Ohio State dominates Oregon in a Rose Bowl Rout

Hall of Fame coach Paul Brown once said, "You can learn a line from a win and a book from defeat." If that is true, the Oregon Ducks can write a book on the subject after a thorough beatdown from the Ohio State Buckeyes, 41-21 in the annual January 1 Rose Bowl game, which this year doubled as a College Football Playoff (CFP) quarterfinal matchup.

The Ducks came into the game as the No. 1 ranked team in the nation with a 13-0 record, and had beaten the Buckeyes earlier in the season, 31-30 at home in Eugene, Oregon. They were the winners of the Big Ten conference. The Buckeyes finished third in the Big Ten Conference and came into the Rose Bowl game with an 11-2 record after defeating Tennessee in the first round of the CFP Playoffs.

The Buckeyes dominated the game in a way that just does not happen very often between two very good football teams. Over the first 27 minutes of the game, the Buckeyes led 34-0, with six offensive possessions resulting in six scoring drives, four touchdowns and two field goals. The Buckeyes in the first 27 minutes racked up 390 yards in total offense to just 64 total yards for the Ducks. Ducks head coach Dan Lanning reflected on the season and the disappointing performance by his team In the Rose Bowl.

"I don't want to discredit what our players have been able to accomplish this year," Lanning said. "We had a great team. We just ran into a great team tonight and we didn't play our best. Credit to those guys. I just don't think we had a good enough plan as coaches tonight, and we have to find ways to prepare ourselves for these moments better as a coaching staff."

Lanning added, "We've got to be able to adjust a little bit faster. There were some things we were able to get going at points throughout the game. We didn't adjust fast enough. Their wideouts were creating a lot of success down the field. And then their ability to run the ball makes them a dangerous team. They didn't make mistakes on special teams. You need some of those things to bounce your way."

The Ducks seemed a step slow on both sides of the ball, and lacked the energy and passion that you would expect from a team playing in a game of this magnitude. The Buckeyes came out with a lot of energy on both sides of the ball and an aggressive offensive game plan, which was put together by Offensive Coordinator Chip Kelly, the UCLA Bruins head coach from 2018 through 2023. Kelly resigned to join the staff of Ohio State head coach Ryan Day.

"Yeah, I thought Chip called a great game," Day said. "I thought the whole offensive staff worked hard to put the plan together. But ultimately it comes down to the players putting it on the field. I've said that all along. I think sometimes in this game coaches get too much attention. This is about these guys right here. A lot of good plays out there, but they've got to make it work. And I thought they really put it on the field, and we came out aggressive."

Day added, "But I thought Chip called an aggressive game and certainly had a big smile on his face after." The big smile was in part due to the way he left UCLA and the opportunity to return to the Rose Bowl and walk off the field a winner. Kelly resigned on February 9, 2024. There were many UCLA fans that wanted to see him fired and many that were happy to see him go.

Ohio State quarterback Will Howard completed 17 of 26 passes for 319 yards and three touchdowns, with two of the touchdowns caught by freshman sensation wide receiver Jeremiah Smith, who had seven receptions for 187 yards. The Buckeyes rushed for 181 yards, including a 66-yard touchdown run by running back TreVeyon Henderson. Howard was not sacked in the game and neither team committed a turnover in the game.

Defensively, the Buckeyes dominated the Ducks, sacking quarterback Dillion Gabriel eight times and holding the Duck running backs to a total of 21 yards on 15 carries. Gabriel was able to lead the Ducks to three offensive touchdowns after the Buckeyes got off to the big lead, but it was a grind without a running attack and with the constant pass rush pressure. Gabriel often had to improvise to extend plays and keep drives going.

The attendance for this year's Rose Bowl game was 90,732. Oregon finishes the season with a record of 13-1, while Ohio State improves to 12-2 for the season and earns a trip to Arlington, Texas to take on the Texas Longhorns in the Cotton Bowl CFP semifinal at AT&T Stadium. The game will be played on Friday, January 10 and will start at 4:30 pm PST and will be televised on ESPN.