The Ohio State Buckeyes and Oregon Ducks are two programs ESPN's Bill Connelly believes you should "Buy, buy, buy!" ahead of the 2026 College Football season, specifically naming the two B1G schools as the likeliest to extend the Big Ten's streak of national championships.
Connelly made it clear that he's far more bullish on Oregon than he is on Ohio State, however, based on his patented SP+ rankings. Per Connelly, "SP+ is a tempo- and opponent-adjusted measure of college football efficiency. It is a predictive measure of the most sustainable and predictable aspects of football, not a résumé ranking."
"If the Big Ten is to extend its streak to four different national champions in four years -- following Michigan in 2023, Ohio State in 2024 and Indiana last fall -- it's pretty clear that Oregon is the runaway favorite in that regard. SP+ projects the Ducks a few spots higher than where Schlabach had them (fifth). But Oregon might have to topple a familiar foe to finally win its title ring. Ohio State (sixth, per Schlabach) starts out as a comfortable No. 1 in SP+. That makes sense, of course, as the Buckeyes were No. 1 for most of last season, they boast an immaculate recent history, and they're a healthy 31st in returning production. They start out a bit ahead of Oregon, Notre Dame, Georgia and the other most likely contenders," Connelly wrote.
The Ducks brought back many key aspiring NFL draft prospects, including defensive linemen A’Mauri Washington and Bear Alexander, linebacker Teitum Tuioti, EDGE rusher Matayo Uiagalelei, and center Iapani Laloulu. From a coaching standpoint, though, Dan Lanning's coaching staff saw more turnover than Ryan Day's.
Ohio State has chance to prove tradition trumps trends against Oregon
If Oregon is the greatest challenge on Ohio State's grueling 2026 schedule, the Buckeyes have one of the best chances of the season to defeat the mighty Ducks. Ohio State will be coming off a trip to Los Angeles to take on the USC Trojans to open November at home against Oregon.
The severity of the game will be determined by how many losses each team has after finishing up roughly half of their conference games. It's entirely reasonable to expect this to be a No. 1 vs. No. 2 matchup by Week 10, though.
Games of that magnitude in front of a friendly crowd are always a positive. The schedule gods set the Buckeyes up well in that regard during the 2026 season.