"This team hasn't won anything": Former Cowboys star gives a reality check to Ryan Day & Co. ahead of Texas clash

Ryan Day's Ohio State team will take the field against Texas in the Cotton Bowl on Friday, one step away from the College Football Playoff national title game. Former Ohio State linebackers Bobby Carpenter and Anthony Schlegel spoke about why the Buckeyes' mindset should stay the same heading into the big matchup on the Bobby Carpenter Show on Monday.

"When they're playing for another opportunity to wear the scarlet and gray, another opportunity to go out there and ball out with their brothers, that's their why," Schlegel said. "That's what motivates them. They're not complacent. They want to go out there and execute."

Carpenter, the show's namesake and a former first-round pick of the Dallas Cowboys, had another reason as he pointed out a fact about the Buckeyes.

"The reality is, too, Schlegs, this team, they still haven't won anything," Carpenter replied. "Not anything of, like, major consequence yet."

The Buckeyes' late-season surge has been eye-opening, especially considering the cloud that hung over them and Ryan Day after a fourth straight loss to Michigan.

But Day has turned things around as Ohio State has morphed into a steamroller. First, they took care of Tennessee in a 42-17 College Football Playoff-opening victory.

That effort earned Ryan Day and Ohio State a much-anticipated rematch with Oregon, its only other loss and the Big 10 champions, in the Rose Bowl.

In Pasadena, things unfolded even worse for the Ducks than they had for Tennessee. Dan Lanning's crew stared at a 34-0 deficit during the second quarter, a count unfitting for a team that entered without a loss. The Buckeyes never trailed in a 41-21 statement win, pushing them into Friday's Cotton Bowl tilt with Texas (13-2).

Ryan Day thinks expanded CFP has benefited Buckeyes

Ryan Day thinks the expansion of the College Football Playoff this year to a 12-team tournament has helped Ohio State.

"I think the way that this format is and the way the playoffs are set now, it allows us an opportunity to grow as a team and to learn and to get better late in the season," Day said on Friday per ESPN.

Day believes the Buckeyes were able to build momentum with their impressive wins over Tennessee and Oregon. However, he points out that the team's focus is now on their next game.

"The Oregon game is over.... The only thing that matters is this game right here, playing against Texas."

Kickoff for the Cotton Bowl Classic between Texas and Ohio State is at 7:30 PM ET.