The Ohio State football team is coming off a national championship run that no one saw coming after they lost to TTUN for the fourth straight year. Despite that devastating loss, they turned things around and made a four-game run that will go down as perhaps the best in college football history.
Despite that fact, the Big Ten media isn't picking them to win the conference. They do have the best defensive player in the conference, according to the media. They voted Caleb Downs as the Preseason Defensive Player of the Year in the Big Ten this season.
Downs made a massive impact for the Ohio State Buckeyes once he transferred in from Alabama last season. He made some huge plays in the College Football Playoff, as well. Quite frankly, the Buckeyes don't win the national championship without Downs and his contributions.
Ohio State football player Caleb Downs wins Preseason Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year
With the media voting Downs as the best defensive player in the conference, that means that the Buckeyes have both the best offensive and defensive player in the Big Ten. They also voted Jeremiah Smith as the best offensive player in the conference.
Despite that, Ohio State is projected to finish second in the Big Ten. It's an insane projection for a team that is coming off the best run in program history to end the season. Their Big Ten schedule is also much easier this season than it was a year ago. They don't have to play Oregon, and they get Penn State at home.
Downs will continue to be a big part of what the Buckeyes do on the defensive side of the ball. He's going to be good enough to force another team to completely game-plan around him. His impact on special teams is great as well, as he showed in the game against Indiana.