Ohio State Awarded No. 8 Seed, Set to Play Tennessee

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The Ohio State Buckeyes (10-2, 7-2 Big Ten Conference) were awarded the No. 8 seed in the College Football Playoff on Dec. 8. They will play No. 9 Tennessee (10-2, 6-2 Southeastern Conference) at Ohio Stadium in Columbus, Ohio at 8 p.m. EST on Dec. 21.

The Buckeyes will have the advantage of a home game in the first round against the Volunteers, an experience many fans will be looking forward to seeing for the first time with the new expanded 12-team playoff.

Tennessee at a Glance

The Volunteers are ranked No. 8 in total offense in the entire NCAA. Head coach Josh Heupel's veer and shoot attack is one of the most dangerous schemes in all of football. Star quarterback Nico Iamaveala runs the offense to near perfection. Much of the responsibility is on him as they heavily feature run-pass options. Despite the effectiveness of their downfield attack, most of their success comes on the ground. Their No. 9-ranked rushing offense is led by SEC player of the year, running back Dylan Sampson. He has 1,485 rushing yards on the year, placing him No. 8 in the country. Sampson has 22 rushing TDs and is also a receiving threat, adding 141 yards and a TD as a passing target. He has gashed and dominated great defenses this year consistently.

The defense of Tennessee has also been stellar. They are ranked No. 4 in total defense in the country and have been tremendous against both the run and the pass. Defensive end James Pearce Jr. leads them in sacks with 7.5 this year, making him perhaps the most dynamic defender on the team. The rest of his defensive line teammates have been tremendous as well. They heavily rotate that position group and do an incredible job of stopping the run as well as rushing the passer. Their defensive backs have also been impressive this year. DBs Jermod McCoy and Will Brooks have combined for 7 interceptions and 12 passes defended this year. They make it tough for any offense to move the ball through the air.

Ohio State at a Glance

The Buckeyes have struggled against great defensive fronts this season. In their last time out, they could not run the ball effectively at all against Michigan (7-5, 5-4 B1G), totaling just 77 rushing yards on 26 attempts. The Volunteers will present a similar challenge as Michigan and other teams have this season. Head coach Ryan Day may call for QB Will Howard to move the ball through the air much more than usual with those struggles and this specific matchup. Star wide receivers Jeremiah Smith and Emeka Egbuka could see a heavy dosage of targets if the Tennessee defensive line can replicate what other teams have done well against the Buckeyes' run-game.

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Defensively, Ohio State has been outstanding this year. Teams have struggled heavily to run the ball against them, especially in the red zone. The Ohio State run defense against Samspon and the Volunteers could prove to be the key matchup of the game. Star safeties Caleb Downs and Lathan Ransom have been tremendous when coming down to help stop the run all year. If they continue to lurk toward the line of scrimmage, Iamaveala could move the ball downfield with more one-on-ones. Ohio State defensive coordinator Jim Knowles will have to prepare his defense for a difficult matchup.

There is a lot to be excited about for both team's fans and college football fans in general in this game. These two teams both present unique challenges for each other and will be playing in a new, exciting atmosphere when they finally face off on Dec. 21.