Three Shots: A Championship Season

ATLANTA – I am not sure that anyone could have predicted the season that the Buckeyes had over 2024. People who followed football and followed Ohio State knew there were not many rosters more talented than Ohio State, if any. But it isn’t easy to win a national championship with all the potential pitfalls along the way.

After a season of trying to make bold predictions that were bold but not too bold, but then again, not too much of a layup, I made my final picks going into Ohio State’s game with Notre Dame. A game that Ohio State won, 34-23 to win the National Championship.

There were plenty of highs and lows in the game, the Buckeyes saw the Fighting Irish get off to a lengthy drive that ate up nearly 10 minutes of game time, before roaring back for 21 points in the second quarter.

But nothing is easy, and Ohio State saw Notre Dame come roaring back and get it down to a one-possession game, something I certainly did not see coming.

Did I have the foresight to see other things happening with my Three Shots predictions? I did a good job this week, hitting two of my three, but was it enough to give me a respectable score overall for the year?

Read on and find out.

last time out – the cfp championship game

Free Throw: Ohio State scores at least four touchdowns (by any variety)

Status: Hit

The Buckeyes scored four touchdowns, no more and no less.

Quinshon Judkins had three touchdowns, two on the ground and one via the pass.

Will Howard would connect on another passing score, this time to Jeremiah Smith, the first score of the game for Ohio State.

Ohio State’s offense went into conservative mode in the second half of the game as Ohio State had to settle for three, rather than seven.

That made things much dicier than they ever needed to be, but you can’t have a game between the final two teams still playing and just expect it to be a one-way affair.

I didn’t feel that this was going to be the most complicated of picks, but I am glad that it came to pass, I didn’t want to show up without a championship effort.

Three Pointer: Jeremiah Smith has at least five receptions, 70 receiving yards and a touchdown (any variety)

Status: Hit

I cut this one very close.

Smith would end up with five receptions, for 88 yards and a score. So there wasn’t much pad there, just 18 yards.

After Smith was largely taken out of the “production” point of the Texas game, I think everyone felt that Ohio State would make an effort to get the ball to Smith against the Fighting Irish.

Add to that the fact that Notre Dame likes to play man defense and it seemed like a perfect storm. But Even with that and an 81-percent passing game from Howard on the night, there just weren’t as many connections with Smith, being targeted seven times in the game.

But it was good enough for the three points, and I will take them.

Full Court: Ohio State will hold ND to 243 yards of total offense or fewer

Status: Miss

I had my reasons for this number as I explained in the original piece where I made my picks. This was a 10-pointer for a reason.

The Fighting Irish would go for 308 yards, so it was still more than 50 yards off, but I feel pretty good about this one.

It was not close enough where I am upset about being “this close” to hitting the number, but I also feel like I was on the right track.

End the season on a high note, and I did.

We will be back next season.

Final Score: 17

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