Josh Pate isn’t buying a comfortable finish for Ohio State.
Appearing on the Rich Eisen Show on Wednesday, the college football analyst was asked to project where the Buckeyes end up, and he didn’t offer much optimism. After Ohio State survived Indiana by literally just a toe, Pate said he sees the Buckeyes closing the season at 9-3 and missing the College Football Playoffs.
That prediction comes with a brutal run still ahead. Ohio State now has to navigate a stretch that opens with a road trip to Los Angeles to play USC in Primetime, then brings Oregon to Columbus before trips to Northwestern and Nebraska, with The Game closing it all out.
Even with a full roster, that would be a difficult climb. Without a healthy quarterback, Pate thinks it becomes a true gauntlet.
He pointed to the defense as the unit that will have to carry Ohio State the rest of the way. If that side of the ball stays nearly flawless, the Buckeyes still have a path. But if the defense slips and Ohio State has to play from behind, the margin for error shrinks fast.
Pate made it clear he sees every remaining game as its own unique test, and each one carries real weight. What once looked like a team with a real shot at the National Championship now feels far less certain, with Playoff questions suddenly hanging over the Buckeyes.
That shift has come quickly, and now Ohio State has to deal with it. It is a situation that has not shown up often in Ryan Day’s tenure, and Pate said the Buckeyes have rarely been in a spot where so many people are doubting them and forcing them to respond.
He also noted how close the season was to feeling very different, saying, “Thankfully, Nick Marsh's toe landed on the boundary, or else the feel of the Buckeyes' season would be much, much different right now.”
In Other News...
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Ohio State Fans Just Got Another Reminder About The Future At Receiver
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Browns outing fits the larger picture around Ohio State, where the receiver room keeps producing and the recruiting pipeline keeps humming even through coaching changes. For Buckeyes fans, it is another look at a position group that has long been a program strength, and another sign that the talent coming next could keep that standard intact. [Read more 🡒]