How does the Ohio State-Michigan game being canceled affect Ohio State’s CFP hopes?
Yahoo Sports College Reporter Pete Thamel breaks down why the Ohio State-Michigan game scheduled for this weekend was canceled, and what its cancellation means for the Buckeye’s title hopes.
Video Transcript
PETE THAMEL: This is Pete Thamel, college football reporter for Yahoo Sports. And for the first time since 1917, Ohio State and Michigan will not play each other. And after more than a century of these games, Ohio State suddenly finds itself with some immediate problems.
The Buckeyes, according to Big Ten rules, need to play six league games in order to qualify for the Big Ten championship. So on Tuesday, the Big Ten found itself in a brutal predicament. They could either change the rules and allow Ohio State to play in the Big Ten title game with only five games-- the Buckeyes are 5-0, or they could rearrange other parts of the Big Ten schedule in order to accommodate a game for Ohio State.
Potentially, this would significantly disrupt other programs. So right now, the Big Ten is essentially fishing for a game for Ohio State. And the hope would be it's not a repeat opponent. Indiana is a possibility, as their game with Purdue is in jeopardy because of COVID issues. Minnesota not playing Nebraska is a possibility because Minnesota's had significant COVID issues, but they're still green lighted to play.
Ohio State has already played Indiana, and it's already played Nebraska, who's Minnesota's opponent. So there's either going to be some duplication or some alteration of the rules because there's very little chance Ohio State does not play in the Big Ten title game. Heading into Tuesday night's ranking show, Ohio State is currently fourth in the CFP rankings. They're there by a thread, as Texas A&M last week was heavily discussed to displace them there.
Obviously, only the top four teams go to the College Football Playoff. Ohio State's biggest issue isn't performance, but it's rather lack of games. And so this Michigan cancellation really fuels Ohio State's biggest problem and is going to likely prompt the Big Ten to find another game for Ohio State. The Buckeyes appear to be a CFP quality team, but if they don't have the data points, there's a chance that could get leapt by Texas A&M.
