Jerron Cage is making his first career start in the national championship game.
With Tommy Togiai unavailable for tonight's game, Ohio State turned to Cage to take his place in the starting lineup at nose tackle with a national title on the line against Alabama.
A fourth-year junior, Cage has never started a game for the Buckeyes before but has seen playing time in all seven of Ohio State's games this season for a total of 77 snaps. The Winton Woods High School will certainly be put to the test on Monday night, though, as he sees the most significant playing time of his Ohio State career while going up against an Alabama offensive line that won the Joe Moore Award this year as the nation's best.
Antwuan Jackson and Taron Vincent also saw regular playing time in the nose tackle rotation with Togiai out.
(Update: Cage jogged off the field after suffering an apparent injury late in the first quarter, but returned to the game in the second quarter.)
