Cotton Bowl 2017: USC vs. Ohio State location, date, and more

Also, click over here for the full 2017-2018 college football bowl game schedule as it’s announced throughout Sunday.

Stadium and city: AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas

Date and time: Dec. 29, 8:30 p.m. ET

TV and streaming: ESPN and WatchESPN

The Buckeyes missed out on the final Playoff spot, finishing fifth as the first team out of the field. Alabama beat out the Buckeyes for the last spot, which was fine.

When they’re good — like against Penn State, Michigan, or Wisconsin — they’re very tough to beat with elite talent. When they’re not — like against Iowa or Oklahoma — the Buckeyes look pedestrian, particularly on offense.

And that’s the perplexing thing about them. With Urban Meyer, that side of the ball isn’t supposed to be a question mark. But from week to week, it’s not clear that Ohio State can show consistency.

We’ll see what OSU can do in the postseason, but it had better bring its A-game, or the Buckeyes will again be exposed.

For more Buckeyes, head over to Land Grant Holy Land.

The Trojans dropped out of serious Playoff contention with losses to Washington State and then Notre Dame. Sam Darnold was a Heisman favorite and didn’t live up to that expectation, and neither did the rest of his team. USC’s season could’ve been far better than it was. But ultimately, USC remains a good team that could beat almost anyone, and the Trojans followed up last season’s Rose Bowl win with a Pac-12 title run.

The Trojans’ offense is better than all but a handful, and the defense is talented enough to be capable of better than it’s shown this year. They’ll be hard to beat because they’ve still got elite players and up and down their roster.

For more, check out SB Nation’s USC blog, Conquest Chronicles.