Ohio State’s path to the College Football Playoff got a lot steeper after the latest rankings dropped, and the Buckeyes are now staring at a near-impossible climb.
After getting blown out by Oregon in the Shoe last weekend, Ohio State fell all the way to 20th in the CFP rankings. That leaves the Buckeyes technically alive, but only in the thinnest possible sense. To get into the 12-team field, they would need to rise to at least 11th, since the 12th spot is reserved for the highest-rated G6 team.
That means Ohio State needs a long list of results to break its way. Nine teams ahead of the Buckeyes would have to lose, and that’s before even considering the fact that Ohio State doesn’t have enough quality wins to comfortably make up ground on its own.
The bracket math is ugly, too. Three teams Ohio State has already played - Iowa, Oregon, and USC - are all sitting in the 15-18 range.
On top of that, Indiana, the Buckeyes’ best win so far, dropped all the way to ninth. That only makes the road harder.
The teams Ohio State is chasing in the 11-19 range include Kentucky, Texas Tech, Wake Forest, Houston, and South Carolina. Add those to the Big Ten trio already ahead of the Buckeyes, and the list of teams that would need to stumble starts to look overwhelming.
And even that assumes Ohio State takes care of its own business the rest of the way. The Buckeyes still have Northwestern, Nebraska, and TTUN left on the schedule. After the last two weeks, even that doesn’t feel like a safe assumption.
The rankings also seemed to reflect some reaction from the committee after last week’s outcry. Indiana’s four-spot drop while on a bye week stood out, and it’s hard to ignore that kind of movement.
There is still the slimmest sliver of hope, mostly because this has been such a wild college football season. Top teams are falling nearly every week, and Ohio State has been caught in that chaos itself. But after the tumble to 20th, the Buckeyes’ CFP hopes look all but finished.
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Ohio State Suddenly Has A Receiver Problem Before Northwestern
The quarterback situation already had enough attention heading into Ohio States matchup with Northwestern, with both teams set to be without their starters under center because of injuries. But the Buckeyes may be dealing with a wider offensive shortage than expected, since three of their top six wide receivers are listed as questionable, adding another layer of uncertainty to a game that already looked like it would require some adjustment.
Brandon Inniss, Phillip Bell and Brock Boyd are all in question, while running back JaKobi Jackson and tight end Max LeBlanc remain sidelined. Northwestern is also shorthanded, with eight players out including starting quarterback Aidan Chiles and cornerback Josh Fussell, so this could turn into a game defined less by star power than by which side handles the attrition better and finds enough reliable options to function on offense. [Read more 🡒]
Ohio States Week 10 Spiral Says Plenty About This Teams Ceiling
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The latest conference pecking order reflects that uncertainty, with Ohio State sitting eighth after Week 10 while other league contenders continue to build momentum around it. For a program that expects to be in the thick of every major postseason discussion, the current spiral says plenty about the ceiling this version of the Buckeyes can reach unless the pieces start coming together soon. [Read more 🡒]
Ohio States 2027 Running Back Picture Just Got More Interesting
Ohio States 2027 running back board picked up a notable addition when Daylon Gordon, a four-star prospect from Wylie, Texas, committed to the Buckeyes after previously being pledged to Texas State. Gordon arrives with a Power 4 offer sheet and gives Ohio State another talented name to build around as the class starts to take shape.
Even with Gordon on board, the Buckeyes are not treating the position as settled. They are still pursuing more running backs for the 2027 class, which keeps the room competitive and leaves open the possibility that this group could grow into one of the more interesting pieces of the cycle. [Read more 🡒]