Ohio State walked out of Saturday with another Big Ten win, another number next to its name, and another sign that the rematch with Indiana is about to carry real weight.
The Buckeyes beat Maryland 45-16 in Columbus to stretch their winning streak to four, and while the performance wasn’t spotless, they still did what good teams do: they controlled the game when it mattered. Ohio State is 5-1 overall and 3-0 in Big Ten play, while Maryland dropped to 2-4 and 0-3 under eighth-year coach Mike Locksley.
Locksley didn’t try to dress it up. After the game, he gave Ohio State its due.
“Ohio State is really deserving of their ranking; they made the plays they needed to make," Locksley told reporters.
Ryan Day, meanwhile, had a different point of emphasis. He was focused less on the scoreboard and more on the details that can pile up against stronger competition - the pre-snap issues, the penalties, the kind of mistakes that can’t be waved away.
“And so we've got to get this stuff fixed," Day said regarding pre-snap miscues, among other situations. "And some of these penalties don't always come up in practice, the late hits on the quarterback and things like this.
They have to be addressed and they have to understand how important those are. It can't just be, "Hey, get them again next time.'
That's not how it goes. There's too much at stake here.
And it's my job as the coach to make sure that I can challenge those guys."
That becomes even more important with Indiana coming back onto the schedule.
The Week 6 AP Poll dropped Sunday, and the rankings only sharpened the picture ahead of Saturday’s Big Ten title game rematch. Indiana survived a serious test in Lincoln, rallying from a 17-6 road deficit against Nebraska to win 20-17 in a fourth-quarter finish. The Hoosiers are now 6-0 overall and 3-0 in the conference.
The AP voters pushed Ohio State up to No. 4 and Indiana up to No. 5.
The movement was helped along by chaos elsewhere, with No. 1 Texas losing to Oklahoma and UCLA stunning then-No.
12 Oregon in Eugene.
Now the Buckeyes and Hoosiers stand as the top two Big Ten teams in the poll. UCLA checks in at No. 12 after a nine-spot jump, Iowa rose to No.
17, USC is No. 19, and Northwestern entered at No. 25.
There’s still a lot left to sort out, but Ohio State and Indiana are heading into part two looking every bit like a game built for the spotlight.
In Other News...
Ohio State Just Turned Up The Heat On Two Committed 2027 Targets
A Maryland weekend at Ohio State turned into more than just another recruiting stop, as the Buckeyes used the visit to push harder with a pair of committed 2027 prospects. Linebacker James Conrad and running back Kingston Allen both left Columbus with scholarship offers from Ohio State, adding two more names to a class that has already started to draw national attention well before the cycle gets serious.
Conrad, who is committed to Buffalo, picked up his first Power 4 offer from the Buckeyes, while Allen, a Wisconsin pledge, added Ohio State to a growing list of programs chasing him. Both are highly regarded players with strong high school rsums, and the Buckeyes are now firmly in the mix even before either one has reached the point where most recruiting battles really take shape. [Read more 🡒]
Ohio State Suddenly Faces A Tougher Indiana Test Than Expected
Indiana has quietly put itself in a better position than many expected heading into its Big Ten meeting with Ohio State. The Hoosiers are mostly healthy, with tight end Andrew Barker the only long-term injured starter, and theyve also gotten a lift from the returns of defensive end Daniel Ndukwe and A.J. Harris. Those reinforcements have helped stabilize a defense that looks a lot sturdier than it did earlier in the season.
Ohio State, meanwhile, is carrying a longer injury list into the matchup, with issues along the offensive line and among several receivers and defenders. For a Buckeyes team that usually expects to dictate terms, that matters because it can complicate both protection and depth in a game where every healthy body counts. Indiana may still be the underdog, but it suddenly has the kind of availability edge that can make a November road test far less comfortable than projected. [Read more 🡒]
Ohio State Faces A Bigger Test Than Fans Might Think
Indiana coach Curt Cignetti knows exactly what is waiting for his team when it lines up against No. 4 Ohio State, and he spent part of the buildup acknowledging just how difficult the assignment is. With Ryan Day on the sideline and Jeremiah Smith driving the offense, the Buckeyes bring the kind of firepower and consistency that has made them one of the most reliable powers in the College Football Playoff era, and Indiana is treating the matchup like the kind of test that can expose almost any weakness.
Ohio State also appears to be getting healthier at the right time, with several starters expected back after sitting out the previous game, while Indiana recently regained defensive back A.J. Harris. That sets up a game with more than enough talent on both sides to make things interesting, but the larger question is whether Indiana can withstand the Buckeyes long enough to turn it into the kind of contest Cignetti believes it needs to be. [Read more 🡒]