Ohio State Celebrates National Championship Run Amid Change And Farewells

Ohio State, the first team to run the gauntlet of four playoff games on its way to the national title , celebrated with 30,000 Buckeyes fans on Sunday at Ohio Stadium.

Fans braved 30-degree temperatures to welcome home a team that beat five top-10 rivals on its way to the title, including Oregon in the Rose Bowl , Texas in the Cotton Bowl and Notre Dame in the College Football Playoff championship game .

"It took everybody to become national champions, and today we say thank you," coach Ryan Day told the crowd.

Ohio State was the first to win the inaugural four-team playoff a decade ago and became the first to win the 12-team version.

It did so in dominating fashion, trailing for just 6 minutes, 5 seconds across 240 minutes of playing time and beating every opponent by double figures.