| 2020 Ohio State Buckeyes football | |
|---|---|
 | |
Big Ten champion Big Ten East Division champion Sugar Bowl champion | |
Big Ten Championship Game, W 22–10 vs. Northwestern | |
| Conference | Big Ten Conference |
| East Division | |
| Ranking | |
| Coaches | No. 2 |
| AP | No. 2 |
| Record | 7–1 (5–0 Big Ten) |
| Head coach |
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| Offensive coordinator | Kevin Wilson (4th season) |
| Offensive scheme | West Coast spread |
| Defensive coordinator | Kerry Coombs (1st season) |
| Co-defensive coordinator | Greg Mattison (2nd season) |
| Base defense | 4–3 |
| Captain | Wyatt Davis Tuf Borland Shaun Wade Justin Hilliard Justin Fields Jonathon Cooper Josh Myers |
| Home stadium | Ohio Stadium |
| Conf | Overall | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Team | W | L | W | L | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| East Division | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 2 Ohio State xy$^ | 5 | – | 0 | 7 | – | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 12 Indiana | 6 | – | 1 | 6 | – | 2 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Penn State | 4 | – | 5 | 4 | – | 5 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Maryland | 2 | – | 3 | 2 | – | 3 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Rutgers | 3 | – | 6 | 3 | – | 6 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Michigan | 2 | – | 4 | 2 | – | 4 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Michigan State | 2 | – | 5 | 2 | – | 5 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| West Division | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 10 Northwestern xy | 6 | – | 1 | 7 | – | 2 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 16 Iowa | 6 | – | 2 | 6 | – | 2 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Wisconsin | 3 | – | 3 | 4 | – | 3 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Minnesota | 3 | – | 4 | 3 | – | 4 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Nebraska | 3 | – | 5 | 3 | – | 5 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Purdue | 2 | – | 4 | 2 | – | 4 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Illinois | 2 | – | 6 | 2 | – | 6 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Championship: Ohio State 22, Northwestern 10 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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The 2020 Ohio State Buckeyes football team represented Ohio State University in the 2020 NCAA Division I FBS football season. They were led by second-year head coach Ryan Day, and played their home games at Ohio Stadium in Columbus, Ohio. It was the Buckeyes' 131st season overall and 108th as a member of the Big Ten Conference.
The season was played amidst the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. The Big Ten Conference initially cancelled the fall sports season, on August 11, 2020,[2] but reversed course on September 16, announcing an eight-game conference-only schedule.[3][4] Ohio State's nonconference games against Bowling Green, Oregon, and Buffalo were cancelled. Precautions were taken to promote player, staff, and fan safety, including regular COVID-19 testing, isolation requirements, and mask wearing; games were largely played with no or few fans in attendance.
Ohio State began the season ranked second in the preseason AP Poll. In the regular season, the team secured victories against ranked opponents Penn State and Indiana, but had games canceled, due to COVID-19 outbreaks, against Maryland, Illinois and Michigan. Big Ten Conference rules established before the season specified that teams would need to complete at least six conference games in order to be eligible for the conference championship game. After Ohio State's game against Michigan was canceled, and Ohio State having only completed five games, the conference voted to change these rules and allow the undefeated Ohio State team to represent the East Division. The conference cited the fact that Ohio State would have won the division with either a win or loss against Michigan.[5] In the conference title game, Ohio State defeated West Division champion Northwestern, 22–10, winning their fourth consecutive Big Ten title. In the final College Football Playoff rankings of the season, Ohio State was ranked third, earning them a place in the national semi-final game to be played at the Sugar Bowl against second-seeded Clemson. In that game, a rematch of the previous season's semifinal, Ohio State won by a score of 49–28. The team advanced to the CFP National Championship against top-seeded Alabama, who had advanced by winning the Rose Bowl. The Buckeyes lost, 52–24.
The Buckeye offense was led by junior quarterback Justin Fields, who led the Big Ten Conference with 2,100 passing yards and 22 passing touchdowns, and was named the conference's Offensive Player of the Year. The team's leading rushers were Trey Sermon and Master Teague, the former setting a school record with 331 rushing yards in the Big Ten Championship Game. Wide receivers Chris Olave and Garrett Wilson were each named first-team all-conference. Offensive lineman Wyatt Davis was a consensus All-American and the conference's Offensive Lineman of the Year. On defense, the team featured consensus All-American cornerback Shaun Wade, who was the conference's Defensive Back of the Year. Linebacker Pete Werner was also named first-team all-conference and led the team in tackles.
- ^ Stevens, Matthew. "Big Ten To Play A "Championship Weekend" 9th Game Of 2020 Season". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved September 17, 2020.
- ^ "Big Ten Statement on 2020-21 Fall Season". Big Ten Conference. August 11, 2020. Archived from the original on August 11, 2020. Retrieved August 11, 2020.
- ^ "Big Ten football to resume weekend of Oct. 24". ESPN.com. September 16, 2020. Retrieved September 16, 2020.
- ^ "The Big Ten Conference Adopts Stringent Medical Protocols; Football Season to Resume October 23-24, 2020". Big Ten Conference. September 16, 2020. Archived from the original on September 16, 2020. Retrieved September 16, 2020.
- ^ Kaufman, Joey; Rabinowitz, Bill (December 9, 2020). "Big Ten amends rule allowing Ohio State to play in conference title game". USA Today.