Ohio State and Oregon on Monday will play for the National Championship at AT&T Stadium in North Texas. For the final time before their bout, head coaches Urban Meyer and Mark Helfrich met with the media at the Rennassaince Hotel in Dallas.
Notes:
- As Ohio State makes it final preparations, Meyer compared the Buckeyes to a heavyweight boxer getting ready for a pivotal fight. "The great champions don't miss."
- Meyer reiterated he expects senior quarterback Braxton Miller to return to Ohio State for a fifth year. Miller, a three-year starter and preseason Heisman Trophy candidate, has missed all of this season after re-tearing his throwing shoulder in August.
- In a season where the faced considerable challenges from replacing Miller to the tragic death of a teammate in Kosta Karageorge, Meyer said: "If you can hit the storm and come out stronger, that's the essence of a real team."
- In his year away from coaching, Meyer said he didn’t think he’d ever return to the national championship, college football’s biggest stage. The first time he thought about it was after the Alabama-Notre Dame title game in 2012. He said he texted his players and coaches this: "The Chase is on."
- Meyer on the potential to bring football-crazed Ohio a national championship: "There's a great sentimental feeling."
- Meyer said fatigue due to Oregon's uptempo offense remains a concern. He refers to as a "demon ... That's real."
- Meyer on Ohio State's new and improved defense: "We played good defense throughout the year, sometimes great defense. Sometimes not as good." Meyer said Ohio State's defensive line is the foundation of its growth.
- Meyer said Cardale Jones won the backup job in the spring, lost it to Barrett in the summer. "He pushed restart and hit the right button."
- Meyer on Marcus Mariota: "Our biggest concern is that guy receiving the snap every play." He called the Heisman Trophy winner among the finest in the game.
- Meyer on junior linebacker Joshua Perry: "He's what college football's all about." Meyer added: “He has the incredible ability to make somebody's day a little brighter and he talked that incredibly seriously.”
