When searching for the moment, the game, which J.T. Barrett became J.T. Barrett, look no further than Nov. 8, 2014.
Barrett, then a redshirt freshman quarterback at Ohio State, led his team north to East Lansing for a primetime showdown against Michigan State. The Spartans were ranked eighth in the country; the Buckeyes were No. 14. The winner would be in the driver’s seat in the Big Ten East; the loser would need help to make the conference title game and was, essentially, eliminated from College Football Playoff contention.
It was a game, an environment, a series of moments on that crisp November night that helped shape Barrett into what he is today.