OK, so as pretty much everyone who follows college football knows, tonight is a historic night. The first ever college football playoff national championship game. The first time that I can honestly say we are going to crown a national champion the way it should be crowned...on the field. Let me just say this, first of all, I think four teams is not enough. Eight is the ideal number, but that's for another time.
This is about tonight. Let's get this out of the way, I can't stand Ohio State. The thought of me rooting for them makes me want to puke and hold my nose at the same time. The thought of those freaks (and make no mistake about it, a good majority of them are freaks, the stories of their behavior are infamous) called Ohio State fans taunting the rest of college football with their stupid O-H-I-O chant (and they aren't Ohio for the record) and telling us that they are 'THE' Ohio State University for an entire year...wow.
However....
As Nebraska fans and more importantly, fans of a Big 10 school, I think the Nebraska fans must begrudgingly put our dislike for Ohio State on the backburner one more night and root for them to win tonight. I will not be doing the O-H-I-O chant during the game (yikes), but I will begrudgingly root for them to win the title tonight and here is why.
The bottom line is, I think the Big 10 getting a championship is more beneficial for Nebraska in the long run than Scott Frost getting a championship while offensive coordinator of the Ducks. People got tired of the ubiquitous S-E-C, S-E-C, S-E-C chant every time one of their teams would win a title. I get that. People who don't necessarily believe in conference strength were rooting for the SEC to lose just to get them out of the picture, finally. I can even get that.
But the bottom line is, there's a reason why S-E-C fans do that every time one of their teams win. They do it because they know that conference strength matters. They know that the better opponents you play, that makes you a better team. Whether my readers like it or not, it does matter. More than anyone wants to believe.
I'll say it again, conference strength matters. Iron sharpens iron. Who you play on a week to week basis makes you better (or worse). If you play better competition on a week in, week out basis, then you develop better habits as a team and as a coaching staff. People sort of joked about Meyer saying that Wisconsin beating Auburn and Michigan State beating Baylor (both teams that OSU beat by double digits) was a big factor in Ohio State's win over Alabama. People sort of laughed about how it did nothing more than pump Ohio State up. But Meyer knows better. He has now coached in the SEC, and in the Big 10. He knows how important conference strength is.
Playing better competition forces teams to either get better or wither on the vine in the proverbial sense, in all areas such as playcalling, scheme and player development. I don't know how many of my readers watched the FCS football championship on Saturday, but that championship game was between two teams from the Missouri Valley Conference (the first time that has ever happened, for the record). That same conference put FIVE teams in the FCS playoffs.
I've seen Nebraska fans on the interwebs say that Meyer doesn't need any more ammunition than he's already got. I can understand that point, but I'll turn it the other way. An Ohio State title might be the BEST thing that can happen for Nebraska fans because it will force Coach Riley and the rest of his staff to be on top of their game in all areas of coaching. It would lay down the gauntlet, so to speak.
Besides all of that, think about all the times over the last 10 years that Big 10 teams got embarrassed on the big stage, and to my Nebraska peeps, think as Nebraska fans about how tired you were of hearing about how the Big 10 is such a crappy conference, and how it shone a negative light on the Husker program. Think about New Year's Day 2011, where the Big 10 got humiliated, going 0-5 and losing by an average of 20 points, all the humiliating losses to the SEC, the Big 12 and the Pac-12.
And remember this most of all; the SEC built their brand on winning national championships, 7 in a row in fact. If Ohio State does not get it done tonight, then the Big 10 will be looked at as an improved league, but still not one that can win a title. Just like the SEC was until Florida cashed one in on...Ohio State in 2006.
Then there's another argument, that Oregon is much cleaner than Ohio State is, and that they could be considered the darlings if they won because it would be their first time. Not so fast. I get that I'd love to see Scottie win a ring, and Mariota is a freak, but Oregon can be considered a dirty, slimy program too. Ever since billionaire businessman Phil Knight started donating to the Oregon program approximately 20 years ago (and according to some reports, it's over 300 million dollars), they've been a perennial bowl team and most recently a national contender every year.
Before then, they were one of the worst programs in the country, a perennial absentee from bowl competition. In a USA Today article published during the season, former Oregon coach Mike Bellotti once told former UO athletic director Phil Moos that the program could live without them but it can't live on without Knight. You don't think there's some dirty money going on up in Eugene? I'm not saying Ohio State is clean. Neither is Oregon though. Both are programs I would consider slimy. You can read the aforementioned article here http://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/ncaaf/pac12/2014/12/29/oregon-nike-phil-knight-college-football-playoff/21013009/
Beyond all of that, this is a program that has flirted with trouble on NCAA recruiting violations over the last several years. Why do you think Chip Kelly left for Philly while he could? Check this link out from a couple years ago while you have the time http://espn.go.com/college-football/story/_/id/9177148/ncaa-oregon-ducks-agree-major-violations-committed-football-program
So, although it's going to make me hold my nose, I hope that Ohio State brings it home because the Big 10 needs a title. Go Buckeyes. Now excuse me while I go shower after I just said that.
Until next time....
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