Ohio State followers turned up the amount in Ohio Stadium Saturday night time, making their voices heard with a daring message for the SEC through the Buckeyes’ dominant 42-17 victory over Tennessee within the first spherical of the School Soccer Playoff. All through the sport, chants of “S-E-C” echoed across the stadium, a pointed jab at a convention usually lauded for its soccer supremacy.
The Buckeyes (11-2) set the tone early, leaping out to a 21-0 lead within the first quarter and by no means trying again. Freshman receiver Jeremiah Smith hauled in two landing passes from quarterback Will Howard, whereas operating backs Quinshon Judkins and TreVeyon Henderson every rushed for 2 scores. Ohio State’s offense was firing on all cylinders, racking up 473 whole yards—greater than any crew had gained towards Tennessee all season.
Head coach Ryan Day rapidly praised his crew’s efficiency and willpower to bounce again from a disappointing loss to Michigan three weeks in the past. “You might inform from the soar, that that they had a glance of their eye,” Day mentioned postgame. “We’ve a number of soccer forward of us. It is a terrific win, we’ll take pleasure in this for twenty-four hours and transfer onto Oregon.”
Thee Ohio State College will play #1 Oregon within the Rose Bowl
The sport additionally supplied an opportunity for Ohio State followers to have a good time their seniors, lots of whom had been instrumental within the Buckeyes’ success this season. The group of over 100,000 followers embraced the chilly December climate, turning the stadium right into a cauldron of vitality that proved an excessive amount of for Tennessee.
Regardless of a large contingent of Tennessee followers making the journey, the Volunteers (10-3) struggled to maintain tempo. Quarterback Nico Iamaleava was held to only 104 passing yards on 14 completions and rushed for 47 yards on 20 makes an attempt. Tennessee’s protection, which had been a energy all yr, was unable to cease Ohio State’s balanced assault.
“We known as this sport extra aggressively, there isn’t any query about that,” Day mentioned, drawing comparisons to the Buckeyes’ loss towards Michigan. “However we additionally did some issues on this sport that maximize what we’ve. … And I believed Will [Howard] was glorious.”
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Howard’s stellar efficiency—311 passing yards and two touchdowns on 24-of-29 completions—highlighted an offense that bought its explosive playmakers concerned early and infrequently. Smith, one of many high freshmen within the nation, completed with six catches for 103 yards, changing into the sixth freshman in CFP historical past to eclipse 100 receiving yards.
The victory units up a extremely anticipated New Yr’s Day rematch with top-seeded Oregon within the Rose Bowl. The Geese defeated Ohio State in an exhilarating 32-31 contest earlier this season, however ESPN BET has already pegged the Buckeyes as a one-point favourite for the rematch.
As for the “S-E-C” chants, they served as a reminder that the Massive Ten is able to problem the long-held narrative of SEC dominance. For now, Ohio State has silenced critics and secured their place amongst school soccer’s elite, with their sights firmly set on a nationwide championship.