Ohio State enters Big Ten play with plenty still to prove, even after opening the season with the kind of offensive numbers that usually quiet most doubts.
The Buckeyes have beaten Ball State 56-3 and Kent State 59-3, and they’re 2-1 in nonconference play overall. But that lone loss landed hard: a 24-23 defeat at Texas on Sept. 12, after Ohio State carried a 20-point lead into the fourth quarter and still walked out of Austin with its first loss of the season. It was also the program’s first nonconference defeat since Sept. 11, 2021, against Oregon, before the Ducks joined the Big Ten.
That setback helped push Ohio State from No. 1 to No. 7 in the AP top 25 as it heads into its first conference game Saturday against Illinois in Ohio Stadium.
The Buckeyes still have the pieces to look like a dangerous team. Jeremiah Smith has already set Ohio State’s career receiving-yards record and is 22 catches and six touchdowns away from the other two program receiving marks.
Julian Sayin is in his second season as the starter at quarterback, and the offensive line brings experience to the table. Production hasn’t been the issue.
Finishing drives has been. Ohio State has converted only 36.4% of its third downs on offense, which ranks last in the Big Ten.
Defensively, the Buckeyes have been far sharper. They’re allowing just 10 points per game through three contests, and Texas has scored all but six of those points.
Ohio State’s defense has given up a touchdown in only one of its 12 quarters this season. Still, the collapse in the fourth quarter against the Longhorns was a clear reminder that closing games will have to improve.
The road only gets tougher from here. Ohio State has five more opponents left on its schedule who are currently in the AP top 25: No.
17 Iowa, No. 5 Indiana and No.
12 USC on the road, plus No. 20 Oregon and No.
18 Michigan at home.
If the Buckeyes want another shot at the College Football Playoff when the regular season ends, they can’t afford many more slips. No team with three losses has ever made the playoff, and for a team that began the year at No. 1, the margin for error is already thin.
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Ohio States Playoff Picture Could Shift Fast With These Week 4 Games
A cluster of Week 4 matchups could quickly reshape the College Football Playoff conversation, and Ohio State has plenty of reason to watch closely even before it kicks off its own game. Around the country, marquee teams are stepping into spots where a win would strengthen their resume and a loss could force an early climb back into contention, with games involving Tennessee, Texas, Ole Miss, Florida, Iowa, Michigan, Texas A&M and LSU all carrying some degree of postseason weight.
For the Buckeyes, the real interest is in how the broader field stacks up once those results come in. The playoff picture can move fast in September, especially when ranked teams start beating up on one another, and a few of these outcomes could change who looks safe, who looks vulnerable and where Ohio State sits in that pecking order by the end of the week. [Read more 🡒]
Julian Sayin Showed Ohio State Something Important In Key Passing Situations
Julian Sayin got a longer look in Saturdays blowout of Kent State, and he made the most of it while Ohio State was building on a one-sided win. In just over two quarters, the young quarterback finished 18 of 22 for 241 yards and two touchdowns, with much of his best work coming when the Buckeyes used play-action and let him settle into the pocket.
Sayin completed all eight of his play-action throws for 117 yards and a touchdown, and he was just as sharp when he had a clean pocket, going 16 of 19 for 223 yards and two scores. Ryan Day called it a solid performance overall, while also pointing to room for improvement, which leaves Ohio State with a useful takeaway as the competition gets tougher and the details around Sayins next steps come into focus. [Read more 🡒]
Ohio States Biggest Future Showdown Suddenly Feels Far Less Certain
Ohio State has continued to lean into the kind of non-conference scheduling that keeps the Buckeyes in the national conversation, with future games already on the books against Alabama and Georgia. Ryan Day has been clear that he wants Ohio State to keep taking on quality opponents outside the Big Ten, even if the reward is a tougher road and fewer soft spots on the calendar.
Still, the outlook for one of those marquee matchups has started to feel shakier than it did before. Georgias decision to back out of a home-and-home with Clemson has only added to the sense that the Bulldogs may be rethinking some of their future intersectional dates as the SEC schedule gets even more crowded. Ohio State and Georgia have met only twice, most memorably in the 2022 College Football Playoff semifinal, so any hint that another meeting might not happen would be a letdown for a sport that could use more games with real bite. [Read more 🡒]