The NCAAF season is entering its decisive stage, and the start of 2025 brings an exciting showdown between Ohio State and Oregon. Current Buckeyes OC Chip Kelly was once part of the Ducks‘ program, and this time, he will be on the opposing sideline. His experience gives him a clear understanding of how they can overcome Dan Lanning‘s team in the Rose Bowl.
In a recent conversation with the press, Kelly expressed the mindset of his players ahead of this crucial matchup: “I think our players are intrinsically motivated to be successful and they have one goal and that’s to win the whole thing,” the OC said. “And the only way you can win the whole thing is to win game two. So that’s been their attention since the Tennessee game was over. It’s been, ‘What do we got to do next?’”
“I think every game is different, so I think you don’t look at it and say, ‘Hey, we did this against Tennessee, so we’ll do this against our next opponent,'” Kelly said. “I think it’s always the matchups and the individual matchups, our O-line versus their D-line, which I think is one of the best D-lines in the country. I think Derrick Harmon and Jamaree Caldwell inside (are good) – and they’ll have Jordan Burch back. Burch didn’t play against us in the first game, so what impact will he have as an edge player? Because he’s a really, really good football player.”
After the loss in the regular season, Kelly knows they cannot afford to make the same mistakes if they want to defeat Dan Lanning‘s team: “You go through that game and go through plays and what you were doing, and we got into a little bit more of a throw situation a couple times there. We had a backed-up situation coming out and moved the ball pretty well out of that, but then missed on a key third down. That one had a bad snap and didn’t handle it very well.”
Ohio State Buckeyes quarterback Will Howard (18) gets a post game hug from Ohio State Buckeyes offensive coordinator Chip Kelly after the game between the Ohio State Buckeyes and Penn State Nittany Lions at Beaver Stadium, University Park, Pennsylvania.
“You get to play a team twice. That’s rare in college football that you get to play a team twice. You’ve got a game against them, and they also have a game against you, so they’re looking at the same exact thing,” Kelly finally concluded.
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Kelly is well aware of the talent that the Ducks possess
The matchup between the Buckeyes and Ducks will likely be decided by the smallest of details, as the talent on both teams makes it clear that there is no clear favorite for this game. Kelly has thoroughly studied his opponent and knows that in order to defeat them, his team will need to give their all in Pasadena.
“I think it’s all your attention is on, obviously, they’re the No. 1 seed that you’re playing,” Kelly said. “And they’re the No. 1 seed for a reason. They’re the only undefeated team in college football. So, that gets your attention right away, so you don’t have to muster up any type of other motivation in terms of what people say about us. It’s a really good football team. Turn on the tape, and they’re going to challenge us. And our guys are really excited about that challenge.“
Nick Saban makes one thing clear about Ryan Day’s team
Nick Saban is a legend in College Football and understands the significance of these kinds of games. Now as an analyst, he made his stance clear on what Ryan Day‘s Buckeyes are capable of achieving.
“They have an opportunity to win the national championship,” Saban said. “Everybody ought to be supporting the hell out of them so that they have the best opportunity to do it and quit all this negative (expletive)”
