SI

Ohio State Borrowed a Play Alabama Used Against Them for Easy Jeremiah Smith TD

This play looked very similar to one the Crimson Tide used against the Buckeyes in the national title game in 2021.

Tim Capurso

Buckeyes quarterback Will Howard finds Smith for a touchdown in the second quarter.
Buckeyes quarterback Will Howard finds Smith for a touchdown in the second quarter. / Screengrab Twitter @espn
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After a lengthy drive that utilized much of the game clock in the first quarter and gave Notre Dame an early lead in the national championship game, Ohio State answered with an equally extended drive of their own—which was capped by an easy touchdown pass from quarterback Will Howard to wide receiver Jeremiah Smith at the start of the second quarter.

And if the touchdown looked familiar to some college football fans, it's because the Buckeyes seemingly borrowed the play from Alabama. As pointed out by Crimson Tide beat writer Michael Casagrande on X, the Buckeyes' touchdown play to Smith looked quite similar to a play Alabama used against Ohio State in its national championship victory back in 2021.

First, here's the Buckeyes' touchdown.

And here's the Crimson Tide's touchdown pass to Heisman Trophy-winning wideout DeVonta Smith.

How about a side-by-side view for good measure?

Perhaps Ohio State coach Ryan Day remembered the effectiveness of the play at the goal-line and filed it away for later use, maybe even putting his own variations on it.

Either way, it worked to perfection and resulted in an easy score for the wide-open Smith.

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Tim Capurso
TIM CAPURSO

Tim Capurso is a staff writer on the Breaking and Trending News team at Sports Illustrated. Prior to joining SI in November 2023, he wrote for RotoBaller and ClutchPoints, where he was the lead editor for MLB, college football and NFL coverage. A lifelong Yankees and Giants fan, Capurso grew up just outside New York City and now lives near Philadelphia. When he's not writing, he enjoys reading, exercising and spending time with his family, including his three-legged cat Willow, who, unfortunately, is an Eagles fan.

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