Ohio State Buckeyes 2014 National Champions!! Traditional Cache

On January 12, 2015, the No. 4 Ohio State Buckeyes and the No. 2 Oregon Ducks faced each other in the inaugural College Football Playoff National Championship at AT&T Stadium.

The Ducks' first drive featured running back Thomas Tyner and quarterback Marcus Mariota driving Oregon 75 yards and scoring on a 7-yard touchdown pass from Mariota to Keanon Lowe to give Oregon a 7–0 lead.  The Buckeye offense struggled on their first drive, going only 17 yards, and was forced to punt.  The Buckeye defense stopped Oregon at midfield on their next possession forcing a punt, setting up Ohio State inside their own 3-yard line.  During the drive, Ohio State went 97 yards and scored on a 33-yard touchdown run from Ezekiel Elliott, tying the game at 7–7.  The Buckeye defense forced the Ducks to punt on their next two possessions.  The Ohio State offense took advantage by scoring on a touchdown pass from Cardale Jones to Nick Vannett, making the score 14–7 Ohio State at the end of the first quarter.

On the fourth play of the second quarter, Ohio State turned the ball over on a fumble by Cardale Jones, giving the Ducks' possession of the ball at their own 41-yard line. The Ducks' drove down to the Ohio State 3-yard line, but were unable to take advantage of the turnover after failing to convert on fourth down. The Buckeye offense took over at their own 1-yard line and quickly drove to midfield. The drive ended, however, on another Ohio State turnover, this time on a pass from Jones to Devin Smith that was fumbled, which allowed Oregon to take over at their own 9-yard line.  Oregon, again, was unable to capitalize off of the turnover, with the Buckeye defense forcing a three and out.  The ensuing Ohio State possession took only 6 plays and ended with a touchdown run from Jones, giving Ohio State a 21–7 lead.  The next Ducks' possession went 66-yards in 12 plays and ended with a 26-yard field goal from Aidan Schneider. After the Oregon defense forced a three and out on the Buckeyes' next possession, Oregon went into halftime, trailing Ohio State 21–10.

Ohio State received the opening kickoff of the second half. The Buckeyes turned the ball over on their first possession of the half when a Cardale Jones pass was intercepted by Danny Mattingly.  The Ducks took advantage of the turnover in one play on a 70-yard touchdown pass from Marcus Mariota to Byron Marshall, making the score 21–17 Ohio State. The Buckeyes' turned the ball over for a fourth time on their next possession, with Jones fumbling the ball inside the Ohio State 23-yard line.  The Ohio State defense stopped Oregon and they had to settle for an Aidan Schneider 23-yard field goal, bringing the score to 21–20 Ohio State. The Buckeyes' ensuing possession went 75 yards in 12 plays, ending on a 9-yard touchdown run from Ezekiel Elliott to make the score 28–20 Ohio State at the end of the third quarter. 

After a Buckeye defensive stop, the Ohio State offense and Ezekiel Elliott again scored a touchdown, making the score 35–20 Ohio State early in the fourth quarter.  The next two possessions resulted in the teams exchanging punts. With less than three minutes remaining in the game, the Oregon offense attempt to convert a fourth down, but the pass from Marcus Mariota was incomplete.  Ohio State regained possession and scored on a fourth touchdown from Elliott. The last play of the game was a Mariota pass that was intercepted by Eli Apple cementing the final score at 42–20.

For their performances, Ezekiel Elliott was named the game's offensive MVP, and Tyvis Powell was named the game's defensive MVP.  Ohio State improved their all-time record against Oregon to 9–0, won the first ever College Football Playoff national championship, and the program's first national championship since 2002.   It was Ohio State's eighth claimed national championship, and sixth national championship by vote of the AP and Coaches' polls. The fourteen season victories tied the 2002 season for the most in program history.