Ryan Day’s Ohio State teams have taken plenty of heat for the trophy count, but there’s one area where the Buckeyes have been as steady as anyone in college football: finishing games.
Since 2021, Ohio State is 48-1 when it takes a lead of at least seven points into the fourth quarter, according to CBS Sports’ Cody Nagel and his colleagues. That puts the Buckeyes right alongside the sport’s most reliable closers, with Georgia at 53-0, Notre Dame at 44-0, Alabama at 42-0, Oregon at 49-1, and TTUN at 46-1. Tennessee was not far behind, and neither were Ole Miss and Penn State.
That kind of late-game control stands out even more because Ohio State has not been in the College Football Playoff every year during that stretch, missing out in 2021 and 2023. Still, the Buckeyes’ depth in the early part of the NIL era gave them a roster built to survive a lot of the sport’s chaos. The argument is simple enough: those teams were loaded, and Day’s group usually knew how to close the door.
That doesn’t erase the pain points. The 42-41 loss to Georgia in the 2022 Peach Bowl is still the one that hangs over the conversation.
Ohio State led 38-24 going into the fourth quarter and let it slip away in a game that ended up becoming the most-watched since 2018. That’s the kind of loss that sticks, and it’s part of why Day’s name still gets tied to the biggest moments.
But the broader picture is harder to ignore. Day has shown he can manage games and keep his team from unraveling when it has a lead. That’s not nothing, especially at a place where every misstep gets magnified.
The 2026 schedule should put that trait under a bright spotlight. Ohio State opens with Ball State and Kent State, but after that the road gets brutal.
Texas, Iowa, Indiana, USC, and Nebraska are all on the road, while Illinois, Oregon, and Michigan come to Columbus. Maryland and Northwestern are also on the slate, though those look like the kind of games the Buckeyes should handle at the Shoe.
It’s the sort of schedule that could force Ohio State into close games almost every week. If that happens, Day’s one-loss record in those fourth-quarter situations will get tested again. And with a 2024/2025 national championship already in the bank, he knows the pressure to add more hardware is only going to keep building.
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Matt Patricia Immediately Changed The Standard For Ohio State's Defense
When Matt Patricia arrived as Ohio States defensive coordinator last year, he wasted little time changing the standard in the room. His first challenge to the Buckeyes was as much about accountability as scheme, pushing players to evaluate themselves and each other and setting a tone that made every rep feel like it mattered. For a defense full of high-end talent, it was a blunt reminder that production alone would not be enough.
Caleb Downs said that approach helped him grow into a more complete player, one who was asked to handle multiple safety responsibilities and think like a pro. The experience gave him a taste of NFL-level demands while he was still in Columbus, and it is part of why Patricias impact has resonated beyond one season. The bigger question now is how much of that standard Ohio State can keep carrying forward without the player who benefited most from it. [Read more 🡒]
Arthur Smith May Finally Force Ohio State To Use Every Weapon
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It also puts a spotlight on Julian Sayin, who may need to become more comfortable using his feet if the Buckeyes are going to take full advantage of a quicker pace. A faster, more varied attack would help the running back room and keep more receivers involved, not just the biggest names, which is why Bucknuts Dave Biddle sees this as the kind of adjustment that could finally push Ohio State toward using every weapon it has. [Read more 🡒]
Former Buckeye CJ Stroud Suddenly Faces Real Pressure In Houston
CJ Stroud arrived in Houston with the kind of buzz that usually buys a young quarterback some patience, and for a while he looked like the Texans had found exactly what they needed. He has already helped steer them to the playoffs three times in his first three seasons, with three postseason wins to show for it, but the ceiling has not moved much beyond that. The production has trended the wrong way, injuries have been part of the picture, and the former Buckeye is now heading into his fourth season with Houston still waiting on a contract extension.
That combination is why Stroud is suddenly being talked about in a different way than he was when he first took over. He is no longer just the franchise centerpiece and one of the leagues rising names, but a quarterback under real pressure to prove the trajectory can still turn upward. For a player who entered the NFL with so much momentum, the next step matters as much as anything he has already done. [Read more 🡒]