James David Vance, like all true Americans, had a very good day yesterday. The 40-year-old Ohio native was sworn-in as the 50th VPOTUS, just before Donald John Trump took the oath of office as the nation’s 47th president.
I’m guessing, however, that while shuttling among inaugural balls, Vice President JD Vance was keeping tabs on how the football team representing his alma mater, The Ohio State University, was faring against Notre Dame.
His good day got better — his Buckeyes defeated the Irish and hoisted the national championship trophy.
Speaking as someone who was raised myself on Ohio State football, the outcome made me smile. It’s the sixth national championship the Bucks have won in my lifetime, and there’s a lot to admire about this one.
Much has been made of the team’s rebound from its upset loss in The Game at the end of the regular season, when fans called for the head coach to be fired. It then reeled-off four dominating wins in the playoffs to earn this national championship. So for that, I’ll give credit where it’s due.
But while hugging the trophy they earned, this is a team that’ll have to embrace a few asterisks.
Of Ohio State’s eight national champions over the years, three of those teams were undefeated. Three suffered one loss, and one had a tie on its record. The 2024-2025 OSU squad is the first to have lost two games enroute to a title.
Seven Ohio State national championship teams also won the Big Ten Conference. One team did not — this one.
Finally, and most important of all, this Buckeyes team is the first to win a national football championship and yet carry the shame of having lost to That Team Up North.
Subjectively, the team that beat Notre Dame was one of the most talented in the history of the program. “It’s how you finish,” they’ll say. “We overcame adversity.”
JD Vance knows a thing or two about that. Trump, too. I’m willing to bet that both men will draw the parallel when the Buckeyes visit The White House.
But the team crowned “national champions” in Atlanta last night will never shed the asterisks. It can’t be ranked with the greatest football teams in Ohio State history. That distinction belongs to 1968-1969, in my opinion, and 2002-2003.
Don’t bother arguing with me. You won’t change my mind.
Sport is inherently imperfect. It’s engaged in by humans. It’s judged by and officiated by humans.
Humans also demand certainty — which is, of course, an illusion. That hasn’t prevented schemes like video review and other fool’s errands, all of which diminish sport by seeking to eliminate The Human Element.
It’s been amusing over the last quarter-century to see big-time college football attempt to crown an indisputable national champion. First came a single title game, pitting the two “best” teams against each other. When that didn’t quell controversy, in 2014 the field was expanded to four teams, the “playoff” series to three games.
Naturally, that didn’t silence critics, either. So this season, a field of 12 teams was selected. Five conference champions got automatic bids, and the four “best” among those were rewarded with a first-round bye. Surely, that formula would produce a national champion no one would question.
And how did it work out?
Every one of those conference champions, including the #1 overall seed, lost its first playoff game — one-and-done. The early rounds were noteworthy for routs. Two of the quarterfinal games, both semifinal games and the championship game were, judged by seeding, upsets.
National champion Ohio State was the #8 seed.
It’s interesting that the same sort of thing happened the last time The Wizards of Smart fiddled with the format. A one-loss team, down to its third-string quarterback, snuck into the playoffs as the #4 seed (out of four teams selected) and won the 2014-2015 national title.
That, too, was Ohio State.
The point here, and the lesson, goes beyond sport: Humanity isn’t something to be excised or engineered away — it’s what makes Life worth living. Mistakes and flaws and failures and uncertainty bring texture to our existence and, if we’re playing the game right, they make us better.
Humanity is essential. Leave it be.
I think that’s enough sports talk for a while.
Take care of yourselves, Patriots. Stay calm. Stay sharp. Stay free.
#WiseUp #LibertyOrDeath #Ungovernable