Ohio State did what it was supposed to do on Saturday, pounding Kent State 59-3 and putting the Texas loss in the rearview for at least one week. But for Ryan Day, that kind of result only buys so much breathing room.
The Buckeyes were sharp enough against the Golden Flashes to stay within the expected range, yet the bigger picture still looks uneasy. This was just Ohio State’s second win in its last five games, and both victories in that stretch came at home against Ball State and Kent State - not exactly a brutal test. The three defeats, meanwhile, all came away from Columbus or on neutral ground: Indiana in the Big Ten Championship at Indianapolis’ Lucas Oil Stadium, Miami in a CFP Quarterfinal at Arlington’s AT&T Stadium, and Texas in Austin last week.
That’s the part that hangs over this team. Ohio State’s three losses in four games mark the roughest point yet of Day’s tenure, and the Kent State win didn’t erase that. It simply kept the situation from getting even uglier.
The Buckeyes have been here before, at least in the broad sense of back-to-back losses ending a season. In 2022, second-ranked Ohio State lost at home to third-ranked Michigan and then fell to top-ranked Georgia in the CFP semifinal at the Peach Bowl. A year later, the second-ranked Buckeyes dropped a road game to third-ranked Michigan, were eliminated from CFP contention, and then took an ugly loss to ninth-ranked Missouri in the Cotton Bowl.
There were differences in those stretches, though. Ohio State was outplayed by Michigan both times, and the Missouri game came with a different quarterback after Kyle McCord transferred and Marvin Harrison Jr. opted out. The Buckeyes did cough up a 14-point lead against the Bulldogs, but they still put up 41 points against the nation’s top team at the time.
Texas, though, brought the wrong kind of history in more than one way. Like the losses to Indiana and Miami, it exposed an offense that stalled at key moments despite having Jeremiah Smith, the nation’s best offensive weapon. Even with Arthur Smith on offense and Matt Patricia on defense, both former NFL head coaches serving as coordinators, Ohio State never really found the answers in a game that should have been under control by the third quarter.
Now the focus shifts to Illinois, Ohio State’s conference opener and a home game where the Buckeyes are favored by -27.5. From there, the schedule turns quickly: a road trip to 17th-ranked Iowa on October 3, then two more road games against fifth-ranked Indiana and 12th-ranked USC, before a home meeting with 20th-ranked Oregon to open November.
That means the Kent State win matters mostly as a reset, not a turning point. It stopped the slide.
Beating Illinois the same way would at least build something. But if Ohio State is going to talk seriously about momentum - the kind that actually points toward a championship run - it has to come in a perfect October.
Anything less could leave the seventh-ranked Buckeyes headed toward Day’s first three-loss season, or something worse.
In Other News...
Ohio States Easy Win Couldnt Quiet One Big Concern
Ohio State handled Kent State 59-3 and put the game away early, taking a 35-0 lead into halftime and never letting the outcome feel in doubt. The Buckeyes still found enough balance to lean on the run, finishing with 145 rushing yards on 38 attempts, with Bo Jackson leading the way with 73 yards and a touchdown.
Even in a blowout, though, the ground game remains a point worth watching. Ohio States rushing offense is still inconsistent overall, sitting 79th nationally at just under 159 yards per game, and that leaves a gap between what this roster can be and what it has shown so far. The schedule will get less forgiving from here, and the Buckeyes will need more than a comfortable win to answer that concern. [Read more 🡒]
Ohio State Just Got A Clear Warning About Illinois Saturday
Illinois followed its loss to Duke with a much cleaner performance against Southern Illinois, and the part that should have Ohio State paying attention is how much more settled the Illini looked at the line of scrimmage. The offensive line showed progress, the run defense was sturdier, and the overall operation came across as a team that had already made some useful corrections before the matchup in Columbus.
Katin Houser also gave Illinois a steadier passing game by spreading the ball around, which matters because it hints at a more functional offense than the one that stumbled a week earlier. The defense, meanwhile, flashed enough improvement against the run to suggest this is not a team the Buckeyes can afford to overlook, even if the bigger question still hangs over whether those adjustments travel against a much faster and more talented opponent. [Read more 🡒]
Ohio State Fans Got A Big Noon Reminder Nobody Wanted
A rout should have sounded like a showcase, but Ohio States 59-3 win over Kent State came with a broadcast that drew as much attention as the score. FOX Sports announcer Gus Johnson delivered the game in a flat, muted tone, and he also made a factual mistake while discussing a players touchdown history, a rough combination in a matchup that was already struggling to hold viewers attention.
The bigger issue is one college football keeps circling back to every fall: games like this are increasingly hard to sell, even for a blueblood with a massive fan base. Ohio State can only do so much when the opponent is overmatched, and the broadcast only amplified the sense that fans, and maybe networks, would rather see a more competitive nonconference slate than another predictable Saturday afternoon tune-up. [Read more 🡒]