Michigan's decision to cancel The Game was a heartbreaker for players and fans alike but all is certainly not lost for Ohio State.
After the Big Ten appropriately eliminated its six-game requirement paving 5-0 Ohio State's way to the league championship game against Northwestern, virtually all of the Buckeyes' preseason goals are still up for grabs.
After Ohio State remained at No. 4 in last night's latest round of College Football Playoff rankings, all the Buckeyes need to do is beat the Wildcats and their ticket to a CFP semifinal will be punched.
Ahead of Saturday's clash, Wyatt Davis, Ohio State's newly minted Big Ten Rimington-Pace Offensive Lineman of the Year, met with the media and dished out some thoughts.
I definitely feel a lot better. I'm all ready to go. On the bright side, (the canceled game) did help my knee got back on track.– Ohio State right guard Wyatt Davis
While the lost opportunity to hang a 50+ point beatdown on Michigan was indeed a bummer, silver linings abound. One of the most notable being Davis' improved health after injuring his knee in Ohio State's 52-12 win over Michigan State back on December 5.
Davis had proclaimed himself fit to play against Michigan but no doubt an extra week to rest was welcome as the Buckeyes have bigger fish to fry.
A healthy Davis will be to establishing the run against a Northwestern defense allowing just 3.8 yards per carry while leading the conference in scoring defense at 14.6 points per game.
He's motivated me to go harder. He's definitely stepped up to be a great player and I'm excited for his future. – Ohio State right guard Wyatt Davis on teammate Nicholas Petit-Frere
While Davis was recognized as the league's best offensive lineman, first-year starter and teammate Nicholas Petit-Frere earned second-team honors from the coaches.
The media somehow left Ohio State's right tackle off their list but I'm guessing Petit-Frere is more than satisfied with Davis picking him as the Buckeyes' best offensive lineman so far this season when Wyatt was asked the question toward the end of his interview session.
If this might be case of Davis being humble and not wanting to pick himself when answering the question, I buy that but do think it's indisputable Petit-Frere has exceeded expectations at a clip greater than any of his fellow offensive linemen.
Fans had the highest expectations for Davis and he met those. Left tackle Thayer Munford met his. Left guard Harry Miller has either fallen just short or barely met expectations of most fans through five games and center Josh Myers is probably in the same boat.
Meanwhile, Petit-Frere has quietly dominated after logging just one career start entering the 2020 season.
How well Davis, Petit-Frere and the rest of the offensive line performs this postseason will be critical in determining whether or not Ohio State can accomplish its ultimate goal of winning the national championship.
