The Ohio State Buckeyes and Oregon Ducks will travel to Arlington, Texas to face off against each other at the College Football Playoff Championship at AT&T Stadium, the home of the NFL team Dallas Cowboys, on Jan. 12. Viewers can watch online Buckeyes vs. Ducks CFP game via live stream - free for subscribers - below.
Under the new system of determining a college football champion at the national level, Ohio State and Oregon have one more game to play. Oregon coach Mark Helfrich elaborated to CBS Sports on his team's strategy for victory.
"I guarantee there's a few guys in the locker room dialed in and tuned into those guys and trying to get some tendencies," Helfrich said. "Doing what they did tonight, the culmination of the season, they need to enjoy it for a couple of days. We've got a plan going forward of how we'll manage that."
Helfrich added that although Oregon may be celebrating their victory over the Florida State Seminoles 59-20 at the Rose Bowl, he will focus the team back to business soon.
"It has to be that way, whether it's coming off the regular season, the championship game, the championship game to here, managing those kind of extra days and really taking advantage of and balance getting healthy vs. getting stale, and all those other things that go into it," Helfrich said.
Oregon will be relying on Heisman-winning quarterback Marcus Mariota to pull off a victory against Ohio State. Although Oregon is favored to win according to Greg Price of International Business Times, Ohio State could put up a decent fight against them, noting that based on statistics, both teams "appear to be evenly matched."
"Ohio State can match the Ducks firepower with the nation's No.5-ranked offense racking up 45 points per game and its defense also held opponents to 22.1 points per game," Price wrote. "After Jones, the Buckeyes also have Elliott and his 1,632 yards and 14 touchdowns, along with speedy receivers Devin Smith and Michael Thomas."
According to CBS Sports, Ohio State linebacker Darron Lee looked drained at his locker and felt the toll of playing against the Alabama Crimson Tide, which Ohio State won 42-35.
"You get a couple good night's rest and we'll be all right," Lee said. "But it is a long season, I'll tell you that. The playoff system's great, but it is a wear and tear."
Ohio State defensive end Michael Bennett seemed to agree with Lee's assessment, noting that he too needed to relax after that game.
"Coach Meyer, Coach Mick [strength and conditioning coach Mickey Mariotti], they really know what they're doing," Bennett said. "They'll take care of us. They'll get our bodies back right, give us the proper rest. I'm confident that we'll be ready."
Ohio State coach Urban Meyer expressed concern that the new college football championship system will affect the quality of his players' gameplay. He told CBS Sports of how he had to change the training system of the Buckeyes to fit that reality.
"You're talking about 14, 15 games, and that is getting very NFL-ish," Meyer said. "We're very leery of it. And there's a part of me that's concerned about the wear and tear on the student-athlete. But I watch our players and they're having the time of their life."
Meyer added that it was "the first time in college football history" that student athletes have been asked to spend this much time on the gridiron.
"You're talking about August until now and your 15 games," Meyer commented.
The inaugural college football championship will air at 8:30 p.m. ET Jan. 12 on ESPN. While both options require a subscription and login, online viewers can watch the game online through WatchESPN.com or through the Watch ESPN app.
