A week after Ohio State handled its business and ended Indiana's 22-game winning streak with a 19-15 triumph in Bloomington, the Hoosiers marched into Ann Arbor and ended TTUN's chance to reach the CFP with a 13-6 win in overtime.
With that, "The Game" is officially no longer a game that will have CFP considerations for both teams. The Wolverines' CFP chances were already on life support entering the contest after a loss to Minnesota in early October, not to mention a last-second loss to Iowa in late September, but are now gone.
In a defensive war, Indiana quarterback Josh Hoover proved to be the difference in overtime. Hoover hit tight end Brock Schott for a 21-yard gain before running four yards into the end zone to give the Hoosiers the lead. Hoover only had 81 passing yards all day, with no touchdowns and an interception.
TTUN quarterback Tommy Carr couldn't complete a pass on 4th and 9 to Salesi Moa on the final play of the game to tie it up in overtime. Carr also had an interception and no touchdown passes. Carr at least had 167 passing yards, though he probably would trade his results for Hoover's.
What Ohio State learned about Indiana and Michigan in Week 8
The Buckeyes learned valuable lessons in Week 8 from this ho-hum collision between two great defenses and two underwhelming offenses.
For one, if the Big Ten Championship Game ends up being a rematch of 2025, Ohio State knows it can beat Indiana with its defense. The Wolverines tackled well and kept the pressure on Hoover and the running backs all game.
As for "The Game," well, even without Julian Sayin, this should be the Buckeyes' to lose in Week 13. Carr is not a substantial upgrade over Bryce Underwood, and the running game produced just 57 yards of offense. TTUN kicker Trey Butkowski missed two of his field goal attempts.
As Ohio State looks for signs that this season could still be salvaged without Sayin and with Luke Fahey and/or Tavien St. Clair thrust into the spotlight, rivalry week should at least be a bit of a relief. It's clear that the Wolverines are deeply flawed, and more cracks in the armor will be exposed within the next month before "The Game."
Now, a limping TTUN is still dangerous. A 5-6 Wolverines team led by Sherrone Moore still upset the Buckeyes at the "Shoe" during the 2024 title season.
Assuming lessons were learned from that game, and assuming Ryan Day lets Arthur Smith call that without much interference, "The Game" should be a nice tune-up test for the CFP, at worst.
That is, of course, assuming Ohio State doesn't catch two losses before then. USC, Oregon, Northwestern, and Nebraska still loom before the Wolverines come to town.
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