National championship week is underway.
Seven days before Ohio State and Alabama meet with everything on the line, both teams' head coaches – Ryan Day and Nick Saban – along with running back Trey Sermon, linebacker Tuf Borland, wide receiver Devonta Smith and cornerback Patrick Surtain III met with reporters for a virtual press conference on Monday.
A bullet-point rundown of what they said:
Ryan Day
- Day says it's "quite an honor to be in the national championship game" and that it's "an unbelievable opportunity to play" Alabama and to get this chance after everything they've fought for this season.
- On Justin Fields' health: "When you saw the way Justin finished the game, it was unbelievable. It was one of the gutsiest performances I've ever seen in person."
- Day says Fields wasn't going to come off the field because "that's the way he's wired." Day said the next day Fields "felt better waking up in the morning than expected" on the morning after the Clemson game.
- Having Chris Olave and Jaxon Smith-Njigba out for the Northwestern game, Day says, threw Fields and the Buckeye offense off rhythm.
- Day said Fields has not faced much adversity but that Fields was "bothered" by the criticism after his Northwestern performance. He said it was a positive sign for Fields to overcome that and come through with a great game against Clemson.
- Day says he "definitely expects" Fields to play against Alabama but would not give specifics about his injury.
- On Trey Sermon's growth: "He didn't have the leadup a normal running back would have going into the season. ... And then he was coming off the injury. I don't know if he would say that, but those are the two things I look at."
- He also says that Sermon was coming into a new offense while splitting carries with Master Teague and that may have affected Sermon's output early on: "It's really remarkable what he's done. ... He has a chance to go down with one of the best runs in Ohio State history."
- Day says that the running game and passing game "go hand-in-hand" and that explosive passing plays don't come if the running game isn't effective.
- Day: "We're gonna practice the way we normally practice. Nothing's gonna change."
- So much of Ohio State's focus and effort this offseason seemed to be focused on beating Clemson, but Day says "The goal was never just to beat Clemson. The goal was to win the national championship. ... This is everything we've wanted."
- On Nick Saban ranking Ohio State No. 5 in the coaches' poll: "I really don't look at those things too much. Definitely respect everyone's opinion, but what matters is playing in the game."
- Day: “We're going to have to play even better than we did last week to beat Alabama.”
- He says that he has "the utmost respect" for Saban's program and that you have to play your best in order to beat "the best in the world."
- Day talked about Fields' toughness to come back from his injury in the Clemson game and compared it to when he returned to the field after his knee injury against Michigan last season.
Trey Sermon
- On Sermon's now-famous smirk into the camera after his long third-quarter touchdown run was called back: "Just looking at the replay and once the call got reversed, I kind of smirked because I didn't think I was down, but once I kind of saw my knee hit the ground, I was like, 'I just barely touched it.' It was funny."
- Sermon says "everybody on the team respects" Fields and that he took on the role as a leader "and has really been doing a great job."
- Sermon says he left Oklahoma because he "just wanted a better opportunity for myself" and that it "was a good fit for me to come here."
- He says that Ohio State having persevering through so much this season, including fighting just to have a season, makes the chance to play for a national championship even more special.
- Sermon's goal when he came here was to help the Buckeyes play for a national championship and that "it feels like a dream" to get that opportunity.
- On being put in the same conversation as Ezekiel Elliott: "There's been a lot of great running backs to come through here. ... Just to be in that conversation is an honor, and I feel pretty good about what I've been able to accomplish so far."
- He credits the offensive line and tight ends for blocking for him and making his job "easy."
- Alabama is a "physical group and big and strong," he says. Sermon said the Tide has a "dynamic" set of linebackers and a defense that flies to the ball.
- Sermon said the Buckeyes have "a pretty big chip on our shoulder" and that they're going out to prove that every time they play.
Tuf Borland
- Borland says that Alabama is an "unbelievable team" with "unbelievable players" with talent everywhere, from the offensive and defensive line to the skill position players. He agrees with Day that Ohio State will have to play its best game of the season to beat the Crimson Tide: "We're gonna have to take it up another level."
- On Justin Hilliard: "He's an unbelievable player, but he's an unbelievable player as well. To see the success he's had, nobody's surprised. And he deserves everything that's come his way. He's a warrior, always has been."
- On Al Washington: "Coach Washington has been amazing. Deserves a lot of credit in what we've done. Day in, day out he's always there for us."
- He says Washington provides energy and passion every day and that it's "contagious." He believes Washington's coaching has shown through with how the linebackers' performance has taken off.
- On Najee Harris: "He's a big back, but he shows great patience and great acceleration when he wants to turn it up into the hole." He says it's a "great challenge" to play Harris.
Nick Saban
- "We're excited about having the opportunity to play against a very good Ohio State team." He says the Buckeyes are "really explosive" offensively and control the line of scrimmage on both sides of the ball. He mentions they have impressive playmakers on the outside, referring to Chris Olave and Garrett Wilson. "These are the kind of games if you're a competitor you really look forward to playing in."
- On what impressed him about Ohio State in the Sugar Bowl: "They were very impressive on the line of scrimmage." He says Ohio State has a "great back" and was "physical up front." ... "This is a very talented group."
- On Trey Sermon: "He's playing outstanding football right now. There's no doubt about that." He says the explosiveness in the passing game, Justin Fields' ability to run and pass and the two-back system with Sermon and Master Teague makes them challenging to defend. "They have great balance. That's what makes them very difficult to defend."
- Why none of his former assistant coaches can beat him: "I think that's probably only a matter of time."
- His relationship with Day: "I don't know Ryan well. I've met him before." He thinks Day does a "good job of trying to manage and control the tempo of the game" offensively.
- On the CFP semifinal with Ohio State six years ago" "That was a great game. ... As it turned out, they won pretty handily in the national championship game."
Devonta Smith
- "Right now, I'm not really worrying about the Heisman Trophy." He says he's focused on getting into the Ohio State game plan.
- He says he hasn't begun to watch much film on the Buckeyes. "Hopefully I can get into it today and see some things that are interesting for us."
- On Steve Sarkisian leaving for Texas: "He's going to be here with us throughout this last game, and we're trying to finish things the right way."
Patrick Surtain II
- On his impressions of Ohio State in the Sugar Bowl: "They're very dominant in the pass game and the run game. Very balanced, very efficient."
- Surtain says Alabama's defense won't be anxious going into this matchup because it faces the team's own offense in practice.
- On Ohio State's wide receivers: "They're very finesse type of receivers. They've got speed, vertical routes, but they also run great routes."
- On Justin Fields: "He's a high competitor. He leads the team the right way. They go off of him. For him to go back in the game, that just shows what type of competitor he is and what type of toughness he has." He says Fields' accuracy and mobility within the pocket are what stand out most.
- Surtain says Alabama gave up big plays due to mental errors and lack of communication is its worst defensive performances of the season. "We've just got to focus and prepare the right way."
