Shortly after defeating Penn State in one of the more improbable comebacks of the 2017 college football season, Ohio State head coach Urban Meyer said he was constantly on the lookout for any signs of a letdown.
While there didn't appear to be signs during the week, it happened anyway, as Ohio State was crushed by Iowa, 55-24.
Just less than a month later, the Buckeyes are trying to avoid a similar fate in the Big Ten Championship Game following another come from behind win, this time over archrival Michigan.
With a Big Ten title and possible, yet dwindling, hopes of a berth in the College Football Playoff still on the line, Meyer said he is letting his veteran players handle the leadership duties around the Woody Hayes Athletic Center this week.
"Yeah, that's a concern," Meyer said when asked about avoiding a letdown. "Every team's different. You can't just say this is the way we've done it in the past because every team is different. This happens to be somewhat a mature team. And the term around here is laser focus. And they've been good. And I put a lot of reliance on my older guys, because they've earned that right."
One of those veterans is redshirt senior center Billy Price, who is one of few Buckeyes with playing experience in the Big Ten title game. Price started at left guard in Ohio State's 59-0 rout of the Badgers in 2014, and also played against Wisconsin last season in a 30-23 overtime win in Madison.
Price, speaking on a Big Ten Championship Game teleconference, said he believes the Buckeyes are where they need to be at this point during the week.
"We are in a good place mentally, emotionally and physically," Price said. "We are looking forward to getting after it this weekend."
Much like the win over Penn State in late October, the victory over Michigan was an emotional roller coaster for Ohio State that saw starting quarterback J.T. Barrett leave with an injury before the Buckeyes made a comeback thanks to the help of redshirt freshman signal-caller Dwayne Haskins.
Meyer said part of his concern is due to the emotional toll that winning a rivalry game takes on a team, referencing past experiences at Florida. He added, though, that he feels his team is "energized" because of what Ohio State still can accomplish this season.
"This has been a stretch. That's one of the great things, when I was at Florida, we always played Florida State before the SEC championship game," Meyer said. "I guess that was good for fans and everybody, but it was tough on players. And we play our rival, you can't say we saved a little bit of energy for this next one. But also, our guys are energized, ready to go for this one."
Ohio State wide receiver Terry McLaurin, who was a redshirting freshman when the Buckeyes last played in the Big Ten title game, confirmed his coach's remarks on the teleconference.
"You can't ignore that it's been a long season, but we're at the good part now," McLaurin said. "We have a chance to win a championship and that is why you come here. After an up-and-down season, we just got back to basics, focusing on the little things that make us a good football team and I feel we are going to be very prepared for this game. We have a lot of momentum going right now."
