Kirk Herbstreit eager to see how Ohio State responds to underdog mentality against Georgia

Ohio State isn’t usually the underdog, and Kirk Herbstreit can’t wait to see how they play the role against Georgia.

Speaking with the media ahead of the College Football Playoff, Herbstreit elaborated on why he believes the college football world shouldn’t count out the Buckeyes.

“Oh yeah. I think a big part of it is just, where’s their mindset? I don’t know. We’ve done the playoff since ’14. I don’t recall a team that lost the way they lost to their rival at home and then went to the playoff to see how they’ll respond. We’ve had teams lose their last game, Georgia last year, but it wasn’t in the same circumstances. It was a neutral site in a conference championship game. Ohio State loses that game, they miss out on their conference championship, and they’re left answering questions where they’re almost embarrassed. And now they’re in the playoff. So, this is uncharted territory,” stated Herbstreit. “Yeah. I’m anxious to see their mindset. I’m anxious to see how they handle the adversity of that atmosphere at the Georgia Dome.

“People say 50/50, I think it’ll probably be more 70/30 would be my guess, favoring Georgia. So how do they handle that, I think. And do they keep their poise? A team that’s wounded like that, and you face adversity, do you fight through it? Do you struggle? So, I think it’s more psychological than it is even the XOs of the game.”

Additionally, there’s multiple factors at play, but the College GameDay analyst is interested in seeing how quarterback CJ Stroud and the Ohio State defense responds to the talent Georgia has.

“100%. Like I said, how will CJ Stroud respond? How will Jim Knowles respond? How will the Ohio State defense respond? The last time we saw their defense, Edwards was going down the sideline for a couple late runs. If you really study the film the way I have this week and last week, their defense, they gave up five huge plays. Other than that, they played pretty well. But they had those five plays where they gave up a ton of big plays,” answered the ESPN analyst. “Will they be that same aggressive in your face man to man, safeties uptight kind of defense against this offense with Georgia’s weapons, or will they be more conservative and try to bend but don’t break, which kind of go against who they’ve been all year. But I don’t know.

“I’m anxious to see how they respond, like I said, emotionally and schematically, especially on the defensive side.”

Nevertheless, it’ll be a fascinating showdown to see between Ohio State and Georgia, and Kirk Herbstreit is as eager as anyone to get to kickoff.