Victor Wembanyama and the San Antonio Spurs received positive news on Jan. 1.

The Spurs star suffered a leg injury during the 134-132 victory over the New York Knicks on Dec. 31.

Wembanyama’s MRI came back clean with no sign of ligament damage, according to ESPN.

Wembanyama did not travel with the team and is not expected to play against the Indiana Pacers on Friday, Jan. 2. He will remain in San Antonio for additional care. The Frenchman is considered questionable for Saturday’s home game against the Portland Trail Blazers.

He told reporters after the game on Wednesday that he hyperextended his knee and initially expected to play in the team’s next game.

Wembanyama had jumped in an attempt to collect an offensive rebound before coming down awkwardly after he landed on the foot of Knicks center Karl Anthony-Towns. Wembanyama was slow to get off the court, limping back to the locker room.

Victor Wembanyama stats

Wembanyama produced 31 points and 13 rebounds in 24 minutes of play against the Knicks. He’s averaging 24.3 points, 11.7 rebounds and 3.4 assists per game this season.

When do Spurs play next?

The Spurs will visit the Indiana Pacers on Friday, Jan. 2 at 7 p.m. ET.

Will Lamar Jackson play on Sunday vs. the Pittsburgh Steelers? According to Lamar Jackson, yes.

The Baltimore Ravens passer was injured in Week 16, suffering a back contusion that sidelined him for Baltimore’s Week 17 matchup vs. the the Green Bay Packers. Luckily, the Ravens downed Green Bay to keep their playoff hopes intact.

While there was some question surrounding Jackson’s availability for the winner-take-all Week 18 matchup vs. the Steelers, the passer said on New Year’s Day that he will definitely suit up.

‘100%, I’m gonna be out there,’ Jackson said when asked if he’s playing vs. their AFC North rivals on Sunday. … ‘Looking forward to playing Sunday. And not just me, I feel like all of us, all phases.’

Jackson was kneed in the back by a New England Patriots defender in Week 16, forcing him out for half of the matchup and the subsequent week vs. Green Bay. After practicing earlier in the week, Jackson said he will start on Sunday.

That’s good news for the Ravens, who must win to get their ticket punched to the NFL playoffs. Should the Ravens win, they’ll take the division and eliminate the Steelers in the process.

Here’s the latest on Jackson and his injury:

Lamar Jackson injury update

The Ravens passer says he is ‘100%’ starting in a do-or-die Week 18 matchup vs. the Pittsburgh Steelers.

Jackson told reporters on New Year’s Day that he will also wear some protective padding around the injury to further protect himself from injury as he recovers.

Jackson was injured in Week 16 vs. the New England Patriots, taking a hit to his lower back to put him out the rest of the matchup.

Ravens QB depth chart

Here’s how the QB room stacks up with Jackson’s return this week:

Lamar Jackson
Tyler Huntley
Cooper Rush

In Jackson’s absence, Huntley started and helped down the Packers in Week 17 to keep their playoff hopes alive. Jackson is set to start once again in Week 18.

The best Japanese starting pitcher on the market is no longer available.

Free agent right-hander Tatsuya Imai and the Houston Astros have agreed on a three-year contract with opt outs that could be worth up to $63 million, multiple news outlets reported on Thursday, Jan. 1.

The agreement comes one day before Imai’s 45-day window to sign with an MLB team was set to expire on Friday, Jan. 2.

The deal includes $54 million guaranteed and will pay the former Nippon Professional Baseball star $18 million a year with $3 million in performance bonuses that could make the total $21 million per year, MLB reporter Jon Heyman reported.

Imai had longer-term deals with a lower annual salary on the table, according to MLB.com, but chose to go to Houston on a shorter-term deal with a higher average annual value and opt outs. The 27-year-old was 10-5 with a 1.92 ERA, 178 strikeouts and 45 walks in 163⅔ innings with the Seibu Lions in 2025. He went 58-45 with a 3.15 ERA in eight seasons with Seibu, with 907 strikeouts in 963⅔ innings.

Imai’s agent, Scott Boras, recently compared him to 2025 World Series MVP Yoshinobu Yamamoto, who signed a 12-year, $325-million contract with the Los Angeles Dodgers before the 2024 season.

New Year, same Dallas drama?

While Jerry Jones has taken to the airwaves to defend the controversial deal, Parsons hasn’t had much to say about it. That is, until New Year’s Day.

Parsons took to X to say that Cowboys owner Jerry Jones ‘slandered (his) name’ for months to media outlets, adding that he is free to respond to other comments critical of him in kind.

‘Y’all want me to feel bad? Jerry Jones slandered my name to Cowboys media and national media for months. So I do think I can react to comment if I want to! #respectfully,’ he posted.

Parsons’ message was likely in response to blowback he received from a prior post of his, in which he responded to a disparaging post questioning once- and current-teammate Trevon Diggs’ career production.

‘I feel like what point is there in trying to publicly disrespect someone? He’s not representing the star anymore, just give the man a farewell and wish him the best. I don’t know why everything has to be negative every time a break-up happens! He’s in a better situation rn, trust me! Bro’s gonna be great again!,’ Parsons said.

Diggs and Parsons were teammates on the Cowboys between 2021 and 2024 before a trade sent the pass rusher to Green Bay.

Diggs was waived by Dallas on Dec. 30 and was claimed by the Packers on the next day, reuniting the two.

Parsons recently underwent surgery to repair a torn ACL, which he suffered in Week 14 vs. the Denver Broncos.

The Packers star was on pace for a career-high in sacks, notching 12.5 before he suffered the injury that forced him out for the remainder of the 2025 season.

Micah Parsons responds to Matt Eberflus

Parsons also spent some of his New Years Day responding to a curious quote from Cowboys DC Matt Eberflus, in which he admitted that the Cowboys defense was altered when Parsons was dealt.

Per Cowboys’ beat writer Clarence Hill Jr., a paraphrased quote from Cowboys DC Matt Eberflus said that the Dallas defensive unit was changed when the team decided to trade Parsons to the Packers in the week leading up to the 2025 regular season.

The edge rusher responded with eight crying laughing emojis.

The Cowboys endured one of the NFL’s worst defensive seasons, thanks at least in part to the trade that sent Parsons to an NFC rival.

Dallas reworked some parts of its defense during the season, with a busy trade deadline that landed New York Jets defensive lineman Quinnen Williams in a Cowboys uniform, as well as Cincinnati Bengals linebacker Logan Wilson.

The Cowboys are eliminated from playoff contention.

ARLINGTON, TX — Everyone in AT&T Stadium knew what Miami was going to do.

Leading No. 2 seed Ohio State 17-14 in the Cotton Bowl and taking over at their 30-yard line with 5:56 to play, the No. 10 seed Hurricanes had one mission: to run the ball down the Buckeyes’ throat to milk the clock, deliver the knockout blow and send the defending national champions packing from the College Football Playoff.

“We all looked each other in the eyes,” said senior center James Brockermeyer. “We said, ‘This is our moment. Let’s take over this game.’”

What unfolded over the ensuing five minutes of game clock tells the story of a team blossoming at the right time and a program that has reclaimed its place on the national stage after spending more than two decades lost in the wilderness.

Ten plays. Eight runs for 52 yards. A 19-yard gain to get things started by junior running back Mark Fletcher, who had a game-high 90 yards. Twenty-six yards from backup CharMar Brown, including the 5-yard score that provided the final exclamation point on a 24-14 upset.

The whole thing can be boiled down like this: Ohio State knew what Miami wanted to do and couldn’t do a single thing about it.

“It just shows that we’re a team that will do what it takes to win a game and grind things out against a really, really good defense like that,” Brockermeyer said. “They’re a great team. But we’ve got a great team, too.”

That’s how Miami was built, in the trenches, by a coach in Mario Cristobal who knows no other way. From the depths of his five-win debut in 2022 and miserable moments such as a shocking debacle loss to Georgia Tech a year later, Cristobal has pieced together a team constructed to win hard-fought, physical games against the nation’s best in postseason play.

“We keep getting better and better up front,” Cristobal said. “When you play a team like that that’s been the number one defense in the country the entire year, you have to. And you have to not only hit, but you’ve got to be willing to take the hits and keep coming, because that’s what it’s going to be.”

This improvement was evident in an often ugly 10-3 win against No. 7 seed Texas A&M in the opening round, when the Hurricanes overcame three missed field goals and made a late defensive stand to advance to Wednesday night’s quarterfinals. But the Cotton Bowl casts Miami in a new light — as a team capable of winning the whole thing — and shows how adeptly Cristobal installed his formula.

“We live in a geographic area with a lot of high school talent, a lot of skill players. But he built it inside-out and supplanted that with great outside players, skill players,” said Miami athletics director Dan Radakovich.

“That’s the recipe that he thought about and actually put into action. He was able to pull that together. It wasn’t like a zoom kind of thing. It was very progressive, with a great foundation.”

Miami ran for 153 yards, the most Ohio State had allowed since the season opener against Texas, and averaged 4.1 yards per carry. The line gave up just two sacks and four tackles for loss. The Hurricanes set the tone by maintaining possession for more than 11 minutes in the first quarter and closed the Buckeyes out by holding the ball for almost nine minutes in the fourth.

Despite being roughly a touchdown underdog by kickoff, Miami looked better prepared for a line-of-scrimmage battle, especially when pushing piles forward after contact on the game-clinching drive and bullying an Ohio State team most expected to repeat.

“He definitely relayed that message that he wanted us to be the most physical team, the most violent team,” Fletcher said of Cristobal. “And that’s with anybody who we play, who we line up against, especially on the offensive side. But he was screaming that to the defense, too.  And, shoot, defense played violent. We got to play violent, too. That’s how we match it.”

Not to be outdone, Miami’s defense sacked Ohio State quarterback Julian Sayin five times; that matched Indiana’s sack total from the Big Ten championship game after the Buckeyes had allowed just six sacks during their 12-0 start.

On both sides of the ball, the Hurricanes were able to carry the normally unflappable Buckeyes out of their comfort zone and into choppy waters on the line of scrimmage. Counting sacks, Ohio State managed just 45 rushing yards on 1.9 yards per carry. Going back to 2016, the Buckeyes’ previous low for rushing yards in a game was 58 yards against Indiana earlier this month.

“Our players kept responding. Our players kept coming with their counterpunch,” said Cristobal. “And those last couple of counterpunches, that big stop after they converted a third-and-18, and then the touchdown drive at the end, and then to finish it off with an interception, those are great counterpunches. Those are just really left hooks to the body and to the head.”

Most importantly, the Hurricanes’ defense was able to pressure Sayin with five and often four pass rushers. Clearly fazed, Sayin completed 62.8% of his attempts, his worst performance since the opener, and tossed multiple interceptions for just the second time.

In the game’s biggest single moment, Sayin delivered a misguided pass to the flat in the direction of receiver Brandon Inniss in the second quarter that Miami defensive back Keionte Scott jumped the route and returned 72 yards for a touchdown.

“We got him early, we hit him early, and I think it forced him to throw that interception,” said Mesidor.

“Not only that, but throughout the game he was a little uncomfortable. He really wasn’t dropping back to throw deep bombs. He was throwing drag routes, finding little holes in the zone.”

The turnaround is remarkable, and shouldn’t be ignored. Four years ago, Miami finished short of bowl eligibility for the first time since 2007. Two months ago, the Hurricanes lost 26-20 to SMU and was essentially tossed out of the playoff mix, only to controversially leap ahead of Notre Dame in the playoff rankings on the heels of a four-game winning streak.

Everything is coming together, at long last, and Miami is reestablished as a true national player. If they can do this against Ohio State, the Hurricanes can do the same to every team still alive in this tournament — and maybe deliver the program’s first national championship since 2001 and sixth overall.

“It’s a great time to shine, at the end of the game,” said Brockermeyer. “We’re just a team that never folds and we never will.”

ORLANDO, FL – Barring a national championship, every end to a Michigan football season is bittersweet, no matter the team.

Sure, a win can blunt the pain of knowing it’s the final gathering of any particular Wolverines squad, especially if it also brings a sense of momentum for the following season. Even a loss can bring that, with enough standout returners.

But for this Michigan team those don’t quite apply after the Wolverines fell to Texas, 41-27, in the Citrus Bowl on Wednesday, Dec. 31. U-M gave up 17 unanswered points in the final 6:54 to end 2025 with a thud. Perhaps even more unfortunately, that’s the least of the tumult this group faced in December.

A saga that began Dec. 10 with the firing of coach Sherrone Moore, featured jail time for Moore and an arraignment watched across the state, and, eventually, the hiring of longtime Utah coach Kyle Whittingham on Dec. 26 leave the Wolverines in a bit of no-man’s land.

U-M players know Whittingham is a no-nonsense coach who builds his teams with DNA similar to that which Michigan has often espoused at its best: physicality, with a ground-and-pound philosophy on offense and a disciplined, aggressive defense.

But they don’t entirely know how the program will get from here to there under Whittingham. There appears to be brightness ahead, but before then …

‘It was tough in there,’ linebacker Cole Sullivan said of the locker room following the loss. ‘We know that there’s going to be a lot of changes made, it’s not going to be the same group. Any year, a bowl game is always the last time … but we know it’s going to be different next year and it’s unfortunate we had to end it this way.

Biff Poggi on Michigan: ‘This isn’t a rebuild’

The path to a shinier 2026 starts with Michigan keeping its core together.

True freshman quarterback Bryce Underwood struggled at times in Year 1 — including against the Longhorns, when three second-half interceptions turned a back-and-forth duel with Texas’ Arch Manning into a referendum on arm strength vs. turnovers. And yet, Underwood’s upside is obvious, as evidenced by his well-thrown touchdown to Kendrick Bell in the first quarter, his 33-yard rumble to set up a second touchdown pass in the second and his diving touchdown to give U-M the lead in the fourth.

Should U-M keep Jordan Marshall or Justice Haynes — heck, how about both — at running back with incoming five-star recruit Savion Hiter (expected to arrive from Virginia this weekend), Michigan will be looking at one of the most loaded running back rooms in the country.

Combine that with an offensive line that’s young but promising — Blake Frazier, Andrew Sprague and Jake Guarnera all got invaluable experience this year and freshmen Andrew Babalola and Ty Haywood were both among the most highly regarded tackles in the class of 2025 — and interim coach Biff Poggi wasn’t stretching when he pushed back Wednesday at the notion of 2026 being a growing season.

‘This isn’t a rebuild,’ he said. ‘I think that would be shortchanging the kids and where they are. I think coach Whittingham is going to do a fantastic job here. He’s going to have a lot of really good players back. He’s obviously going to bring players in.

‘Been a head coach 20 years, won three conference championships. … I think he’s going to find a very full cupboard with a bunch of really willing kids that are just great kids.’

So who’s coming back for Michigan football?

Select players met with media after the game, including linebacker Jimmy Rolder who is mulling an NFL future.

Bell and running back Bryson Kuzdzal definitively declared they intend to return to Ann Arbor in 2026, while Sullivan said he had to think it over.

It’s not that he wants to leave, but with all of his attention on U-M’s final game — despite meeting with Whittingham and liking what he heard — he waits to wait to see what the staff looks like.

‘Obviously the scheme is one thing,’ Rolder said. ‘Then the mentality of the staff. That’s kind of all I can really say right now. I’m really excited to meet everybody that’s coming and just see what they have to say — hopefully we blend in a good way.’

Others, such as Marshall and Underwood, avoided declaring they’d be back when meeting with media earlier in the week. But there’s belief both will be. They’re the leaders of the program, on the field and in the locker room.

One to watch is true freshman Andrew Marsh. On Wednesday, he helped keep U-M in the game with a touchdown catch and 163 all-purpose yards, including 143 on kickoffs. Come January, he could demand top dollar in the transfer market, though Michigan is well-positioned to match any offer.

If Michigan’s players proved anything in the past three weeks, it’s that they’re able to block out outside noise.

‘Just keep going,’ Bell said. ‘Marsh says it all the time, you know he’s got it on his (eye black): Keep going. So just keep pushing through. … It was emotional in [the locker room] today. I think we all got closer, we all got tight.

‘We know what’s going on, what’s going to happen in the building. … Nobody knows who’s going to be here.’

College football transfer portal on the clock

Per NCAA rules, Michigan players can enter the portal beginning Thursday — five days after a new coach is hired, and one day before it formally opens for two weeks for players nationwide. Even before the transfer portal opened, there was back-channeling, as noted by Poggi last month — there always is, even as Whittingham decried it this week.

‘You don’t tamper with anybody, that’s not my style,’ Whittingham said. ‘If a player we have interest in enters the portal, that’s a whole different ballgame … Now he’s in the portal, he’s going somewhere — so why not Michigan, if it’s a good fit?’

Players will come and go. So will coaches. It’s expected U-M will formally announce most of its staff this week — Whittingham said during a mid-game interview with ABC he expects to have made decisions on his coaches by the end of the weekend.

That’s another step into the future. Perhaps the best thing for Michigan is to go into an offseason wiping the slate clean.

If 2025’s College Football Playoff lineup is an indication, the Wolverines appear to have a a tough schedule in 2026, even without seeing how the CFP and the ensuing transfer portal winds up; there are road games at Ohio State and Oregon, and home games with SEC foe Oklahoma and Indiana. There are also visits due from perennial Big Ten powers Iowa and Penn State.

Then again, Wednesday was too soon for players to even start looking toward that time.

‘I don’t know,’ Bell said about what next year will look like. ‘We’ll take it day by day.’

Never in college football’s history have teams gone from pretenders to contenders — and vice versa — as they do now. Michigan is looking at a major overhaul, and, again, that can be a good thing.

But without the warm feeling generated by a would-be bowl win, that’s cold comfort as January arrives for the Wolverines.

As conference play in the Big 12 begins, Texas Tech’s women’s basketball team just made a big midseason addition.

Literally.

The Red Raiders have signed 7-footer Stephanie Okechukwu, multiple sources familiar with her recruitment confirmed to USA Today. The towering center from Nigeria has a reported 7-foot-4 wingspan. Whether Okechukwu will be eligible to play immediately depends on NCAA approval.

Texas Tech hadn’t formally announced Okechukwu joining the team as of Thursday afternoon, but there is a graphic posted on their website of her palming two basketballs. Red Raiders coach Krista Gerlich posted a video to X early Thursday morning with a caption that says, “Walking into the New Year feeling 7 feet tall!” The video shows Okechukwu walking through an airport.

Should she be approved by the NCAA to play this season, Okechukwu will be the tallest player in the sport, dwarfing a pair of 6-foot-10 centers in Nicole Dominguez of Middle Tennessee State and Abbie Boutilier of Eastern Illinois. Videos posted to her Instagram show her dunking one-handed with ease.

Multiple sources told USA Today Okechukwu was pursued by several Power 4 programs, including fellow Big 12 member West Virginia. An assistant coach for the Red Raiders traveled to Africa a few weeks ago to close the deal on her recruitment.

Okechukwu is also the latest midseason international acquisition this season by teams in major conferences. Mississippi State has signed French guard Melissa Guillet and South Carolina brought in French center Alicia Tournebize.

Guillet is expected to begin playing for the Bulldogs this month, as long as she can secure a visa, which has been a hurdle for international students under the Trump Administration.

‘Adding Melissa this late in the year is an awesome opportunity,’ Mississippi State coach Purcell said in a statement. ‘She has been playing the game at the highest level, and her international experience will be huge for us as she joins the program and helps us chase championships.’

Gamecocks coach Dawn Staley told the Greenville News this week she’s optimistic that Tournebize will be able to play this month.

Texas Tech is 15-0 and tied its best start in program history on Wednesday night by defeating visiting UCF 73-55. Ranked No. 23 in the latest USA TODAY Sports college women’s basketball poll, this is also the best start to a season for the Red Raiders under Gerlich. She is in her sixth season coaching at her alma mater.

The Red Raiders boast one of the statistically best defenses in college basketball, ranking third nationally in opponent effective field goal percentage (35.7%), fourth in points per play allowed (0.61) and fifth in opponent 3-point shooting percentage (22.7%). Adding an imposing rim protector like Okechukwu could make the Red Raiders even more effective on that end of the floor.

ARLINGTON, TX — Ohio State football found itself in a hole it hadn’t faced in 45 games against Miami in the College Football Playoff.

Against the Hurricanes, Ohio State trailed 14-0 for the first time since their 45-23 loss to Michigan in 2022. They mustered only 9 yards of offense in the first quarter, after having largely dominating their competition in 2025.

And while Ohio State showed signs of life early in the second half, it wasn’t enough to overcome the slow start.

Ohio State’s season ended unceremoniously with a disappointing 24-14 loss against Miami in the Cotton Bowl quarterfinal, despite the Buckeyes entering the game as overwhelming favorites. Coach Ryan Day and his squad looked primed for another national championship run in 2025, heading into the Big Ten Conference Championship game with a 12-0 record and No. 1 ranking.

Instead, the Buckeyes lost their final two games against Indiana and Miami to end their season in a rather disappointing — and surprising — fashion.

“It still hasn’t really hit me,” Ohio State senior defensive end Caden Curry told reporters after the game. “I mean, I’m still in my jersey and my pads.”

Ohio State opened the second half with an impressive 11-play, 82-yard scoring drive ending in a 1-yard touchdown run by Bo Jackson to reduce its deficit to 14-7. Miami responded with a field goal before the Buckeyes scored again, this time on a 22-yard catch-and-run touchdown by Jeremiah Smith on fourth-and-2, pulling OSU within three points at 17-14 early in the fourth quarter.

Smith caught the pass from Julian Sayin at the 5-yard line before he was met by three Miami defenders, but was able to fend off the tacklers before getting into the end zone in a huge moment to keep Ohio State in the game.

The play encapsulated Ohio State’s plan offensively: The Buckeyes found little success moving the ball in big moments outside of Smith, who finished with seven receptions for 157 yards with a touchdown. 

The unanimous All-American selection was Ohio State’s X-factor in its national championship run last season, catching 19 passes for 381 yards with five touchdowns in four CFP games as a true freshman. The formula nearly worked again against the Hurricanes before Miami’s game-sealing touchdown drive took 5:01 of the clock, leaving the Buckeyes with less than a minute to score 10 points and tie the game.

‘I felt like it took us a while to get into the rhythm of the game,” Day said after the game. “I thought we did coming out of the second half. And by then, it was going to take a very, very efficient second half to win the game being down 14-0.”

Day felt the Buckeyes held an advantage in the passing game with Smith, one of the best players in the country. It was a double-edge sword, though, as multi-step drops from Sayin allowed for Miami’s edge-rushing duo of Rueben Bain Jr. and Akheem Mesidor to wreak havoc on Ohio State’s offensive line.

Ohio State allowed 11 sacks on the season entering the Cotton Bowl. It left the game having allowed 16, three of which came from the All-American duo of Bain Jr. and Mesidor. 

“We felt like we could do that and we were going to be aggressive, but we also knew the give-and-take of it,” Day said. “And so that was part of what we were working through. At the end of the day, it didn’t work.”

Miami’s pressure was also able to speed up Sayin, a Heisman Trophy finalist, in the most important play of the game. Sayin attempted a screen pass early in the second quarter, but the pass was jumped by Miami’s Keionte Scott, who intercepted the pass for a 72-yard touchdown return to go up 14-0.

It was a lapse of judgment by Day and Ohio State’s coaching staff, as Scott noted postgame he knew the play was coming. Day took over play-calling duties for the first time since 2023 against Miami due to offensive coordinator Brian Hartline being hired as head coach at South Florida. Hartline still coached in the game but in a smaller capacity. 

“It was on film for sure,” Scott said. “I think in the moment, with all the skill players on one side of the ball, (I) obviously knew the ball was coming in that area.”

Ohio State outgained Miami with 323 yards to the Hurricanes’ 181 yards after the first quarter. The Buckeyes had a chance to take the lead on their second-to-last possession of the game, but was forced to punt after gaining 6 yards in seven plays while burning 4:20 of clock.

It ultimately wasn’t enough, and the Hurricanes came up with big plays in opportune moments to take down an Ohio State team that went from national championship frontrunner to a CFP quarterfinals exit in a matter of weeks.

‘When you have a start the way that we did,” Day said, “you put yourself at risk of having to be really darn near perfect in the second half to go win the game. 

“So, we put ourselves behind the eight ball.”

ARLINGTON, Texas – Ohio State is not who we thought it was. 

We were fooled by the flash and sizzle, by the Cirque du Soleil acrobatics of wide receiver Jeremiah Smith and uncanny precision of Julian Sayin. Carnell Tate could not be covered. Bo Jackson was an emerging beast.  

We failed to read the footnotes until after Miami’s 24-14 upset win in the Dec. 31 College Football Playoff quarterfinal at AT&T Stadium. The Buckeyes’ offensive line lacked an NFL early-round draft pick. Sayin seldom scrambled for first downs. The additions via the transfer portal were a mixed bag. Max Klare good, C.J. Donaldson decent, Beau Atkinson meh and Ethan Onianwa … oops. Kicker Jayden Fielding was not as reliable as needed. The play-calling — oh, my, the play-calling — lacked creativity and common sense. Again, why weren’t Smith and Tate on the field together at the end against Indiana?  

Many missed what turned out to be the most important piece of fine print: Ohio State’s offense entered the witness protection program against the three best teams it faced. Disappeared. Poof. Fourteen points against Texas, ranked No. 1 at the time. Ten points against No. 2 Indiana. Fourteen points against No. 10-seed Miami.

Make no mistake, none of those three defenses was a pushover. Indiana’s ranks fourth; Miami’s 10th; Texas comes in at 37th, not exceptional but still better than the shower liners that are Rutgers (125th), Purdue (119th) and UCLA (83rd) — teams OSU played in consecutive weeks before finishing the regular season against Michigan (22nd).

When playing defenses that punched back, the Buckeyes’ offense got exposed. Ohio State scored three touchdowns in its final two games. The O-line allowed five sacks against Miami and five against Indiana after allowing only six all season. That doesn’t cut it no matter how you slice it. 

Not who we thought they were. 

Where it gets tricky is the chicken or egg question of whether the offense was out-talented by Indiana and Miami or outcoached? Let’s take the easy yet accurate way out and say both were true. The offensive line, which shined at times this season (see Michigan), regressed into cloud cover against the Hurricanes and Hoosiers. That tends to happen when you feast on Bruins, Boilermakers, Badgers and Scarlet Knights — all with losing records — in the back half of the season. 

But wait, it’s not like Miami played the NFC West down the stretch. South Beach did not throw a party after the U drubbed Syracuse (3-9) and Virginia Tech (3-9) in November.

There has to be more at play than the comparative strength of schedule between the Buckeyes (12-2) and Hurricanes (12-2). Certainly, losing offensive coordinator/play-caller Brian Hartline to the South Florida Bulls the week of the Indiana game did not help Ohio State’s offensive cohesion. More damaging is that his departure meant Ryan Day took over the play-calling, which he had not done since 2023. 

Play calling is 75% art, 25% science. It requires a feel for the game that is part innate, part developed. It’s impossible to know if Day has the “gift” of play-calling, but even if he does it’s no stretch to think he is out of practice. It looked that way against Miami.

“I take responsibility for not getting the guys ready,” Day said. “We spent an inordinate amount of time putting a plan together to get everybody ready to play in the first half, and we didn’t win the first half. We have to figure out why that was.”

The first half was a train wreck. Miami tore through the OSU offensive line like a chainsaw through Styrofoam. For 25 minutes the Cotton Bowl had the same feel as the 2007 BCS championship game between Ohio State and Florida, when the Buckeyes showed up as kings of the hill and left as court jesters. You knew within the first series or two that OSU had no answer for the pass rush, and initially it appeared the Hurricanes would toss Sayin around like a rag doll when they wanted. 

Finally, the Buckeyes went more uptempo, which worked. They cut a 14-0 deficit to 14-7 early in the third quarter, then seemed primed to complete the comeback when Sayin found Smith slashing across the middle for a pretty 14-yard touchdown that cut the deficit to 17-14, but a crushing holding call followed by a penalty that wiped out a 53-yard punt were two too many mistakes to overcome. 

And then Miami marched 70 yards on an OSU defense that had not allowed more than 16 points in a game all season and broke the Buckeyes’ back by scoring with 55 seconds left to clinch it. 

But don’t blame this loss on the defense, which surrendered only 17 points, the other seven coming on a 72-yard pick-six by Miami defensive back Keionte Scott in the second quarter. 

The blame rests on the offense. And the offensive coaches who could not find a way to get Ohio State over the hump.  

Sports columnist Rob Oller can be reached at roller@dispatch.com and on X.com at@rollerCD.

Thursday marked the start of a new year — and, perhaps more notably, the biggest day on the college football calendar.

Three of the four College Football Playoff quarterfinal games will take place on Jan. 1, with six teams fighting to keep their national championship dreams alive.

Watch ‘College GameDay’ live with Fubo (free trial)

No. 1 Indiana will take on No. 9 Alabama in the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California, No. 3 Georgia will match up for the second time this season against No. 6 Mississippi in the Sugar Bowl in New Orleans, and No. 4 Texas Tech will square off against No. 5 Oregon in the Orange Bowl in Miami Gardens, Florida.

Those squads will aim to join Miami in the playoff semifinals. The No. 10 Hurricanes knocked off No. 2 Ohio State, the reigning national champion, 24-14 in the Cotton Bowl on Wednesday, Dec. 31.

While set up inside the Rose Bowl, ESPN’s ‘College GameDay’ crew broke down the games and made their predictions for how the three remaining quarterfinal contests will go.

Here’s who the ‘College GameDay’ panel picked for Indiana vs. Alabama, Texas Tech vs. Oregon and Georgia vs. Ole Miss in the College Football Playoff quarterfinals:

‘College GameDay’ picks, predictions for CFP quarterfinals

Indiana vs. Alabama

Desmond Howard: Alabama
Nick Saban: Alabama
Pat McAfee: Indiana
Kirk Herbstreit: Abstained (Calling game)

Georgia vs. Ole Miss

Desmond Howard: Georgia
Nick Saban: Georgia
Pat McAfee: Georgia
Kirk Herbstreit: Georgia

Texas Tech vs. Oregon

Desmond Howard: Texas Tech
Nick Saban: Oregon
Pat McAfee: Oregon
Kirk Herbstreit: Oregon