No one can stand in Ohio State’s way if the Buckeyes keep playing like this.

The No. 8 Buckeyes completely thwarted No. 1 Oregon in the first half en route to a 41-21 Rose Bowl victory on Wednesday and secured a matchup with No. 5 Texas in the College Football Playoff semifinals.

Ohio State led 31-0 midway through the second quarter while Oregon was simply outmatched. It was a remarkable sight; Oregon was the only team in college football to finish the regular season undefeated and beat three playoff teams – including Ohio State in October – en route to the Big Ten title.

But the Buckeyes’ offense continued the masterful form it found against Tennessee in the first round over a week ago. And freshman wide receiver Jeremiah Smith was a big reason why. On the third play of the game, Smith caught a short pass for a 45-yard TD and a 7-0 lead just a minute later.

The lead quickly grew to two touchdowns when Emeka Egbuka made a fantastic catch between two defenders midway through the first quarter.

And Smith gave Ohio State a 24-0 lead less than five minutes into the second quarter when he somehow found himself wide open near the end zone for a 43-yard TD. Oregon’s defense was confused when Ohio State started moving at the snap, and that resulted in Smith being passed off to a safety who was all alone in the middle of the field. That didn’t work so well. Just look at how far away Oregon’s defenders were from him.

Smith warned during the week that Ohio State would go against Oregon’s defense if there was man coverage. That TD came against a zone look, but Smith also beat man coverage often. He has been nearly unstoppable and claims to be the best wide receiver in the country despite only playing high school football 12 months ago.

And as if Oregon didn’t have enough problems defending Ohio State’s passing game, the Buckeyes were also able to break through the Ducks on the ground. TreVeyon Henderson took a 31-0 lead when he sprinted 66 yards for a score. Henderson’s TD came with 8:47 left in the second quarter.

While Ohio State piled up the yards and points, Oregon was stuck in the mud offensively. The Ducks had 139 yards of offense in the first half and 75 of those came on the final drive of the second quarter when Oregon scored a touchdown just before halftime.

The Ducks were also shorthanded in the first half. Leading rusher Jordan James went to the locker room and was unable to return, while WR Evan Stewart was unable to play after apparently suffering an injury during pregame warmups. Leading receiver Tez Johnson, who was sidelined late in the season with a shoulder injury, was also seen on the sideline receiving treatment in the second quarter.

Ohio State had 390 total yards at halftime. QB Will Howard threw for 269 yards in the first 30 minutes and was 11 of 18 from three-pointers. It was the best half of football Howard had played in an Ohio State uniform, and more than made up for his late gaffe as time expired during the Buckeyes’ 32-31 loss in Eugene.

Oregon flirted with making the game a game with a TD early in the third quarter, cutting the lead to 34-15, followed by a stop by the Buckeyes on their first possession. But Ohio State’s defense stepped up and Henderson’s second touchdown of the day with 2:19 left in the third made the rest of the game a formality.

The Ohio State defense ended up with seven sacks of Oregon QB Dillon Gabriel and the Ducks finished with minus-seven rushing yards.

A second straight postseason trip to Texas

Ohio State is in the Cotton Bowl for the second straight year. And this time the stakes are very different. A year ago, Ohio State’s playoff hopes were dashed by a loss to Michigan at the end of the regular season. When Michigan won the Big Ten and then won the national title, Ohio State missed the four-team College Football Playoff entirely and instead went to the Cotton Bowl, where it lost 14-3 to Missouri.

Appearing in that game after the loss to Michigan was the impetus for the push to 2024. Before the bowl game, 2023 starter Kyle McCord entered the transfer portal and the inept offensive performance in Dallas made it clear that Ohio State needed a new quarterback the squad needed for 2024.

Howard became that guy after transferring from Kansas State. The Buckeyes added Ole Miss RB Quinshon Judkins and Alabama DB Caleb Downs while returning most of a defense that was among the best in college football. Add Smith as a five-star recruit and you can understand why the Buckeyes were considered favorites to win the national championship even before the season began.

But Ohio State hasn’t looked like that juggernaut so far. The regular season was full of inconsistencies — and those pesky losses to Oregon and Michigan — to see the Buckeyes the way many did before the season. But we now have two postseason games that prove why Ohio State can be the best team in the country. And the Buckeyes need two more wins to secure that claim.