If you haven’t heard yet, the Ohio State vs. Michigan game has been canceled. The annual grudge match between two of college football’s most storied historical programs won’t be played because of the state of the coronavirus outbreak inside the Wolverine program. It’s the first time since 1918 that The Game between these two arch-rivals won’t be contested.
And while the news is deeply disappointing for both sides, there are ramifications to what happens next for the Ohio State program. The Buckeyes will now only finish with five regular-season games, one short of the mandatory six games the league outlined as in its return to play policy for teams to be eligible for the Big Ten Championship Game.
There are also College Football Playoff implications. Having one-less game against a quality opponent, and not winning a conference championship could play into the College Football Playoff Committee’s decision-making when selecting the four best teams.
But don’t panic yet Buckeye Nation. There are still some things that could happen for OSU to still go to Indy and we’re going to outline them for you here.
Here are three ways Ohio State can still get into the Big Ten Championship Game and improve its resume for the College Football Playoff. Either way, it’s going to take some work, and might need the conference to step up, but the Buckeyes should not be penalized for things they cannot control.
NEXT … Play another Big Ten team
Ohio State could play another Big Ten team
Something that is already an approved practice for Big Ten teams by the conference is to play another conference opponent. This was first floated out there when news of the outbreak at Michigan was made known. At that time, Minnesota was dealing with its own rise in positive COVID-19 tests. That would seem to put the Gophers game against Nebraska in jeopardy this weekend.
However, per recent news out of Minnesota, it appears things are in much better shape in the Twin Cities, so that looks like less of an option.
But wait. We just got the news that Purdue had to cancel its practice to re-evaluate some of its testing data.
Purdue football program cancels practice Tuesday to evaluate results of recent COVID-19 testing. Purdue scheduled to play at Indiana Saturday
— Brett McMurphy (@Brett_McMurphy) December 8, 2020
Purdue is supposed to play at Indiana this weekend, and if things sour after the Boilermakers look at things, the Hoosiers could theoretically be available this weekend now. And while these two have matched up already, if it meant another game for Ohio State, I’ll bet the OSU brass would try to pull it off.
For Indiana, you can also bet the Hoosiers would love to get another crack at the Buckeyes. We’ll wait and see what happens here. There are logistical things to work out obviously like, which team is going to give up a home game, but it’s an option.
It’s nothing to celebrate when there is a coronavirus outbreak, but there it is as the easiest solution that wouldn’t involve intervention and changing of a policy already in place.
NEXT … The Big Ten changes its policy and eliminates the six-game minimum
The Big Ten eliminates the minium game threshold
"If [Ohio State] has a game canceled, I think we as athletic directors would have to revisit whether they should be involved [in the Big Ten Championship Game]"
Wisconsin AD Barry Alvarez joins #BigNoonKickoff to discuss if the Big Ten will revisit the 6-game minimum. pic.twitter.com/GVr1aRrTDS
— FOX College Football (@CFBONFOX) December 5, 2020
This one appears to be the most likely. There are already some rumblings that the Big Ten may reconsider the six-game minimum, and frankly, it never should have been put in play in the first place with a global pandemic in play during cold and flu season.
The folks in the ivory tower in Chicago could simply work with the conference’s athletic directors and waive the minimum requirement, release a statement, and knight Ohio State the Big Ten East representative, especially since the Buckeyes already beat the team 1/2 game behind them, Indiana, a few weeks ago.
NEXT … Big Ten could allow Ohio State to play another team outside of the conference
Allow Ohio State to play outside of the Big Ten
This is probably the least likely because of the concerns associated with playing outside the confines of the conference’s COVID-19 protocols, but the Big Ten could allow Ohio State to play another team that is off because of a COVID-19 canceled game outside in another league. As of right now, Cincinnati vs. Tulsa, as well as Texas A&M vs. Ole Miss is not going to be played.
There’s an obvious solution right there. If traveling is a concern, Ohio State or Cincinnati could get on a bus and head down I-71 an hour and a half and play the game in a relatively safe bubble. There are no planes involved, potentially no hotels, and it’s two teams ranked inside the top ten. It could even spark a new rivalry.
Also, being in the same state would mean both teams would be familiar with Ohio’s protocols and restrictions with each being on the relative same page.
Sources: Saturday’s Cincinnati-Tulsa game has been canceled because of the COVID-19 situation at Cincinnati. Announcement coming soon. Expect Cincinnati to host next week’s AAC title game against Tulsa as a result. Tulsa would have hosted with a win Saturday.
— Kelly Hines (@KellyHinesTW) December 8, 2020
It’s highly unlikely, but this would be a fun way to make things a little more interesting as a back-up in-state rivalry game FOX could still broadcast in the ‘Shoe at Noon. You could almost guarantee both teams would be up for it, in fact, the Bearcats would then have a shot to get a huge win and crash the CFP party.
Contact/Follow us @BuckeyesWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Ohio State news, notes and opinion.
Download the USA TODAY SportsWire app to follow Buckeyes Wire and your other favorite teams in the Apple Store for iPhones and Google Play for Android devices.
