The Big Ten did not hold back on Ohio State this year with the schedule this time around. If anyone thought the Buckeyes were given a friendly slate last season, they were probably right. They took just one trip to the West Coast, which was early in the season, and had a five-game stretch between mid-October and mid-November where they faced one team with a winning record.
It's safe to say that the 2026 schedule is a bit different. Ohio State is still only taking one trip to the West Coast, but it's in the middle of a three-game stretch where we're going to see exactly what Ryan Day's team is all about.
Not sure youll find 3 games in a row harder than this on any schedule pic.twitter.com/Ao9futygan
— Official Ohio State DG (@DylanEveryday) January 27, 2026
A three-game stretch will tell the story for Ohio State in 2026
There are a few roadblocks on the Buckeyes' schedule, and it starts with the September 12 trip to Texas to take on Arch Manning and the loaded Longhorns. And there is a sneaky tough game on October 3rd at Iowa. It's the Buckeyes' first trip to Kinnick Stadium since 2017, when the Hawkeyes handed Urban Meyer one of the worst losses of his career.
But the Big Ten will be won or lost for Ohio State during a three-game stretch that features a trip to Indiana in October 17 for the biggest game that has ever been played in Bloomington and then a road game in the Coliseum at USC on October 31 after a bye week. The stretch concludes with a home game against Oregon on November 7.
Expect all three games to be played in the best possible window for high viewership. The Indiana and Oregon games are likely to be noon kickoffs on FOX and a big part of that network's pre-game coverage, while the USC game almost seems like a guarantee for the primetime slot on NBC.
Facing the defending national champions, a perennial playoff team in Oregon and a team that has loaded up its roster for a playoff-or-bust run in USC is a tall order for even the best program. But that's why Ohio State stays at the forefront of the conversation in college football and it's why some of the best players in the country come to Coliumbus. The Buckeyes want all the smoke and this schedule delivers it.