a three point lead late in the third quarter before pulling away to a 45-24 victory over Northwestern in the Big Ten Championship Game. Was that performance good enough to persuade the CFP Committee to include the Buckeyes in the playoff?
It should be. The win over Northwestern was more impressive than Oklahoma’s 39-27 victory over Texas.
The Big Ten Championship Game looked as though it could be a blowout as Ohio State took a 24-7 lead to the locker room at halftime. However, quarterback Clayton Thorson scored on an 18 yard touchdown run and a threw a 2 yard TD pass and Northwestern closed the gap midway through the third quarter.