Ohio State is likely a lock to make playoffs

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No matter who wins Saturday’s Big Ten championship game, the Ohio State Buckeyes have to be in the College Football Playoff.

There’s no way the committee can keep the Buckeyes and their 11-1 record out of the four-team field.

OSU was still ranked second behind Alabama in the latest poll, and the Buckeyes will likely go into the playoff as the two or three seed.

Along with its stellar record, OSU also brings with it a lot of ticket-buying fans and high TV ratings, two factors that will ensure it makes the playoff.

Last Saturday’s Ohio State-Michigan matchup drew the highest TV rating of any game this season.

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Now that the Bengals’ season is officially a lost cause, it’s time for the team to turn to its young players and see what they have.

Cincy should give AJ McCarron a few starts at quarterback to see if he might just be better than Andy Dalton, and at the least, the Bengals could showcase McCarron as a trade bait.

Cincinnati has several problem areas, including at offensive line, receiver, linebacker and defensive back.

The Bengals apparently wasted their top draft pick in 2015 on right tackle Cedric Ogbuehi, who has been awful this season as the starter.

In Sunday’s loss to the Baltimore Ravens, Ogbuehi was beaten consistently by pass rushers and literally didn’t look like he had any idea how to block.

Cincinnati’s defense is the oldest in the NFL, and it’s been showing all season.

Of course, the team’s off-season moves should start with Marvin Lewis being fired as head coach, but we all know that’s unlikely to happen.

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Trivia Time – Ray DeCola was Urbana High School’s head football coach in 1981.

This week’s question – Where did Bengals’ right tackle Cedric Ogbuehi play college football?

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By Steve Stout

[email protected]

Reach Steve Stout at 652-1331 (ext. 1776) or on Twitter @udcstout

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