On Monday, the dark gray sky cast over Columbus and the cold rain that pitter-pattered off the Woody Hayes Athletic Center set a fitting scene for a somber morning. It was the beginning of a devastating week that has left Ohio State gutted in more ways than one.
To start his weekly press conference, a subdued Urban Meyer softly mumbled through a prepared set of notes that included the school’s record-breaking attendance figures and how he was happy and honored to represent the East Division in the Big Ten Championship Game this weekend. It sounded like a lot of blah blah blah.
Then came to the first question: “What have the last 24 hours been like?”
The head coach nodded slow as if he expected it and pressed his lips together.
“It's been a tough week,” he said.
More like excruciating.
In the last eight days, suspended defensive end Noah Spence’s appeal to play football again was denied by the Big Ten Tuesday. Star quarterback J.T. Barrett suffered a season-ending ankle injury against Michigan Saturday. And perhaps most of all, the Buckeyes are mourning a tragic, violent, and stunning death after teammate Kosta Karageorge, a walk-on lineman who went missing for four days, was found dead in a dumpster off campus in an apparent suicide Sunday.
If adversity is one of the most overused, abused and cliched words in sports, the Buckeyes gave it real merit as they prepare for a league title bout against Wisconsin.
This, indeed, is adversity and then some with their conference championship and playoff aspirations at stake in Indianapolis.
“Every red flag is up, every excuse is out there to not play well, to not win a game, to lose a game. You have some really good built in excuses,” Meyer said. “To overcome the incredible tragedy that happened last night, this is a real challenge.”
Ohio State has grown accustomed to overcoming odds in a year that’s watched them soar back into the national picture after a season-ending injury to Braxton Miller and a stunning loss to Virginia Tech that left it as castaways in Week Two.
“I told our players — you add in the fact you lost your Heisman preseason candidate the beginning of the season, we didn't have our offensive captains play the first four or five games of the year — I said: ‘You shouldn't be in this situation,’” Meyer said.
“So you have to really reflect upon how that happened. There is not good fortune. The ball didn't bounce your way. We don't believe in that. We believe in an extremely close team, an extremely close team that leans on each other in tough times.”
But this is different.
“This is life lessons,” Meyer said. “This is so much deeper than lining up on a football field.”
Added junior tackle Taylor Decker: “We’re trained to handle adverse situations, obviously not something of this magnitude. We’re trained to play football and this is so much more than that. Football’s just a game. People blow it out of proportion and make it a lot bigger than it is.”
And for as much as Ohio State wants to win its first Big Ten title under Meyer, it’s an objective that feels pretty inconsequential in a week that’s a reminder of the fragility of life and one that puts football back in its proper place.
“You can look at a coaching manual and I'm not sure you'll find anything … You'll never get over it,” Meyer said. “It's an opportunity to — I'm not sure if learn is the appropriate word either — but just continue to grow and stay on your journey.”
It's why there remains a certain focus on a return to Lucas Oil Stadium — the place where the Buckeyes’ postseason hopes and dreams evaporated a year ago.
“It's championship week here at Ohio State,” Meyer said.
And with broken and heavy hearts, its players and coaches move forward on the mission.
