Urban Meyer was short and sweet Tuesday afternoon.
Ohio State's head coach does not care where his team falls in the latest College Football Playoff rankings, which will be revealed Tuesday night.
"I will not watch it," Meyer said on the Big Ten coaches weekly teleconference. "We've got to get ready for Michigan State."
Well, that solves that.
The rest of us will be watching, however, as the Buckeyes figure to come in somewhere in the Top 4 this week after Clemson, Michigan and Washington all suffered their first losses of the season Saturday. Ohio State sits at 9-1 and has three quality wins on its resume; the Buckeyes are in good shape this week.
Of course, none of that really matters as Ohio State must win out — which would include a victory over Michigan next weekend — in order to have a shot at making the Playoff at the end of the season.
Up first, though, is a date with the Spartans, a team that has two victories over the Buckeyes in the last three seasons.
Additional Meyer notes:
- Meyer on left tackle Jamarco Jones' play: "He's playing better and better. He's got a very nice future. ... He's playing pretty good, especially the past few weeks."
- Meyer on the importance of having NFL-caliber players at tackle: "About as important as it gets."
- Meyer was asked why Ohio State never seems to have a season like Michigan State is having this year. "Five or six years ago we did," he said. "... Those things happen."
- Meyer on Michigan State's Donnie Corley, who Ohio State recruited: "He's a great player and a great family. I'm not surprised."
- Meyer was asked again about margin of victory being a factor for the CFP committee: "I don't even think about that. My mind is not even on that right now."
- Meyer on kicker Tyler Durbin: "I had no idea who he was. I couldn't tell you his name, couldn't tell you where he's from. I love him, our players love him."
- Meyer on J.T. Barrett's last performance in East Lansing two seasons ago: "I remember that game. That was his game. He'd play fairly well in games before that, but not against a great Michigan State team."
- Meyer asked about the challenges of being a big favorite on the road: "We just look at what Michigan State is and what they have been in the past and we've got a lot of respect for them. That's how we're going to practice this week."
The stunning news from around the Big Ten last weekend was Michigan's loss to unranked Iowa. The Hawkeyes handed the Wolverines their first loss of the season.
This weekend's conference slate leaves a lot to be desired. Ohio State travels to East Lansing for a date with Michigan State, but the Spartans are 3-7 and this game isn't nearly as big as previous seasons. This weekend's best game might be between Northwestern and Minnesota. Seriously.
In addition to Meyer, the Big Ten's other 13 coaches gathered Tuesday for their weekly appearance on the league's teleconference. Some highlights of what each had to say can be seen below.
Pat Fitzgerald (Northwestern):
- Fitzgerald on wide receiver Austin Car: "He's one of those cool, unbelievable success stories. Self-made guy, great attitude and amazing work ethic."
Jim Harbaugh (Michigan):
- Harbaugh on freshman running back Chris Evans: "He's been one of the most outstanding true freshmen on our team."
- Harbaugh on the CFP committee taking margin of victory into account: "I'm good with that."
- Harbaugh on Michigan controlling its own destiny: "The focus of our team, the work ethic of our team has been a positive all year. We have big dreams there."
- Harbaugh on decision before season between Speight and O'Korn and QB play overall: "All the quarterbacks are really playing well in the fall and I think all of our quarterbacks have continued good play and improving play. ... Our team has felt great about the quarterback play that we've gotten from Wilton and all the quarterbacks that have been in the ball games."
- Harbaugh on status of quarterback Wilton Speight: "I never really get into the talk. I'm not a doctor. ... He remains questionable for Saturday and we'll re-evaluate after that."
Paul Chryst (Wisconsin):
- There were no questions this week for Wisconsin head coach Paul Chryst.
Mike Riley (Nebraska):
- Riley on walk-on seniors and turnaround this season for Nebraska: "I think they're great examples for the rest of them with what might occur. They were rewarded for a reason; it wasn't just an accident. It's important for us to continue to nurture all of that."
- Riley on former punter Sam Foltz: "There's not a day that goes by here where we don't think about Sam and appreciate him."
- Riley on the approach of quarterback Tommy Armstrong: "We'll practice kind of like we did a week ago," meaning Armstrong won't practice much, if at all, this week.
Mark Dantonio (Michigan State):
- Dantonio on importance of dominant offensive lines: "When you have those types of players it obviously helps a great deal."
- Dantonio on running back L.J. Scott: "He's got great vision, great ability to cut and he's a powerful running back. He's played really well for us."
- Dantonio on Ohio State's offense: "They've got great skill. Very well-coached, good concepts and they create a lot of problems for you defensively. ... But I think they focus on toughness and there's an element of toughness to that football team."
- Dantonio on finishing the season against a pair of top-10 teams: "What we're looking for is to win each football game. I don't think we've ever gone into a football game here where we didn't think we couldn't win."
- More Dantonio on Ohio State, Penn State finish to schedule: "I understand where they're at in the grand scheme of things. The road may go through East Lansing a little bit, I guess."
- Dantonio: "This is a down year by our standards."
- Dantonio on CFP rankings: "We're not in them; that's all that's important to me right now."
- Dantonio on J.T. Barrett: "He's almost unrivaled as a quarterback now in college football."
Kirk Ferentz (Iowa):
- Ferentz on win over Michigan: "It was a great atmosphere in Kinnick on Saturday night and our fans were unbelievable. Really proud of our football team."
- Ferentz on the Big Ten: "Every Saturday you better be ready to go or you're going to lose."
- More Ferentz on Michigan win: "It was all about us taking those seven days to get ready and compete against a very good team and knowing that if we didn't, it could get ugly fast."
Tracy Claeys (Minnesota):
- Claeys on loss to Nebraska: "Coming off a tough loss last week at Nebraska. I thought we competed awfully well, but Nebraska made a few more plays in the second half to hold us off."
Chris Ash (Rutgers):
- Ash: "Big weekend for us with Penn State, a confident football team, coming to town. ... We're working very hard to bounce back from a tough loss against Michigan State."
- Ash on Penn State: "Right now, they're playing with good balance on offense. I just see a team that's playing with more and more confidence each week. In the fourth quarter, they've been able to find a way to win some close ballgames."
Lovie Smith (Illinois):
- Smith on Illinois' running game: "Just talking running game, we're totally committed to the running game. I don't think you can win consistently without a running attack."
DJ Durkin (Maryland):
- Durkin on Ohio State loss: "It was a rough week last week and our guys have to get back on track."
- Durkin on the status of quarterback Perry Hills: "We're just trying to keep it in that day-to-day mode."
- Durkin on Nebraska: "They're a talented, well-coached team. Their record speaks for itself."
Gerad Parker (Purdue):
- Parker on loss to Northwestern: "It was another tough half for us again last week against Northwestern. I certainly wish we played better in the second half."
James Franklin (Penn State):
- Franklin asked if Penn State–Rutgers is a rivalry: "It's a great game and obviously there's some regional factors to the game since we're so close to each other. We're excited to be playing on Saturday."
- Franklin on CFP committee and its rankings: "I'm concerned about playing Rutgers this weekend and I'm excited about."
Kevin Wilson (Indiana):
- Wilson: "We're disappointed with how we finished the game against Penn State and looking forward to playing a very good Michigan team this week."
- Wilson on building a football program at basketball school: "I don't believe if you're strong in one sport that you can't be strong in another."
