The Buckeyes are on the outside looking in.
Ohio State's College Football Playoff streak is officially over as the Buckeyes are ranked No. 6 in the final rankings and will miss the playoff for the first time since Ryan Day took over as head coach following the 2018 season.
Alabama, Michigan, Georgia and Cincinnati make up the four-team playoff field in that order, pitting No. 1 Alabama against No. 4 Cincinnati in the Cotton Bowl and No. 2 Michigan against No. 3 Georgia in the Orange Bowl as the two semifinals.
Ohio State will now represent the Big Ten in the Rose Bowl as the conference's highest-ranked non-playoff team. The Buckeyes are set to face Utah, this year's Pac-12 champion.
The Rose Bowl will be the second-ever meeting between the Buckeyes and Utes, whose only previous matchup came in a regular season game in 1986, which Ohio State won 64-6.
Ohio State will be making its 16th appearance in the Rose Bowl and its second in the last four years. The Buckeyes most recently played in the Rose Bowl on Jan. 1, 2019, when they defeated Washington 28-23 in Urban Meyer’s final game as Ohio State’s head coach.
Here are the final College Football Playoff rankings of the season:
| Rank # | Team | Record |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Alabama | 12-1 |
| 2 | Michigan | 12-1 |
| 3 | Georgia | 12-1 |
| 4 | Cincinnati | 13-0 |
| 5 | Notre Dame | 11-1 |
| 6 | Ohio State | 10-2 |
| 7 | Baylor | 11-2 |
| 8 | Mississippi | 10-2 |
| 9 | Oklahoma State | 11-2 |
| 10 | Michigan State | 10-2 |
| 11 | Utah | 10-3 |
| 12 | Pittsburgh | 11-2 |
| 13 | BYU | 10-2 |
| 14 | Oregon | 10-3 |
| 15 | Iowa | 10-3 |
| 16 | Oklahoma | 10-2 |
| 17 | Wake Forest | 10-3 |
| 18 | NC State | 9-3 |
| 19 | Clemson | 9-3 |
| 20 | Houston | 11-2 |
| 21 | Arkansas | 8-4 |
| 22 | Kentucky | 9-3 |
| 23 | Louisiana | 12-1 |
| 24 | San Diego State | 11-2 |
| 25 | Texas A&M | 8-4 |
