Ohio State Football: Big Ten opponents for next two seasons revealed

The Ohio State football program will be seeing two new opponents in upcoming seasons with the addition of USC and UCLA to the Big Ten. We know that the Big Ten will be moving to a nine-game Big Ten schedule starting in 2024 with the addition of the two members.

We also now know that the Buckeyes will have one protected matchup with the new schedule makeup; The Game. That means there will be years in which they don’t play Penn State, which has no protected games. I’m not sure how that happened, but that’s what they have to deal with.

As far as the Ohio State football program is concerned, their 2024 and 2025 Big Ten opponents have been revealed. They will play five of those teams at home and five on the road. Their four home opponents for next season will be Illinois, Iowa, TTUN, Northwestern, and Rutgers.

As you can see, that’s three Big Ten West teams. We also learned that the conference will go division-less next year, which was expected. Their four road opponents are Michigan State, Minnesota, Penn State, and newcomer UCLA. That means no matter what happens next year, the Buckeyes will play in the Rose Bowl.

In 2025, the Buckeyes will play four home Big Ten games. Those opponents are IU, Maryland, Nebraska, and newcomer USC. Their five away games that season will be Illinois, TTUN, Northwestern, Purdue, and Wisconsin. That means no Penn State at home.

Looking at those schedules as they sit right now, Next season will be an overall easier schedule than 2025. The Buckeyes only have to play Penn State as a tough team in 2024, although UCLA is kind of good. They also get TTUN at home, which is their toughest challenge.

In 2025, Ohio State has to face Texas and USC at home while traveling to Ann Arbor. That’s not an easy path to the College Football Playoff. If Ohio State is going to win a national title, the next two seasons are by far their best chance at doing so.

What do you think of the new schedules?