After suffering the brutal loss in the College Football Playoff National Championship game against Alabama, some people are worried about Ohio State’s future and possibly the future of head coach Ryan Day. 

The Buckeyes fell 52 -24 to Nick Saban’s Alabama team. Mac Jones, Alabama’s quarterback, had five touchdown passes. Three of those touchdown passes were to Heisman Winner Devonta Smith. 

A lot of judgement was passed throughout social media following the National Championship game because of the defensive scheme the Buckeyes and Ryan Day chose to try to contain Smith. The goal was to sit back and always try to keep the ball in front of them. This did not go as planned, considering Smith had three touchdown receptions and 215 yards. 

Some people are concerned about the Buckeyes’ future because some key players are declaring for the 2021 NFL Draft. This list includes quarterback Justin Fields, running back Trey Sermon, linebacker Justin Hilliard, defensive tackle Tommy Togiai and cornerback Shaun Wade. While this is obviously going to hurt, it is not the end of the world for the Buckeyes. 

Coach Ryan Day does a great job recruiting that I am sure there are players who have been developing their game for 2-3 years waiting to fill those shoes. At quarterback for example, in the past five years, Ohio State has had Dwanye Haskins, J.T. Barrett and Cardale Jones, who was a third string quarterback that came out and won a National Championship. 

All three of those players had great college careers, and Dwanye Haskins just signed with the Steelers in the NFL which proves that Ohio State can produce NFL caliber quarterbacks. Yes, Justin Fields is an amazing player but I am sure there are players just below him who are ready to come out and perform at the highest level after he goes to the NFL Draft. 

Everyone is focused on the players that are leaving. We should be happy for some of the players that are staying for either a fourth or fifth year. Star wide-receiver Chris Olave made it public on his social media accounts that he was going to be returning for his senior year in the 2021 season. 

“There are so many great memories, but we’re not done yet,” Olave said in a post on his Twitter account.

Other crucial players have said that they are going to be returning as well. Defensive tackle Haskell Garrett, offensive lineman Thayer Munford, tackle Nick Petit-Frere and cornerback Sevyn Banks. This is just a few of the Buckeyes who will be returning next season. It would be a bad idea to count them out of anything in the 2021 season. 

The Buckeyes have nothing to lose at this point. They are not going to forget what happened last year in the National Championship. They will come out next season with a chip on their shoulders and it will be a fantastic sight to see.