J.T. Barrett not mad at Clemson safety for critical comments

Buckeyes made use of bulletin-board material for Oklahoma game

As expected, Ohio State Buckeyes quarterback J.T. Barrett faced questions Thursday about Clemson safety Jadar Johnson’s comments regarding his arm strength. As expected, Barrett tried to squash the controversy, which started two days earlier when Johnson met with reporters.

“There wasn’t a lot to it,” Barrett said. “He has his own opinion, which I’m not mad at. I’m comfortable in my skills and what I’m able to do. If he feels like I’m not the best quarterback they went against, I mean, that’s just how he feels. I don’t have a feeling towards that one way or the other. I’m okay, really. There’s probably some people that feel like that in the media, which is cool, too. They have the right to their own opinion.”

Ohio State did make the most of similar bulletin-board material before its game against Oklahoma in September. A backup Sooners quarterback described Ohio State’s defense as basic.

“Somebody in the past said something about our defense, and we saw how that went,” Barrett said. “That’s how we feel about that. We’re okay. If you want to talk, that’s okay. We still have to go play the game.”

Barrett’s comments came at Fiesta Bowl Media Day at the Camelback Inn. The No. 3 Buckeyes (11-1) play No. 2 Clemson (12-1) in the College Football Playoff semifinals at 7 p.m. Saturday. Here are some other highlights of Barrett’s press conference:

• On whether he expects it to be a high-scoring game: “I think our defense is going to do a great job. I think we’re going to do our part in order to win a game. So honestly I’m not sure. It could be either. It could be a high-scoring game where both offenses are on attack mode, and it also could be one of those low-scoring games where the defense is honing in.”

• On the injury two years ago that caused him to miss the playoffs: “It was one of those things. I couldn’t do anything about it, you know what I’m saying? It wasn’t like I was skateboarding and I fell off the curb or something. I was playing in a game trying to help us win a football game. And my ankle broke.”

• On what makes this team so special: “The Buckeyes we have here right now, I think we have a great bond. There’s a lot of love and passion throughout the players that we have and understanding that the guys will do anything for one another, which is something that you need as the season goes forward in times and games like this where it gets kind of tight.”

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