As well as Ohio State’s played so far in the College Football Playoff, it feels like the only team who can beat the Buckeyes is themselves. But that doesn’t mean a win over Texas will come easily.

The Longhorns are in the CFP semifinals too for a reason, the biggest of which is its defense, which leads the nation in passing yards allowed per attempt. We’re not sure if anyone in college football can stop Jeremiah Smith right now, but the Longhorns might be the most well-equipped team in the country to at least slow Ohio State’s passing offense down.

On the other side of the ball, Ohio State faces a dangerous passing attack led by an old friend in Quinn Ewers. But we expect the Buckeyes’ defense to make life difficult for Ewers, especially considering the Longhorns’ recent struggles in the running game, and we think Ohio State might hold the quarterback advantage anyway with how well Will Howard has played in Ohio State’s first two CFP games.

We share our full thoughts on Ohio State’s matchup with Texas and make our predictions for how the Buckeyes’ Cotton Bowl battle with the Longhorns will play out on this week’s episode of Real Pod Wednesdays, as outlined below:

• 0:00 Intro
• 0:58 There’s Not Much to Nitpick From Ohio State’s Dominant Performance vs. Oregon
• 4:33 Texas Has One of the Nation’s Best Pass Defenses, But Can Anyone Stop Jeremiah Smith?
• 11:24 Making Texas’ Offense One-Dimensional Could Be the Key to Another Dominant Win
• 18:44 Which Quarterback Would You Rather Have: Will Howard or Quinn Ewers?
• 21:26 Colin Simmons is A Really Good Freshman, But We’ll Take Jeremiah Smith
• 23:31 Ohio State’s Offensive Line Faces Another Big Test, Will It Rise to the Occasion Again?
• 27:18 Donovan Jackson and Justin Frye Have Both Stepped Up in A Massive Way
• 30:00 Our Biggest Reasons for Confidence and Biggest Reasons for Concern in the Cotton Bowl
• 39:19 Lathan Ransom, Tyleik Williams Among Players to Watch vs. Longhorns
• 42:24 Score Predictions for Ohio State vs. Texas
• 45:28 Predictions for Notre Dame vs. Penn State