College Football Playoff National Championship How to Watch & Open Thread

It'll be an old timey Rose Bowl matchup in the first ever College Football Playoff National Championship with the Big 10's Ohio State Buckeyes taking on the Pac-12 champion Oregon Ducks.

For USC fans, you'll have to choose the lesser of two evils in deciding who to root for in this one. Do you believe in conference pride and root for Oregon? Or do you want the Ducks to continue to be on the outside looking in at USC, UCLA, Cal, Stanford, Washington and Colorado as Pac-12 teams that can claim a national championship? Do you root for Urban Meyer or do you hope the Big 10 once again gets put in its place -- similar to every USC/Big 10 Rose Bowl matchup in the last 25 years and nearly every one since 1970.

How to Watch

College Football Playoff National Championship: Oregon Ducks vs. Ohio State Buckeyes

When: Monday, January 12, 2015

Where: AT&T Stadium, Arlington, Texas

Time/TV: 5:30 p.m. PST, ESPN

TV Announcers: Chris Fowler, Kirk Herbstreit

Online Streaming: WatchESPN

Radio: ESPN Radio.

Odds: Ohio State +6.5 (+180), Oregon -6.5 (-210). Over/under: 74 points

SB Nation blogs: Addicted to Quack | Land-Grant Holy Land

Top potential 2015 NFL Draft prospects:

OREGON - quarterback Marcus Mariota defensive lineman Arik Armstead, offensive lineman Jake Fisher, center Hroniss Grasu, linebacker Tony Washington

OHIO STATE - defensive lineman Michael Bennett, offensive lineman Taylor Decker, tight end Jeff Heuerman, wide receive Devin Smith, cornerback Doran Grant.

ESPN Megacast

Along with the traditional television broadcast, ESPN is upping the ante and giving viewers an unprecedented 12 different ways to watch! Here are the different ways you can watch via SB Nation (I recommend the Film Room. It was tremendous last year.):

• Film Room debuted last year with coaches providing X's and O's analysis, and it's back this year with a different set of analysts. Mississippi State coach Dan Mullen, former Michigan State defensive coordinator and new Pitt head coach Pat Narduzzi and new Nebraska coach Mike Riley will be in Bristol to break down the game from multiple camera angles to explain the X's and O's behind the what you'd typically see on television. That broadcast will be on ESPN2.
• ESPN has brought together a group of analysts from a number of different sports to create a show called ESPN Voices, which will be broadcast on ESPNU. The panel will consist of Jay Bilas, Aaron Boone, Julie Foudy, Barry Melrose, Mark Schlereth and Michael Wilbon.
• In a broadcast similar to Film Room, ESPN will bring former football personnel and current analysts together to discuss the game for its Off the Ball show on ESPNEWS. Bob Wischusen will host the discussion with Kevin Carter, Matt Millen, Jason Sehorn, Matt Stinchcomb and Amani Toomer.
• The network will broadcast the Sounds of the Game on ESPN Classic, with 100 microphones providing natural sound over the telecast, including the pregame and halftime shows of both schools' bands.
• ESPN Radio's broadcast of the game will feature Mike Tirico, Todd Blackledge, Holly Rowe, Joe Schad and rules expert Bill Lemonnier.
• You can also listen to Home Team Radio to get both the Ohio State and Oregon home radio calls on ESPN3, played over the televised footage of the game.
• Command Center will be available on ESPN Goal Line, and it will provide commercial-free coverage of the game, with instant replays, split screen action and isolated views of both coaches.
• You can get the Spanish Language Call on ESPN Deportes with Eduardo Varela and Pablo Viruega.
• SpiderCam on ESPN3 will give fans an above-the-field view of the game.
• The Taco Bell Student Section will prominently feature the biggest and craziest fans of each team.
• The commercial-free Data Center on ESPN3 will give fans lots of analytics and social media content.