Braxton Miller's shoulder injury in August. J.T. Barrett takes over; the offensive identity changes from zone-read-QB to power-throw in three weeks.
2014 — The First CFP · Won It
Ohio State became the first College Football Playoff national champion, winning three knockout-stage games with three different starting quarterbacks.
The Shape — week-by-week · cumulative W–L below
Who carried it
- J.T. BarrettQB2,834 passing yards
- Cardale JonesQB860 passing yards
- Ezekiel ElliottRB1,878 rushing yards
- Curtis Samuel?383 rushing yards
- Devin SmithWR931 receiving yards
- Michael ThomasWR799 receiving yards
- Jalin Marshall?499 receiving yards
Season leaders, 2014.
Barrett's ankle injury in the Michigan game (November 29). Third-string Cardale Jones takes the Big Ten Championship Game start. A roster continuity crisis that became the season's plot engine.
Sugar Bowl over Alabama 42-35; national championship over Oregon 42-20. Jones-to-Elliott as the offensive identity; the Buckeyes rolled through two #1-seed teams on consecutive Saturdays.
"Third-string quarterbacks don't win titles. Ours did."
2014 is the title that defined the Urban Meyer era at Ohio State and the College Football Playoff's establishing example. A program surviving two quarterback injuries and winning the sport's first four-team title — the chapter is in the first tier of the era's stories. The legacy is double: Ohio State's roster depth is the structural reason; the CFP's design made it possible. The 2015-2024 decade runs downstream of this season's template.