Ohio State Buckeyes: 5 things to know about the Sugar Bowl against Clemson

The Tigers topped Ohio State last season in a thriller at the Fiesta Bowl, and this rematch is scheduled for the Sugar Bowl at 8 p.m. on Jan. 1 at the Superdome in New Orleans.

“Everyone here is very, very excited about the opportunity to play in the Sugar Bowl,” Ohio State coach Ryan Day said. “It’s been a unique season in so many different ways, and to get an opportunity to get back into the playoff and play against Clemson is very, very exciting.”

Here are five things to know about the game:

1. The Sugar Bowl is hosting a national semifinal for the third time.

The first two times, the team that won the game went on to win the whole thing. That started with Ohio State in 2014 when the fourth-ranked Buckeyes upset Alabama before blasting Oregon in the national championship game.

Three years ago, Alabama beat Clemson 24-6 to advance to the championship game, where the Crimson Tide topped Georgia.

2. Some fans will be allowed, but not many.

The 87th edition of the Sugar Bowl, which began in 1935, figures to have the smallest crowd in the game’s history.

With the COVID-19 pandemic continuing, the city of New Orleans approved 3,000 fans for the game, and the bowl organizers say restrictions on fan attendance and the bowl’s contractual obligations have resulted in the game already being sold out.

“I’m grateful we have the opportunity to play regardless of the circumstances because it’s been awesome for our team and our players to have some sense of normalcy,” Clemson coach Dabo Swinney said. “And I think it’s been great for our country in general because I know football brings joy to a lot of folks.”

3. It will be a quick turnaround for both teams.

The Buckeyes and the Tigers both played Saturday, winning the Big Ten and ACC championship games, respectively, so they will have less than two weeks to prepare for the biggest game of the season so far.

“We only have 12 days here to really get ready for this thing and Christmas is in between, so unique challenge but looking forward to it,” Day said.

Swinney compared it to preparing for a game after an open weekend in the regular season schedule.

“That’s how we have to look at it,” he said. “You’ve got Christmas sandwiched in there as well, so it’s a unique dynamic that we’ve not dealt with in the past. But it is what it is. We’ll come in, I guess, sometime the night of the 30th and kind of have our Friday-type routine on the 31st, play the game on the 1st, and come home right after the game.

“It’s all good. We’re just thankful and grateful to have the opportunity.”

4. Ohio State is 0-4 against Clemson with all of the matchups having come in the postseason.

The Buckeyes lost the Gator Bowl to the Tigers after the 1978 season, the Orange Bowl after the 2013 season and the Fiesta Bowls at the end of the ’16 and ’19 campaigns.

The latter two games were both playoff semifinals.

“We don’t have them on our regular schedule anytime in the near future, so you know it is a big, big postseason game when you play those guys,” Swinney said.

“I think Ryan does things the right way. I think he believes in a lot of similar things, as far as how they try to run their program. We recruit a lot of the same guys. So just a lot of respect for their program, and getting to know Ryan over the last few years, he does an awesome job. Got a great staff. It’s definitely a team that we compete with, not just on the field, but also in recruiting.”

5. The teams will look different this year, but they have the same matchup at the top of the marquee.

Ten players from the 2019 Ohio State squad were taken in the 2020 NFL Draft while Clemson had seven hear their name called.

The latter group consisted of four players from the Tigers defense, two offensive linemen and star receiver Tee Higgins, who is having a strong rookie season for the Cincinnati Bengals.

Ohio State had seven defensive players drafted and lost star running back J.K. Dobbins, who appeared on his way to a historic performance against the Tigers last season before an ankle injury.

However, star quarterbacks Trevor Lawrence and Justin Fields return for the Tigers and Buckeyes, respectively.

Fields suffered what he described as a probable sprained thumb on his throwing hand against Northwestern, but Day said he will be fine.