Ohio State to Host Tennessee in College Football Playoff First Round
ZANESVILLE, OH
Ever since the disheartening loss to the team up north to end the regular season, Buckeyes faithful have had to wait and see where their team would land in the first ever 12-team college football playoff bracket.
Wait no longer, as the Buckeyes claim the number eight seed, the lowest ranked team to host a playoff game, with number nine Tennessee coming to visit.
It is the sixth time that the Buckeyes find themselves in the college football playoff field since the start of the CFP era, and the fourth time in six years under Ryan Day.
The Volunteers completed a 10-2 regular season, finishing number seven in the final AP top 25 poll of the regular season, just one spot behind the Buckeyes. The Vols went 2-1 against ranked teams this season, with wins against Oklahoma in September and Alabama in October, while falling to Georgia just shy of one month ago on the road. Tennessee is led by 46-year old Josh Heupel, finishing off his fourth season in charge of the orange and white.
The two programs have met just one time in recorded college football history, where the Volunteers, led by sophomore star Peyton Manning, emerged with a 20-14 victory in the 1996 Citrus Bowl over Heisman Trophy winner Eddie George and the Buckeyes.
This will mark the second consecutive year that Ohio State will face an SEC opponent in the postseason, after falling to Missouri in the Cotton Bowl last season.
Oregon gets the top-seed in the bracket, followed Georgia, Boise State, and Arizona State to round out the top four, with all receiving byes in the first round. Texas is the number five seed, while Penn State receives the number six seed, despite falling to the Buckeyes back in week eight of the regular season.
Notre Dame is the seventh seed, Indiana is the tenth seed, SMU is the 11th seed, and Clemson claims the 12th and final spot in the playoffs.
Ohio State’s matchup with Tennessee receives the 8 pm slot on Saturday, December 21st, marking the first time in program history that the Buckeyes will host a game in December. The winner gets a date with top-ranked Ducks in this year’s Rose Bowl.
