Ohio State Stomps Tennessee in CFP, Reclaims National Title Contender Status

Vols fans invaded The Horseshoe, but the Buckeyes got the last word with a statement win in the playoff’s first round.

Ohio State wide receiver Jeremiah Smith catches a touchdown pass against Tennessee defensive back Jermod McCoy. / Samantha Madar/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

In the summer of 1863, smack in the middle of the Civil War, John Hunt Morgan led a Confederate raiding party of about 2,500 soldiers out of Tennessee. The unit traveled through Kentucky, across the Ohio River into enemy territory in the Midwest and, eventually, into the state of Ohio. Morgan’s Raid pushed well into the state before being subdued and captured, but the brazen invasion into enemy territory spread panic through the Union for several weeks.

On a see-your-breath Saturday in the heartland, there was a peaceful reenactment of Morgan’s Raid. It, too, was ultimately unsuccessful, but unsettling for a while to those who were being invaded.

Tennesseans streamed north, crossed the Ohio River and descended in shocking numbers upon the Midwest redoubt of Ohio Stadium. An estimated 40% of the crowd of 102,819 in The Horseshoe, home of the mighty Ohio State Buckeyes, was dressed in Tennessee Volunteers orange for their College Football Playoff first-round game. The much-discussed “Tennessee takeover” of the ticket market was real, at least in the stands.

One of the legendary home field advantages in the sport was sabotaged by apparent local apathy—or anger—and a burst of Southern enthusiasm. Ohio State is widely considered to have the biggest fan base in America, and nearly half the usual home crowd had gone missing. It was a stunning scene that played out in increments over the hours before kickoff.

The blue Tennessee license plates were everywhere heading north on I-75 into Cincinnati, then northeast on I-71, through the flat farmlands, toward Columbus, Ohio. They came from the most populous counties, of course—Davidson (where Nashville is) and Knox (Knoxville). But they also came from Cumberland County, where the seat is Crossville. And from Wilson County, outside of Nashville. And from Marion County, down by Chattanooga. 

The green interstate sign on I-71 North marking the Columbus city limit had an orange “T” slapped on it by mid-afternoon. On campus, “Rocky Top” was blaring on repeat in parking garages and at tailgates. There was a nine-tent orange pre-party set up brazenly close to the Horseshoe, with fans flocking to it wearing orange checkerboard overalls.

The Tennessee fans were loud and festive despite the bitter 25℉ weather (colder with the wind chill), sending out a rebellious vibe at a place where visitors normally are vastly outnumbered and often intimidated. The Vols had a vast majority of the seats shortly after the gates to the stadium opened, roaring through warm-ups, and it took a filling in of the Ohio State student sections before the Buckeyes had a clear majority of the fans.

Tennessee fans tailgate before the game between the first-round College Football Playoff game in Columbus, Ohio. / Samantha Madar/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

“It made us feel some type of way, coming out for warm-ups and getting booed,” Ohio State offensive guard Donovan Jackson said. “We were like, ‘Wait a second.’ What were they calling it, Neyland North? Yeah, that was lame.”

If Buckeye Nation had a nasty, lingering hangover from the brutal upset loss to the nemesis Michigan Wolverines on Nov. 30, the team clearly did not. Abandoned by a significant percentage of their fans for the first playoff home game in school history, Ohio State turned that into fury and stomped Tennessee, 42–17, treating the Vols like they were a Mid-American Conference opponent.

While the attendance might be a warning sign for coach Ryan Day after four straight losses to Michigan, it also would not be surprising to see Ohio State fans leap back on the bandwagon with both feet now. By all appearances the Buckeyes are over it, over the angst, over Michigan, over being booed off this same field three weeks ago. They once again look like the national championship contender they had been for the first 11 games this season.

“For three weeks, everyone in the world was telling us we sucked,” Jackson said. “Half the fan base was telling us we sucked. Almost every analyst, expert and anyone with a podcast was telling us we sucked. And so we took it personally. That’s not how we were going to go out.

“We had nothing to lose. Our name was dragged through the gutter pretty much for a month.”

They went from the gutter to great in a single night. They struck a blow for themselves, but also a blow against the increasingly insufferable Southeastern Conference fans (and some coaches, like Lane Kiffin of the Mississippi Rebels), who spent Friday night and much of the day Saturday declaring that other losing playoff teams didn’t belong in the bracket ahead of the SEC teams that were left out. Then the Vols fared no better than the SMU Mustangs, Indiana Hoosiers and Clemson Tigers—arguably worse.

Now the Buckeyes head into the Rose Bowl quarterfinal against the No. 1 Oregon Ducks, after losing to them by a point in Eugene, Ore., in a classic game in October. Oregon had better come correct for the rematch.

Ohio State issued a reminder that, when armed with a competent game plan and not actively panicking against a maize-and-blue demon, it has the best talent in the sport. It has the two best wide receivers in freshman Jeremiah Smith (six catches for 103 yards and two touchdowns) and senior Emeka Egbuka (five catches for 81 yards). It has a relentless running back tandem in TreVeyon Henderson (134 yards from scrimmage and two touchdowns) and Quinshon Judkins (two more touchdowns). It has a quarterback capable of great things when he limits his mistakes in Will Howard (24-of-29 passing for 311 yards and two TDs, plus 37 yards on the ground). It has a pass rush that produced four sacks, cover guys who broke up nine passes and run stoppers who limited the Vols to 3.9 yards per carry.

Henderson runs past Volunteers defensive back Jakobe Thomas for a 24-yard touchdown. / Adam Cairns/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

That talented core came exploding out of the gate. Ohio State nearly had a three-and-out on its first possession, but a face-mask penalty on a third-down sack cracked the door open for the Buckeyes to take off. They scored touchdowns on their first three possessions and led 21–0 before Tennessee completed a single pass, with Day and offensive coordinator Chip Kelly coming out of the strangely conservative shell in which they resided against Michigan.

“We called this game more aggressively, there’s no question about that,” Day acknowledged.

On those first three possessions, the Buckeyes hit plays of 40, 37, 20, 18 and 16 yards. They gouged holes in the Tennessee defense and quieted down all those Tennessee fans.

“They thought they were going to take over this place,” Howard said. “We showed them pretty quick we weren’t going to let that happen.”

The Ohio State student section mockingly chanted “SEC! SEC!” at the Volunteers. But it rang a bit hollow after allowing so many opposing fans to fill the seats for a massive home game. A lot of Tennessee fans paid big dollars in the ticket market to get in, but the closer it got to kickoff, the more prices plummeted. Some Tennessee backers said they paid $50 and $60 on Saturday afternoon for lower-level seats.

But by the middle of the fourth quarter, most of the orange had departed the Horseshoe. They were numbed by the cold and the thoroughness of the beating. Like Morgan’s raiders, they dared to make a dramatic incursion across the Ohio River and into the Midwest. And like Morgan’s raiders, they were defeated in the end.