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OHIO STATE UNIVERSITY FOOTBALL MEDIA CONFERENCE

December 3, 2017

Chris Worley

Columbus, Ohio

Q. Since you heard a bunch of those questions that Coach Meyer just got, are you feeling some of the devastation and disappointment that he mentioned? What are your emotions after last night and now?
CHRIS WORLEY: You're definitely devastated. Whenever you have so many guys internally, as a man, that you know that you put so much work in, you're so invested. If you're not devastated then you probably didn't put the work in.

For anyone that put in the type of work that we do throughout the whole year and not get that call, you definitely are devastated. But at the same time we still are so fortunate to be playing for so much.

So you can't change it. So the only thing to do is move forward.

Q. Can you describe what the last 12 hours or more were like for you guys when we saw you walk off the field and dancing and celebrating, and I imagine it couldn't have felt any better. And then 12:30 rolls around.
CHRIS WORLEY: Yeah, like I said, I mean, you can't change it. We can control what we can control. And we went up against a top-four team in the nation and beat them. And last night we were feeling good.

Today, as everyone, we found out that we didn't get that close call.

Q. Talking to you guys last night seemed like you guys sincerely believed you were going to get in. Was there some element of surprise to this?
CHRIS WORLEY: I think so. We all thought we were in. I think although we had those two losses, our wins, we could match those up with any team in the nation. So we weren't in control of the committee. We were in control of our play. So the only thing we can do is go to work.

Q. Iowa game was obviously held against you guys. What would you see the people that said they didn't get in because they lost by 31 points a month ago?
CHRIS WORLEY: I don't really know how to answer that. I mean, honestly if you look at -- if you can look at another team and say, they're just so much better than Ohio State, I mean that's the one thing I can say. I believe we are a top-four team in the nation.

Q. As somebody whose a veteran and I'm sure you've been through disappointment and devastation before, what's kind of your message to some of the younger guys going through this for the first time?
CHRIS WORLEY: Everyone's going to be devastated. You can't -- for anybody to be a competitor, have a burning desire to be great, have a competitive spirit about themselves, you want to be able to play for that. So you can't really tell someone to not be devastated.

But the one thing we can do is next time we put on those pads we can get to work. And that's the only way it's going to feel better is going out there and practicing and looking at our next objective. We can't continue to look at the past, can't continue to look at what happened throughout the season and why this is happening and things like that. But one thing we can do is get back to work.

Q. Do you think that devastation can be channeled into working even harder, playing even better over the next four weeks?
CHRIS WORLEY: Yeah, for sure. I think we've all seen that through this program throughout the years. No matter what happens, we put our head down and we work right through to come out the other side of it, usually winning.

So the only thing to do now, like I said, is to go to work with my brothers and this coaching staff.

Q. What do you know straight up when I say USC what's the first thing that comes to mind?
CHRIS WORLEY: I mean, that's a traditionally rich program right there. Just like Ohio State. They've had some crazy guys come through there. And I actually remember the battles when I was younger and just watching them play, watching some of the guys that I know playing in those games and things like that. It's going to be fun.

Q. Sam Darnold there's a guy, a name, I think, their quarterback. Sam Darnold comes to mind?
CHRIS WORLEY: Yeah, I actually didn't know who he was until last year when they played Penn State. Because when you're on different sides of the country for real, you don't really get to see guys play.

But my first time actually watching a USC game last year was against Penn State. He lit it up. So I got tremendous respect for him already. I'm pretty sure it's going to be -- I'm going to have more respect as I continue to watch film and things like that -- and continue to watch film on him but he's a tremendous talent.

Q. You guys won your last four games. You beat three teams that are in the final 15 or 18 of the CFP rankings. But the committee they brought up that 31-point loss. Is that a thing that you guys put it behind you but other people can't? What's that feeling like, you know what I mean? That was always going to be there no matter what, you know?
CHRIS WORLEY: Well, when you have a resumÃ©, just like a job resumÃ©, you turn it in to an employer, they look at the whole resumÃ©. That's how we look at ourselves as well. We don't just watch film or what happened the last week; we watch film throughout the whole year because that's how teams that we're playing are going to attack us and things like that, see what we didn't do right.

So we've always sort of looked back at it, see what we can fix from that. But at the same time we don't dwell on the past here. We have too much things to fight for moving forward that we can't do that.

Q. The idea of seniors or guys considering going pro, skipping this bowl game, do you think that's even a remote possibility with this team?
CHRIS WORLEY: That kind of happened like last year with a few guys. I don't see any guys on this team doing that. The love for the brother here and brotherhood, that's real.

And another thing about it is you've got a bunch of guys that love playing football, love the game, just to be around the game. To just think about a guy sort of saying, I'm going to take a step from a game, if he's not legit hurt, then I really doubt that would happen here.

Q. People of my generation, Ohio State/USC, Rose Bowl is a huge deal. You're obviously younger generation. Do you get a sense, though, do you get an appreciation for how big that kind of matchup can be? This could be the Rose Bowl east a little bit?
CHRIS WORLEY: Yeah, for sure. It's crazy. The younger generation, everyone knows about Ohio State/USC. And it's crazy, but at the same time it's going to be a team out there that's looking to show the world why they deserve to be in as well.

Penn State -- I mean, Penn State -- USC have sort of the same resumÃ© as us. And I'm pretty sure they had a case for the same situation. So it's going to be two teams out there battling, trying to get a Cotton Bowl championship.

Q. Along those lines, disappointed obviously, but when you see that you're playing USC, do you perk up a little at that point?
CHRIS WORLEY: You know, everyone's devastated. But we're definitely excited to be blessed with the opportunity that we have. A lot of teams can't say they're going against a top-notch team like they are with us and how we are with them. It's going to be a hard-fought game. And we're excited.

Q. Do you expect to maybe want to show the committee that they got this wrong?
CHRIS WORLEY: I don't really think that that would help much now. (Laughter) no matter how much, if we do win, no matter how much one of the teams will win by, it's not going to matter about the national championship game. So our season is going to be over after this.

So the biggest thing we can do is try to go out there and play for each other and get a ring for each other. We can't go out there trying to please the committee and show them why or why not. The biggest thing we can do is go out there play hard, play how we know we can play.

Q. What's it going to be like stepping back from that stadium where you won a national championship? What kind of memories will that bring back?
CHRIS WORLEY: It's going to be amazing going through that locker room again. If you've ever been in there, that's a crazy stadium, man. Jerry's world, man. And it's just a crazy experience.

As always, the Buckeye fan base travels well. And it seems like wherever we are it's a home game for us. I'm excited.

Q. You kind of covered it, what would it mean 10, 15, 20 years, we beat Wisconsin for the Big Ten title, we beat USC on my way out? Is that maybe the impact might be felt later on?
CHRIS WORLEY: I think it will be felt right then and there. To say that we beat those teams, I mean, just about no team or just about every team in the nation, if they can beat those teams in one year, it's very tough to do, to beat all those teams in one year. It's very, very hard to do. And just to know that we have that opportunity, we're all blessed and I think the thing to do is to thank the man upstairs.

Q. Where were you when you watched the show and saw that happen?
CHRIS WORLEY: I actually didn't watch it. My dad was in the next room. If anybody know my dad he's the loudest at the game. So I actually -- seriously, I turned my phone off and closed my door and put my headphones on. I was listening to music, because I knew everyone -- before it even came on everybody was texting and calling me. I just wanted to get away from it, so to speak.

Got in at 4:00 last night. Woke up at 9:00 because my dog, believe it or not. So I was tired. I just ain't feeling like dealing with those emotions at the time. And of course my dad comes in the room. He's all mad and you would think that he played for Ohio State. (Laughter) but that's how it kind of happened.

Q. How did you feel then when your dad comes in?
CHRIS WORLEY: He's a firecracker. So I was just telling him like relax, we're going to be in a good position, we're going to be in a good game. And we're going to go against a great team.

So the biggest thing, situations like this, a lot of people, they harp on the negatives, but they don't realize the blessings that God has put in front of them.

I was trying to get him to realize that he's blessed, his son is blessed to be in this position. And whatever comes out the other side of it, the only thing we can do is fight.

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