ATLANTA — Monday night belonged to the transfers, much like the Cotton Bowl belonged to the returners.
This particular Ohio State national championship had a little bit of something for everyone. It had a heavy dose of redemption for a coach that some in Columbus wanted to run out of town after a fourth straight loss to Michigan. It had a near-perfect first half from quarterback Will Howard, who joined the Buckeyes little over a year ago from Kansas State because he wanted to compete for this title — and because he’d kind of gotten benched there. Ole Miss running back Quinshon Judkins came on board a few days after Howard did, announcing his commitment to Ohio State last January mere minutes after rival Michigan won its national title in Houston. And then he scored three touchdowns in two-plus quarters to help lead the Buckeyes to a trophy of their own.
But none of this was easy, not even the championship game. Notre Dame fought back, over and over, to pull within one score late in the fourth quarter. But that’s as close as the Irish would get, as they did not have Jeremiah Smith — and the Buckeyes did. One deep pass to the freshman sensation sealed the game, and Ohio State won, 34-23.
As the game’s final seconds ticked down and the realization that he was about to win his first national title started to sink in, head coach Ryan Day thought to himself, God made it hard for a reason.
“This game can give you the highest of highs and the lowest of lows,” Day said later. “It can take you to your knees.”
It certainly can. He’s lived it. So had many of the players on that field Monday night.
The veterans of this team hadn’t won much. Well, they’d technically won a lot of games over the past four years, but they hadn’t won the big ones — the games that earn you gold pants and diamond rings. Those Buckeyes had lost to the Wolverines over and over and over again. They had also lost to Georgia in the College Football Playoff semifinals by missing a game-winning field goal as the clock struck 12 on New Year’s Eve. They had been very, very good, but they were never truly great.
And so they came back. Defensive end Jack Sawyer was the first to announce his return, just like he was the first player to commit to Ryan Day after Day was elevated to head coach after the 2018 season. Then came cornerback Denzel Burke, defensive tackle Tyleik Williams and game-wrecker JT Tuimoloau. Star receiver Emeka Egbuka stayed, too. So did running back TreVeyon Henderson.
The roster was loaded. It got even more so when it added Howard, Judkins and Alabama safety Caleb Downs. Expectations were as high as they could possibly get; it was a national championship-or-bust kind of season. Burke said as much this past spring, squarely placing that bullseye on their backs. So did the $20 million price tag that accompanied the roster.
But as it turns out, they were just as good as we thought they would be. It just took a full regular season (and that embarrassing loss to Michigan) to unlock this team’s potential, which is a credit to Day and his coaching staff as well as the players themselves. These Buckeyes were a runaway freight train all throughout the College Football Playoff.
“I feel like from the start of (my tenure), we’ve been knocking on the door,” Day said. “But you’ve got to find a way to break through and make it to where we are right now. I think in today’s day and age, there’s just so much that goes with wins and losses and social media and people have to write articles and there’s a lot of things that are said that, yeah, it’s certainly have an effect on you and your family.
“But when you sign up for this job, that’s what you sign up for. You’ve got to be strong enough to withstand those storms, to come out the back end.”
Day has said he could never have endured what he has without his family. He couldn’t have made it through those weeks between the Michigan game and the first-round CFP game against Tennessee without his staff and the players he considers members of his family now. Guys like Sawyer, a kid who grew up just outside of Columbus and dreamt of bringing his Buckeyes glory. He’s the one who couldn’t bear to watch Michigan players plant a flag at Ohio Stadium. He never beat That Team Up North. But his scoop and score against Texas secured this team’s trip to the title game. And no one could pry that victory cigar out of his hand late Monday night.
“These guys learned a bunch of life lessons, but they’re going to go down in Ohio State history as one of the greatest teams to ever play at Ohio State,” Day said. “After all the things that have been said throughout the year, these guys are going to be cemented as one of the best stories in Ohio State history and one of the best football teams ever.
“There was a point where not a lot of people had that vision, but these guys did. And they saw it through.”
That included an offensive line that lost two starters to season-ending injuries and had to reimagine and reform itself. It also included an offensive coordinator in Chip Kelly who left a head coaching position to reunite with a former pupil. And a quarterback who maybe didn’t initially seem like an upgrade from his predecessor but got better and more confident as the season went on. Howard set a new CFP and BCS championship game record with 13 straight completions to start the game on Monday night.
Howard said Day has changed his life. So, too, will this title. It’ll change the lives of everyone tied to this season and this program. Day himself is now just the third active head coach with a national title, putting him in rarefied air alongside Kirby Smart and Dabo Swinney.
And it wasn’t easy for him to get here. It wasn’t easy for Howard, either. Or Sawyer. Or anyone who had to overcome truly painful moments before the confetti could fall and the cigars could be lit.
“Ohio State may not be for everybody, but it’s for these guys,” Day said. “And I’m really proud of them.”
