It's going to take more than 4,852 total yards, 55 touchdowns and one Heisman Trophy to strike any sort of fear into the Ohio State football team.
The fourth-ranked Buckeyes respect Oregon quarterback Marcus Mariota, for sure. But fear him? Not exactly.
"We don't back down from any challenge," Ohio State safety Tyvis Powell said. "We actually embrace the challenge because as you know the defense took a lot of hits this past offseason so we just want to go out there and show people that the Silver Bullets are still here."
Ohio State's defense has been tested before, but not exactly in this way. The Buckeyes haven't seen a player quite like Mariota because, well, there aren't any others out there like him.
He is the Ducks' do-everything signal caller. He leads Oregon both on and off the field.
"He is a very good decision-maker. He has the ability to run, but I think he is a pass-first quarterback," Ohio State defensive tackle Michael Bennett said. "I think that is what makes a quarterback good. He’s looking for his receivers. He is buying time with his legs to find receivers. Then, if it’s a broken play, he can turn it in to a 30-yard gain or a touchdown."
Mariota is one of those players you probably cannot stop, only hope to contain. But the Buckeyes have had success shutting down the opposing team's best player in their two previous games.
Against Wisconsin in the Big Ten championship game, Ohio State's defense held Melvin Gordon to just 76 yards on 26 carries. In the Sugar Bowl, Alabama's Amari Cooper had nine catches for 71 yards. He had two touchdown catches, but didn't have a reception go for more than 15 yards.
Ohio State's secret? Don't be afraid.
"Marcus Mariota is a great football player and a great quarterback, obviously, I mean he won the Heisman, but we don’t go out and make him bigger than what he is," Ohio State linebacker Darron Lee said. "We just go out and do our job and that helps with the whole confidence factor of being able to stop Heisman finalists. So just do your job and everything will take care of itself.”
Mariota presents a different challenge for the Buckeyes, though, being that he's the quarterback. He'll likely have the ball in his hands on every play Oregon runs on offense.
But even still, the Buckeyes know if they can at least contain Mariota, they could be crowned champions of the first-ever College Football Playoff.
“He’s the quarterback. It’s a win if we shut down Marcus Mariota," Bennett said. "Now we have to go out and do it, but that is the goal."
