A duck invasion took place in Century City not long ago as Oregon football fans proudly displayed their green and yellow colors in hotel headquarters leading up to the Rose Bowl game against Florida State.
But after storming past the Seminoles on New Year’s Day in Pasadena, the Ducks went down to Ohio State in the inaugural College Football Championship game in Arlington, Texas, on January 12. It ended Oregon’s dream of winning a national title in college football, while the Buckeyes earned their sixth national championship with a dominating 42-20 victory over the Ducks.
Oregon fans must have been deeply disappointed by the loss. The Ducks entered the game as a touchdown favorite and were led by Heisman Trophy winner Marcus Mariota and a high-powered, high-scoring offense. But it was Ohio State that put on an offensive show in Texas, while slowing down Mariota and the Ducks.
Quite simply, the Buckeyes proved to be the better team that day.
No matter the result, though, the real winner was college football fans. After putting up with the much-maligned two-team BCS system for years, fans finally got a four-team playoff chosen by a selected panel.
Under the old system, Ohio State would have been left out. This year the Buckeyes barely slipped in as the number four seed, but proved they belonged by beating the top two teams in Alabama and Oregon.
Ohio State coach Urban Meyer captured his third national title (two with Florida) and is arguably the best college coach in the country. He has the Buckeyes lined up as a potential dynasty, and there could be more battles ahead against his longtime arch-rival Nick Saban and Alabama.
No longer is it just about Alabama and the SEC. Ohio State’s championship was a big one for the Big Ten, a conference that for the past decade has been perceived as being weak. But with Meyer leading the Buckeyes and Jim Harbaugh now at Michigan, the Big Ten is once again in play for more titles.
And while Oregon has been one of the elite programs over the past five years, the Ducks have yet to capture that elusive championship.
It’s been a decade since USC won it all, and coach Steve Sarkisian is trying to return the Trojans to greatness. Over at UCLA, Jim Mora wants to build the Bruins into a title contender. It’s going to be a tough task, however.
But a four-team playoff system gives hope to many college football programs across the country. As the Buckeyes proved this year, all you need to do is get in and get hot at the right time.
