Ohio State heads into Saturday’s game at Indiana with the numbers still working in its favor.
ESPN’s College Football Power Index gives the Buckeyes a 76.7% chance to reach the College Football Playoff, the sixth-best odds in the nation. Ohio State is also ranked third in the FPI itself and holds the fourth-best chance to win the national championship at 12.3%.
That’s familiar territory for Ryan Day’s team. Since the CFP expanded to 12 teams in 2024, Ohio State has been in the field every season.
In the first year of the format, the Buckeyes went 10-2, landed the No. 8 seed and pushed all the way to a national title run. Last season, they were seeded No. 2, behind only Indiana, earned a first-round bye and then dropped their quarterfinal matchup to No. 10-seeded Miami.
Elsewhere on Wednesday, former Ohio State receiver Marvin Harrison Jr. was set for his Texans debut. Houston coach DeMeco Ryans said Harrison would play Sunday in London against the Jaguars after being traded from the Cardinals earlier in the week.
That puts Harrison on the field with quarterback C.J. Stroud, his former Ohio State teammate. The two spent two seasons together in Columbus, including the 2022 campaign when Harrison caught 1,263 yards worth of passes from Stroud.
Ohio State also landed on the Joe Moore Award midseason honor roll Wednesday. The award goes to the nation’s best offensive line, though the Buckeyes have never won it since the honor began in 2015.
In Other News...
Ohio State Freshman Legend Bey Suddenly Has A Real Chance To Earn Trust
Ohio State heads into its matchup with Indiana with the backfield thinned out and the rotation suddenly looking much different than it did a week ago. Ja'Kobi Jackson has been ruled out with an injury, Isaiah West is questionable, and the Buckeyes are also dealing with Austin Siereveld being sidelined, which only adds to the strain on offensive line depth.
For Legend Bey, the timing creates a real opening to do more than just flash in limited duty. The freshman is now positioned for a bigger workload if the Buckeyes need it, and those are the kinds of snaps that can quickly build trust with a coaching staff looking for dependable answers as the season moves forward. [Read more 🡒]
Ohio State Faces A Defining Indiana Test Ryan Day Can't Shrug Off
The next meeting between Ohio State and Indiana carries more weight than a typical early-season checkpoint. The Buckeyes and Hoosiers have split their two previous matchups, and what has happened around Indiana since then has changed the tenor of the series. A program that was once easy to overlook has turned itself into something much harder to dismiss, giving this matchup a sharper edge than anyone would have expected a few years ago.
For Ohio State, this is the kind of game that can shape how the rest of the season is viewed. With College Football Playoff positioning in the background, the third game in the series feels like more than just another Big Ten date on the schedule. Ryan Day cannot afford to treat it lightly, because the stakes now go well beyond pride and the record between these two teams. [Read more 🡒]
USCs Closing Stretch Could Mean Everything For Indianas Big Ten Hopes
USCs final five games now carry real weight well beyond its own postseason hopes, with a closing stretch that includes ranked opponents and a direct impact on the Big Ten race. The Trojans have Ohio State, Indiana and UCLA among the matchups left on the schedule, a run that could reshape the conference standings as much as it says about USCs place in the playoff conversation.
For Indiana, that makes the trip through USCs late-season gauntlet especially important, because the Hoosiers Big Ten hopes may hinge on how the Trojans handle the Buckeyes and the rest of that closing slate. The schedule also adds another layer to Ohio States path, since each of those games helps define the broader league picture before the committee ever gets involved. [Read more 🡒]