A lack of chaos on Conference Championship Saturday kept Ohio State from earning a trip to its second straight College Football Playoff, but the Buckeyes earned a trip to the Fiesta Bowl as the No. 7 team in the country. Urban Meyer's team is set to face No. 8 Notre Dame New Year's Day at 1 p.m. EST, 11 a.m. MST.
After learning of Ohio State's fate Sunday, Meyer met with a roomful of reporters at the Woody Hayes Athletic Center.
Notes:
- "Two legendary programs, we have a lot of respect for Notre Dame. A great bowl game, too." — Urban Meyer
- Meyer said there isn't any disappointment in that Ohio State didn't make it to the Rose Bowl: "Just gotta get there and lock in against your opponent."
- Meyer said he "couldn't watch" the Big Ten Championship Game Saturday night.
- On this season, Meyer said the senior class' four-year contribution "takes your breath away."
- Meyer wouldn't confirm that defensive coordinator Chris Ash is headed to Rutgers, but said "I love Chris Ash. He was an impact hire. He's done a marvelous job. One of the best coaches I've ever been around."
- On Irish head coach Brian Kelly, Meyer said he should get plenty of credit for bringing the program back to the upper part of college football.
- "This is an exceptional group that came up a few seconds short in a game against a very good team." — Urban Meyer on his team.
- On the College Football Playoff selection system, Meyer said he thought the committee does "an excellent job." He added that he thought it was intriguing that Joey Galloway said on ESPN that each conference should play a championship game.
- Meyer has never coached against Notre Dame in his career, but he did coach there: "There are two places that's are near and dear to my heart, Ohio State and Notre Dame. Lot of respect for them."
- More on the Big Ten Championship Game last night, Meyer said: "It's hard for me to enjoy football without getting notebooks out and things like that ... You just second guess and overanalyze things."
- Meyer said Ed Warinner "will probably be in the box" during the Fiesta Bowl against Notre Dame.
- Meyer said again he thinks Ezekiel Elliott should be in New York City as a Heisman Trophy finalist: "He's one of the best players in the country. There's no question he should be in New York."
- On Joey Bosa, Meyer said the junior is "the best defensive player I've ever been around." He didn't want to speculate on Bosa's laurels and potential to win national awards.
- On Notre Dame quarterback DeShone Kizer, Meyer remembered recruiting him: "He has a big arm. Big dude."
- Meyer did not want to comment on more potential coaches leaving for other jobs: "There's just so much going on right now."
- Meyer said he did meet with Cardale Jones and others who could leave early for the NFL, but he wanted to keep those conversations between them: "Final decisions made after the bowl game."
