The 2015 College Football Playoff National Championship was a college football bowl game played on January 12, 2015, at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas. The inaugural College Football Playoff National Championship, which replaced the BCS National Championship Game, the game determined a national champion of the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) for the 2014 season. Aside from the all-star games following after, this was the culminating game of the 2014–15 bowl season. Sponsored by telecommunications company AT&T, the game was officially known as the 2015 College Football Playoff National Championship presented by AT&T. The national title was contested through a four-team bracket system, the College Football Playoff, which replaced the previous Bowl Championship Series.

The game was played between the winners of two designated semi-final bowl games played on January 1, 2015: the No. 4 Ohio State Buckeyes, who upset No. 1 Alabama 42–35 in the 2015 Sugar Bowl, and the No. 2 Oregon Ducks, who defeated previously unbeaten No. 3 Florida State 59–20 in the 2015 Rose Bowl. This was the first championship game since 2006 that did not feature at least one SEC team, and the teams' first meeting since the 2010 Rose Bowl, which the Buckeyes won 26–17.

The Ohio State Buckeyes won the game, 42–20, marking the first national championship awarded under the CFP system. Following the game, the AP Poll and Coaches' Poll also named Ohio State as their top team of the season, marking Ohio State's first national championship since 2002 and their 8th overall. Following the game, the next national championship game to not feature a team from the SEC was the 2024 edition of the championship.

Background AT&T Stadium (capacity 80,000) was announced as the host site in April 2013. Arlington and Tampa (Raymond James Stadium) were the only cities to submit hosting bids for the inaugural title game.

Each team received 20,000 tickets. Premium seat packages for the event cost $1,899 to $3,899 apiece. The packages can include hotel accommodations, game tickets, parking access, pregame hospitality, and an on-field postgame experience.College Football Playoff unveils Playoff Premium packages , College Football Playoff, January 29, 2014

College Football Playoff announced that 1,000 tickets will be made available for purchase to fans who have signed up for a random drawing by May 1, 2014.College Football Playoff Announces Random Ticket Drawing for 2015 National Championship Game , College Football Playoff, January 13, 2014 On March 25, 2014, Dr Pepper was announced as the official championship partner and presenting sponsor of the new College Football Playoff National Championship Trophy.Ana Livia Coelho, ESPN Announces Dr Pepper as the First-Ever Presenting Sponsor of the New College Football Playoff National Championship Trophy, ESPN MediaZone, March 25, 2014

The cost of a thirty-second commercial during the game broadcast reached upwards of $1 million.

Pregame show Before the game, students dressed in all black from the Episcopal School of Dallas and Saint Philip's School held 15 ft. tall banners of every collegiate football team and marched to Fall Out Boy's "Centuries." The students then held out a large American Flag while country music band Lady Antebellum performed the "Star Spangled Banner." The students ran off the field carrying the flag. One student tripped while running off and was dragged hanging onto the flag by the rest, then helped him up off field.

Teams

The teams playing for the national championship were the winners of semifinal bowl games held on January 1, 2015. The semifinal games were the Rose Bowl in Pasadena and the Sugar Bowl in New Orleans. The semifinal participants were chosen and ranked 1–4 by the 13-member playoff selection committee, with 1 playing 4 and 2 playing 3.College Playoff Factsheet, College Football Playoff, January 2014Frequently Asked Questions and Answers About the College Football Playoff Selection Committee , College Football Playoff, January 21, 2014

Ohio State

Ohio State was 20–24 all-time in bowl games. The Buckeyes made their fifth visit to the state of Texas, having won 4 previous games and outscoring four different schools 120–33. Ohio State, all-time, came into the game with an 8–0 record against Oregon. This was the team's first national championship game appearance since 2008.

Oregon

Oregon is 13–15 all-time in bowl games. The Ducks are 6–4 in Texas having won three straight games and played their third game in the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex (Dallas, Fort Worth and now Arlington).

Starting lineups

Ohio State Position Oregon Offense Devin Smith 2 WR Byron Marshall Michael Thomas 2 WR Keanon Lowe Taylor Decker 1 LT †Jake Fisher 2 Billy Price 1 LG Hamani Stevens Jacoby Boren C †Hroniss Grasu 3 Pat Elflein 3 RG Cameron Hunt Darryl Baldwin RT Tyrell Crosby 5 Jeff Heuerman 3 TE Evan Baylis Evan Spencer 6 WR Dwayne Stanford Cardale Jones 4 QB †Marcus Mariota 1 Ezekiel Elliott 1 RB Thomas Tyner Defense †Joey Bosa 1 DE Arik Armstead 1 Michael Bennett 6 DT NG Alex Balducci Adolphus Washington 3 DT DE DeForest Buckner 1 Steve Miller DE OLB Tony Washington Darron Lee 1 SLB ILB Rodney Hardrick Curtis Grant MLB ILB Derrick Malone Joshua Perry 4 WLB OLB Tyson Coleman Doran Grant 4 CB Chris Seisay Eli Apple 1 CB Troy Hill Vonn Bell 2 S DB Erick Dargan Tyvis Powell S Reggie Daniels † = 2014 All-American (number corresponds to draft round) Source:

First half Oregon received the opening kickoff and drove down the field for a touchdown, earning an early 7–0 lead on a 7-yard TD pass from Marcus Mariota to Keanon Lowe. After an exchange of punts, Ohio State started their second possession at their own 5 yard line. On 3rd and 8, Cardale Jones completed a 26-yard pass to wideout Corey Smith for a 1st down. Ohio State then converted a 4th and 3 from the Oregon 38 yard line to keep the drive alive. On the very next play, Ezekiel Elliott broke several tackles for a 33-yard TD scamper, tying the game at 7. A dropped pass on the Ducks next drive led to a punt, which Ohio State returned to the Oregon 46 yard line. A critical pass interference call set Ohio State up near the goal line, and the Buckeyes capitalized with a 1-yard TD pass from Jones to tight end Nick Vanett. The first quarter ended with Ohio State leading Oregon 14–7. After another Oregon punt, the Buckeyes had a chance to stretch their lead, but a mishandled exchange between Jones and Elliott gave Oregon the ball back. The Ducks marched to the goal line, but failed on 4th and Goal from the 3 yard line. Ohio State escaped the shadow of the goal line, and drove 90 yards, but WR Corey Smith fumbled at the Oregon 11-yard line. Despite the reprieve, the Ducks once again had to punt, and this time, Ohio State made them pay. A Cardale Jones QB sneak from a yard out gave Ohio State a 21–7 lead. Oregon closed out the first half scoring with a field goal, leaving the Buckeyes ahead 21–10 at the break.

Second half Ohio State got the ball to begin the second half and drove into Oregon territory. However, Jones threw an interception at the Oregon 30 yard line. The Ducks capitalized on this turnover immediately, with Marcus Mariota finding wide receiver Byron Marshall for a 70-yard touchdown on the first play after the turnover, bringing the Ducks within 21–17. On the next Ohio State drive, Tyson Coleman sacked Jones, and recovered the resulting fumble, setting up an Oregon field goal. The 1 point deficit at the 6:39 mark of the 3rd quarter was as close as Oregon would come. Ohio State closed out the quarter with a 75-yard drive, culminating in a 9-yard Ezekiel Elliott touchdown run. The 4th quarter began with an Oregon punt, and Ohio State went 76 yards for another touchdown, with Elliott finding paydirt from 2 yards out for a 35-20 Ohio State lead. A desperate Oregon went for it on 4th and 11 at their own 14 with under 3 minutes to play, but failed. The Buckeyes iced the game on Elliott's 4th touchdown run of the game, providing the final 42–20 margin.

Source:

Scoring summary

Statistics Statistics Oregon Ohio State First downs 20 28 Plays–yards 71–465 84–538 Rushes–yards 33–132 61–296 Passing yards 333 242 Passing: Comp–Att–Int 24–38–1 16–23–1 Time of possession 22:31 37:29

Individual statistics

Oregon passingC/ATT1YdsTDINT Marcus Mariota 24/37 333 2 1 Oregon rushingCar2YdsTDLG3 Thomas Tyner 12 62 0 12 Marcus Mariota 10 39 0 8 Royce Freeman 10 22 0 8 Byron Marshall 1 9 0 9 Oregon receivingRec4YdsTDLG3 Byron Marshall 8 169 1 70 Dwayne Stanford 4 61 0 28 Keanon Lowe 3 55 1 28 Evan Baylis 5 25 0 9 Charles Nelson 2 21 0 14 Thomas Tyner 2 2 0 3

Ohio State passingC/ATT1YdsTDINT Cardale Jones 16/23 242 1 1 Ohio State rushingCar2YdsTDLG3 Ezekiel Elliott 36 246 4 33 Cardale Jones 21 38 1 17 Curtis Samuel 1 6 0 6 Corey Smith 1 3 0 3 Jalin Marshall 2 3 0 5 Ohio State receivingRec4YdsTDLG3 Corey Smith 2 76 0 50 Michael Thomas 4 53 0 23 Jalin Marshall 5 52 0 26 Devin Smith 1 45 0 45 Nick Vannett 2 9 1 8 Curtis Samuel 1 8 0 8 Ezekiel Elliott 1 -1 0 -1

1Completions/attempts2Carries3Long gain4Receptions

Broadcasting The game was televised by ESPN with Chris Fowler and Kirk Herbstreit as English commentators, and Heather Cox and Tom Rinaldi as English sideline reporters and on ESPN Deportes with Eduardo Varela and Pablo Viruega as Spanish commentators. ESPN revived the Megacast coverage it had employed during the 2014 BCS National Championship Game: other ESPN networks (including ESPN2, ESPNEWS, ESPN Classic, ESPNU, and ESPN3) supplemented coverage with analysis and additional perspectives of the game.Everything you need to know about ESPN's CFP Megacast - Awful Announcing, Matt Yoder, January 9, 2015

Approximately 33.4 million watched the game. The game set a cable television record for ratings, receiving an 18.5 Nielsen rating.

The game was broadcast on nationwide radio by ESPN Radio with Mike Tirico and Todd Blackledge on the call, with Holly Rowe and Joe Schad on the sidelines. Locally, the game was broadcast on radio by the Oregon IMG Sports Network flagshiped by KUGN (NewsTalk 590) in Eugene, Oregon with Jerry Allen (play-by-play) and Mike Jorgensen (color commentator), and by the Ohio State IMG Sports Network flagshiped by WBNS-AM (1460 ESPN Columbus) and WBNS-FM (97.1 The Fan) in Columbus, Ohio with Paul Keels (play-by-play), Jim Lachey (color commentator) and Marty Bannister on the sidelines.

Aftermath Following the game, fans took to the streets of Columbus, Ohio, to celebrate. Fans tore down a temporary goalpost at Ohio Stadium. 89 fires were reported, and members of the Columbus Police Department used tear gas to disperse crowds. Just over a year later, Elliott, who had entered the draft early following his junior season, was brought back to AT&T Stadium when the Dallas Cowboys selected him with the 4th overall pick.