Top 10 college football teams of the decade
By Ethan Lee
No. 6: 2014 Ohio State Buckeyes
Ohio State was so good in 2014 that its third-string quarterback was able to win a national championship for the Buckeyes.
Braxton Miller was supposed to start the season as the starting quarterback of the Buckeyes, but an injury set him on the sidelines. J.T. Barrett took the reins of the offense and, despite a loss in Week 2 to Virginia Tech, had the Buckeyes clicking on all cylinders up until he got hurt in the regular-season finale vs. Michigan.
That’s when Cardale Jones came in and became the biggest story in college football.
Jones played well against Wisconsin in the Big Ten Championship Game, leading the Buckeyes to a 59-0 win. From there, the Buckeyes snuck into the playoffs where Jones then helped Ohio State push past Alabama, humbling the Crimson Tide in the process.
Jones’ run of improbable and unlikely success continued as the young quarterback then led his team to a 22-point victory against Oregon, delivering a national championship to Ohio State in the process.
With Ezekiel Elliott and Joey Bosa helping lead the Buckeyes, just about any quarterback would have been able to have stepped in and win games in 2014. But, Barrett and Jones were able to do more than just win a few games, they combined to lead the Buckeyes to a national championship in the first year of the playoff era.
That’s a remarkable accomplishment.