Urban Meyer

Ohio State coach Urban Meyer took a $350,000 hit when the Buckeyes fell to Michigan State in the Big Ten Championship Game on Saturday.

(Marvin Fong, The Plain Dealer)

COLUMBUS, Ohio – Urban Meyer sat down for his press conference following Ohio State’s 34-24 loss to Michigan State in the Big Ten Championship on Saturday, outwardly hurting after his Buckeyes had fallen short.

Had Ohio State won, it would have won the Big Ten Championship and clinched a berth in the BCS National Championship Game. Instead, Meyer was left haunted by his play call on fourth-and-2 late in the game that was ultimately unsuccessful and helped Michigan State earn the victory.

Meyer wasn’t thinking about money in the moments after Ohio State fell short. The anguish of losing was enough, especially because Meyer found responsibility for the loss. But Meyer’s wallet did take a hit – a $350,000 hit.

According to Meyer’s contract, he gets a $250,000 bonus for leading Ohio State to the national title game and a $100,000 bonus for winning the Big Ten title game. With one loss, Meyer missed out on both bonuses.

It’s not all bad for Ohio State’s coach. He’ll be pay $650,000 in bonuses within the next few months, including a $450,000 retention bonus, a $50,000 check for winning the Big Ten Leaders Division and $150,000 for leading Ohio State to a BCS bowl. All of that is on top of Meyer’s $4 million-per-year salary.

Switching gears, we started a countdown of Ohio State's top 20 football players of 2013. Doug, Zack and I each

and we compiled a list that we'll release one at a time between now and when Ohio State lands in Miami for the Orange Bowl. I started off with No. 20 yesterday,

. Later today we'll have No. 19.

Because it is that time of year, coaching rumors are swirling. Ohio State has assistants that are candidates for head coaching jobs, including defensive coordinator Luke Fickell, who is rumored to be a candidate for the Bowling Green job. Doug wrote a story about why, if true,

And its starting to feel more like basketball season now, isn't it? Thad Matta has Ohio State No. 3 in the polls, and the Buckeyes host Bryant tonight. I wrote a

, and I'll be at the game tonight for full coverage from Value City Arena.