Ohio State’s Emeka Egbuka on Buckeyes’ National Championship and NFL Future
Two days after Thanksgiving, Ohio State’s national championship hopes seemed all but over. The Buckeyes, ranked second in the nation at the time, were three-touchdown favorites at home against bitter rival Michigan. Despite the Wolverines being the reigning national champions, this year’s squad was not close to last season’s team. So, it should have been an easy win for OSU. But they lost, calls for Ryan Day to be fired grew louder and there were serious doubts about what the Buckeyes would be able to do in the College Football Playoff.
However, Ohio State got over it quickly and dominated every team in their path en route to a national championship earlier this week. Emeka Egbuka, a key player on the team, admitted in a recent interview with Fox News Digital that he’d “have to think about” trading his new national title for a sweep of the Wolverines, considering those games are “almost as big as” the championship.
The anger of the loss lingered after the game, when members of both teams brawled after Michigan players planted a UM flag at midfield. The pressure was on Day, but Egbuka admitted that the short memory came from players-only meetings, not necessarily from anything Day did.
Egbuka was part of Celsius’ Essential Six, an energy drink partnership with five other college stars. He credited the energy drink with giving him the energy he needed to have a record-setting season and become OSU’s all-time reception leader.
After a parade Sunday, Egbuka will be in NFL Draft mode and will have to start training for next month’s combine. There isn’t much time for celebration, but Egbuka is ready for it. “I am. I’m ready for this next chapter in my life. It is important to take breaks and take rests. So, I have a couple days where I’ll spend with loved ones leading up to training for the NFL. But it’s the life I signed up for. So, can’t complain about it too much. I’m just grateful to be in this position. A lot of people aren’t able to get here.”