[Phogge]

You have to see it to believe it.

[Phogge]

You have to see it to believe it.

[Durty Nelly]

Amazing game.  Lots of fireworks from both teams.  Hope Utah can pull it out.  Does not look good as their QB just got injured.

[Durty Nelly]

Amazing game.  Lots of fireworks from both teams.  Hope Utah can pull it out.  Does not look good as their QB just got injured.

[needle]

Really worried about the QB. He took a similar blow in the first half.

[needle]

Really worried about the QB. He took a similar blow in the first half.

[BostonCard]

35 points in the first half, 3 in the second.  Not looking good for Utah, but I hope they pull through.

BC

[BostonCard]

35 points in the first half, 3 in the second.  Not looking good for Utah, but I hope they pull through.

BC

[Durty Nelly]

This game just keeps giving us entertainment.  Amazing drive by the young Utah QB.  Hope the Utah defense can step up.

[Durty Nelly]

This game just keeps giving us entertainment.  Amazing drive by the young Utah QB.  Hope the Utah defense can step up.

[BostonCard]

Great game, crappy outcome.  PAC-12 goes o-fer.

BC

[BostonCard]

Great game, crappy outcome.  PAC-12 goes o-fer.

BC

[needle]

Ohio State wins. Whittingham should have gone for two after the somewhat miraculous TD to get within one.

[needle]

Ohio State wins. Whittingham should have gone for two after the somewhat miraculous TD to get within one.

[Beeg_Dawg]

Amazing.  The entire first half played without any defense. 

Entertaining, much more fun than the pathetic playoff games.

[Beeg_Dawg]

Amazing.  The entire first half played without any defense. 

Entertaining, much more fun than the pathetic playoff games.

[PVTree]

The Ohio state wide receiver came close to McCaffrey's all purpose yardage Rose Bowl record of 364. Amazing he got around 346 just on receiving yards.

[PVTree]

The Ohio state wide receiver came close to McCaffrey's all purpose yardage Rose Bowl record of 364. Amazing he got around 346 just on receiving yards.

[teejers1]

Amazing.  The entire first half played without any defense. 

Entertaining, much more fun than the pathetic playoff games.

Raises an interesting (or potentially intriguing) question:  which team do you think feels "better" about their season - Michigan or Ohio State?

Probably the former due to B10 championship and CFP appearance. OTOH, no one will remember who got worked in national CFP semis, while everyone will remember today's amazing Rose Bowl game.  And tOSU ends the year with a great feeling about their play on the field; Michigan not so much.

Like all (or most) here, was pulling for Utah.  But an incredible game, regardless of outcome.  And kudos to Utah for a very good season (and strong showing in the Rose Bowl).

[teejers1]

Amazing.  The entire first half played without any defense. 

Entertaining, much more fun than the pathetic playoff games.

Raises an interesting (or potentially intriguing) question:  which team do you think feels "better" about their season - Michigan or Ohio State?

Probably the former due to B10 championship and CFP appearance. OTOH, no one will remember who got worked in national CFP semis, while everyone will remember today's amazing Rose Bowl game.  And tOSU ends the year with a great feeling about their play on the field; Michigan not so much.

Like all (or most) here, was pulling for Utah.  But an incredible game, regardless of outcome.  And kudos to Utah for a very good season (and strong showing in the Rose Bowl).

[BostonCard]

Flip their positions (Michigan wins the Rose Bowl, but loses yet again to Ohio State and fails to win the Big Ten title, while watching Ohio State make the playoffs yet again), and I guarantee you Michigan fans would be feeling much worse about themselves and their team.  Beating Ohio State and winning a conference championship matters.  And while I’m sure they would have rather put up more of a fight against Georgia, I think most people recognize that there is a chasm of a difference in opponent quality between Utah (who I agree acquitted themselves well) and Georgia, who is favored to win the title.

BC

[BostonCard]

Flip their positions (Michigan wins the Rose Bowl, but loses yet again to Ohio State and fails to win the Big Ten title, while watching Ohio State make the playoffs yet again), and I guarantee you Michigan fans would be feeling much worse about themselves and their team.  Beating Ohio State and winning a conference championship matters.  And while I’m sure they would have rather put up more of a fight against Georgia, I think most people recognize that there is a chasm of a difference in opponent quality between Utah (who I agree acquitted themselves well) and Georgia, who is favored to win the title.

BC

[newguy]

i too was rooting for Utah, but........WHAT A GAME.

[newguy]

i too was rooting for Utah, but........WHAT A GAME.

[BostonCard]

Yeah, while the playoff games were snoozefests, the “meaningless” Rose Bowl was a ton of fun to watch, and I’m sure Ohio State and Utah fans didn’t consider it meaningless.  Obviously, the problem is that it is hard to know in advance which bowl games are going to be great and which will be lousy, but I think this one goes to show why I think it would be a mistake to expand the playoffs and do away with non-playoff bowl games.

BC

[BostonCard]

Yeah, while the playoff games were snoozefests, the “meaningless” Rose Bowl was a ton of fun to watch, and I’m sure Ohio State and Utah fans didn’t consider it meaningless.  Obviously, the problem is that it is hard to know in advance which bowl games are going to be great and which will be lousy, but I think this one goes to show why I think it would be a mistake to expand the playoffs and do away with non-playoff bowl games.

BC

[Bampa]

Yeah, while the playoff games were snoozefests, the “meaningless” Rose Bowl was a ton of fun to watch, and I’m sure Ohio State and Utah fans didn’t consider it meaningless.  Obviously, the problem is that it is hard to know in advance which bowl games are going to be great and which will be lousy, but I think this one goes to show why I think it would be a mistake to expand the playoffs and do away with non-playoff bowl games.

BC

+1

[Bampa]

Yeah, while the playoff games were snoozefests, the “meaningless” Rose Bowl was a ton of fun to watch, and I’m sure Ohio State and Utah fans didn’t consider it meaningless.  Obviously, the problem is that it is hard to know in advance which bowl games are going to be great and which will be lousy, but I think this one goes to show why I think it would be a mistake to expand the playoffs and do away with non-playoff bowl games.

BC

+1

[Austroturf]

Yeah, while the playoff games were snoozefests, the “meaningless” Rose Bowl was a ton of fun to watch, and I’m sure Ohio State and Utah fans didn’t consider it meaningless.  Obviously, the problem is that it is hard to know in advance which bowl games are going to be great and which will be lousy, but I think this one goes to show why I think it would be a mistake to expand the playoffs and do away with non-playoff bowl games.

BC

Agree with you on your prior post.  However, even if the playoff is expanded, there will be plenty of non-playoff bowl games; and some of them will be very entertaining (e.g., this year's Music City Bowl between Tennessee and Purdue).  Plus, an expanded playoff could include epic and entertaining battles like the Utah-Ohio State clash.  The national championship games in 2016 (Alabama-Clemson), 2017 (Alabama-Clemson) and 2018 (Alabama-Georgia) were highly entertaining and big on drama.  The semi-finals so far have basically been duds.

[Austroturf]

Yeah, while the playoff games were snoozefests, the “meaningless” Rose Bowl was a ton of fun to watch, and I’m sure Ohio State and Utah fans didn’t consider it meaningless.  Obviously, the problem is that it is hard to know in advance which bowl games are going to be great and which will be lousy, but I think this one goes to show why I think it would be a mistake to expand the playoffs and do away with non-playoff bowl games.

BC

Agree with you on your prior post.  However, even if the playoff is expanded, there will be plenty of non-playoff bowl games; and some of them will be very entertaining (e.g., this year's Music City Bowl between Tennessee and Purdue).  Plus, an expanded playoff could include epic and entertaining battles like the Utah-Ohio State clash.  The national championship games in 2016 (Alabama-Clemson), 2017 (Alabama-Clemson) and 2018 (Alabama-Georgia) were highly entertaining and big on drama.  The semi-finals so far have basically been duds.

[BostonCard]

I was mostly replying to OutsiderFan’s argument, in another thread, that the playoffs should be expanded and non-playoff bowl games should be done away with.  I’m ok with trimming some bowl games that feature a pair of middling teams and that few people would miss, but, by and large, I don’t think the playoffs should subsume bowls.

BC

[BostonCard]

I was mostly replying to OutsiderFan’s argument, in another thread, that the playoffs should be expanded and non-playoff bowl games should be done away with.  I’m ok with trimming some bowl games that feature a pair of middling teams and that few people would miss, but, by and large, I don’t think the playoffs should subsume bowls.

BC

[81alum]

I found it a very entertaining game, but I tuned in too late to hear the explanation of what happened to the Utah secondary.  It sounded as if injuries (or COVID?) had depleted it so much that they were starting a running back there?  Ohio State's excellent receivers and QB simply made mincemeat out of the Utah secondary--to use a Christmas metaphor.  But it also sounded as if Ohio State had lost a bunch of starters.  In any case, the teams that were on the field were excellent on offense and poor on defense, and it showed.  Makes it fun for people who like a lot of offense.

[81alum]

I found it a very entertaining game, but I tuned in too late to hear the explanation of what happened to the Utah secondary.  It sounded as if injuries (or COVID?) had depleted it so much that they were starting a running back there?  Ohio State's excellent receivers and QB simply made mincemeat out of the Utah secondary--to use a Christmas metaphor.  But it also sounded as if Ohio State had lost a bunch of starters.  In any case, the teams that were on the field were excellent on offense and poor on defense, and it showed.  Makes it fun for people who like a lot of offense.

[Austroturf]

I found it a very entertaining game, but I tuned in too late to hear the explanation of what happened to the Utah secondary.  It sounded as if injuries (or COVID?) had depleted it so much that they were starting a running back there?  Ohio State's excellent receivers and QB simply made mincemeat out of the Utah secondary--to use a Christmas metaphor.  But it also sounded as if Ohio State had lost a bunch of starters.  In any case, the teams that were on the field were excellent on offense and poor on defense, and it showed.  Makes it fun for people who like a lot of offense.

True.  The Stroud to Smith-Njigba connection was poetry in motion.  But with better D-backs, a good portion of those yards would not have happened.

[Austroturf]

I found it a very entertaining game, but I tuned in too late to hear the explanation of what happened to the Utah secondary.  It sounded as if injuries (or COVID?) had depleted it so much that they were starting a running back there?  Ohio State's excellent receivers and QB simply made mincemeat out of the Utah secondary--to use a Christmas metaphor.  But it also sounded as if Ohio State had lost a bunch of starters.  In any case, the teams that were on the field were excellent on offense and poor on defense, and it showed.  Makes it fun for people who like a lot of offense.

True.  The Stroud to Smith-Njigba connection was poetry in motion.  But with better D-backs, a good portion of those yards would not have happened.

[Giants]

I found it a very entertaining game, but I tuned in too late to hear the explanation of what happened to the Utah secondary.  It sounded as if injuries (or COVID?) had depleted it so much that they were starting a running back there?  Ohio State's excellent receivers and QB simply made mincemeat out of the Utah secondary--to use a Christmas metaphor.  But it also sounded as if Ohio State had lost a bunch of starters.  In any case, the teams that were on the field were excellent on offense and poor on defense, and it showed.  Makes it fun for people who like a lot of offense.

True.  The Stroud to Smith-Njigba connection was poetry in motion.  But with better D-backs, a good portion of those yards would not have happened.

…or a better scheme.  Utah did a poor job of defending the middle of the secondary.  Combine that with a non-existent pass rush and you have a recipe for disaster.

[Giants]

I found it a very entertaining game, but I tuned in too late to hear the explanation of what happened to the Utah secondary.  It sounded as if injuries (or COVID?) had depleted it so much that they were starting a running back there?  Ohio State's excellent receivers and QB simply made mincemeat out of the Utah secondary--to use a Christmas metaphor.  But it also sounded as if Ohio State had lost a bunch of starters.  In any case, the teams that were on the field were excellent on offense and poor on defense, and it showed.  Makes it fun for people who like a lot of offense.

True.  The Stroud to Smith-Njigba connection was poetry in motion.  But with better D-backs, a good portion of those yards would not have happened.

…or a better scheme.  Utah did a poor job of defending the middle of the secondary.  Combine that with a non-existent pass rush and you have a recipe for disaster.

[gailtate]

I found it a very entertaining game, but I tuned in too late to hear the explanation of what happened to the Utah secondary.  It sounded as if injuries (or COVID?) had depleted it so much that they were starting a running back there?  Ohio State's excellent receivers and QB simply made mincemeat out of the Utah secondary--to use a Christmas metaphor.  But it also sounded as if Ohio State had lost a bunch of starters.  In any case, the teams that were on the field were excellent on offense and poor on defense, and it showed.  Makes it fun for people who like a lot of offense.

True.  The Stroud to Smith-Njigba connection was poetry in motion.  But with better D-backs, a good portion of those yards would not have happened.

…or a better scheme.  Utah did a poor job of defending the middle of the secondary.  Combine that with a non-existent pass rush and you have a recipe for disaster.

Good observation. The 2021 Utes looked the kind of outfit that the great Stanford teams under Harbaugh ('10) and early Shaw ('11-15), would slice, dice and julienne.

[gailtate]

I found it a very entertaining game, but I tuned in too late to hear the explanation of what happened to the Utah secondary.  It sounded as if injuries (or COVID?) had depleted it so much that they were starting a running back there?  Ohio State's excellent receivers and QB simply made mincemeat out of the Utah secondary--to use a Christmas metaphor.  But it also sounded as if Ohio State had lost a bunch of starters.  In any case, the teams that were on the field were excellent on offense and poor on defense, and it showed.  Makes it fun for people who like a lot of offense.

True.  The Stroud to Smith-Njigba connection was poetry in motion.  But with better D-backs, a good portion of those yards would not have happened.

…or a better scheme.  Utah did a poor job of defending the middle of the secondary.  Combine that with a non-existent pass rush and you have a recipe for disaster.

Good observation. The 2021 Utes looked the kind of outfit that the great Stanford teams under Harbaugh ('10) and early Shaw ('11-15), would slice, dice and julienne.