Ohio State gets mentally ready for USC

With bowl season already in full swing, Ohio State arrived in Arlington, Texas on Saturday for its matchup with USC in the Cotton Bowl on December 29th. Even with the bowl festivities starting a bit earlier than the Buckeyes may be used to, head coach Urban Meyer said that the mentality for his team heading into the game has not changed.

“They're going to be the same they've always been all year,” Meyer said. “That's resilient, tough, care about each other, and they're going to play really hard.”

The mentality for the Cotton Bowl for the program as a whole seems to be very simple. The Buckeyes want to beat a Trojan team, not only to break a seven-game losing streak that began in 1975, but also to do what Ohio State always expects. Win.

“I think every game is important because we don't come here to lose. So we take that chip every week that we know we got to win,” defensive lineman Tracy Sprinkle said. “For us, this to just be a bowl game and a huge bowl game against USC, which is tradition-rich just like Ohio State, we know it's going to be huge to go out there and get a win. And also for us because all the players, we put a lot into the program so we want to go out and get a win.”

Sprinkle also talked about how this will be an important one to play for the players who will not be returning to Ohio State next year. He said that the brotherhood that this team has created is unique and that being able to play with them one more time would be a blessing.

However, according to wide receiver Johnnie Dixon, this group has unfinished business to attend to and, for the group as a whole, this is just another business trip.

“We don't take no other game different but, you know, the team up north. I just think it's the same thing. We prepare the same way, maybe a little harder. We just know what we have to do at the end of the day.”

Sprinkle knows where Ohio State is at heading into this game. Prefacing that the team goal was to win a conference title, which it did accomplish, the senior defensive lineman said that things may have not gone in the Buckeyes’ favor in terms of bowl placement. However, come December 29th, none of that will matter when both teams face off at AT&T Stadium.

“We went out there to win a Big Ten championship. And, obviously, things didn't go our way,” Sprinkle said. “So we know that we have a big team, USC, waiting on the other side who really don't care about that. So we know we got to be prepared and go out there and give it our all in order to bring this University another win.”

Facing off against the Pac-12 champion will be a challenge according to Meyer. He said that USC is bringing an offense that could be an issue for his team, calling the running back Ronald Jones “ridiculous” and praising the receiving corps. Meyer also said that quarterback Sam Darnold will be, “a top two or three draft pick in the NFL.”

Meyer knows where his team was at when they got on the plane in Columbus. Now, he said that it remains to be seen what that mentality will be when it is all said and done.

“Excellent when we left,” Meyer said. “I got on a plane and landed, and we're going to find out,”