Connelly: Buckeyes beat the odds to win title

When Ohio State head football coach Urban Meyer lifted the College Football Playoff National Championship trophy into the confetti-filled air, there could be no more questions.

The Buckeyes answered the final one Monday night on the biggest stage — just as they had each time prior.

And yet, even after watching No. 4 Ohio State reach the pinnacle of college football by smothering No. 2 Oregon, 42-20, I still found myself asking how.

How did a team from the no-good Big Ten Conference overcome a miserable September home loss to a seven-win Virginia Tech team, to claim the title of national champion?

Turns out the answer was right in front of me all along. The Buckeyes weren’t who we thought they were — they were exactly who Meyer built them to be.

A team that was deep, as exhibited by the play of third-string quarterback Cardale Jones — who by the way was only a third-string quarterback by title, not by skill. A team that was big up front, as SEC-champion Alabama can attest to after giving up 281 yards rushing to the Buckeyes in the Sugar Bowl.

A team with speed, that even Oregon’s up-tempo offense, led by Heisman winning quarterback Marcus Mariota, couldn’t keep up with. But most importantly, Meyer built a team that believed they could win a national championship — even when nobody else did.

When Ohio State had to replace returning starting quarterback Braxton Miller, who suffered a preseason shoulder injury, Las Vegas dropped the Buckeyes title odds from 12-1 to 50-1.

When they lost replacement quarterback J.T. Barrett in the regular season finale against Michigan, their playoff hopes may as well have been driven off on the cart with their quarterback.

I’ll be the first to admit, I thought TCU deserved the final spot in this year’s inaugural playoff. But when the Buckeyes put a beat-down on Wisconsin in the Big Ten championship game the night before the bracket was unveiled, the playoff committee had no choice but to include the Buckeyes as the final team in the dance.

Even then, Vegas wasn’t willing to give Ohio State respect. The Buckeyes were 9.5-point underdogs to the Crimson Tide in their semifinal game: Buckeyes won by touchdown.

They were 6.5-point underdogs to the Ducks in the championship game. That didn’t matter either. Ohio State had been told all season long they couldn’t. On Monday night, they proved the naysayers wrong and beat the odds.

Whether Meyer is willing to admit it or not, this team was supposed to be a year away from contending for a national title. Now they’re likely to open next season as the favorite to hold another confetti-covered trophy.

Kevin Connelly is a sportswriter for The Vindicator. Write him at kconnelly@vindy.com and follow him on Twitter, @Connelly_Vindy.