The Ohio State football program is trying to repeat as national champions in 2025. They are feeling that they should be ready to take on the rest of the Big Ten Conference and win their first Big Ten Championship in five years. They won the national title last year without winning the conference.
Last year, the Buckeyes had two really tough road games. They had to play at Penn State and at Oregon, going 1-1 in those games. Of course, they also lost to TTUN at home, which was a very bad result. This year's schedule is much easier. In fact, these three Big Ten teams essentially give the Buckeyes an extra bye week.
1. At Purdue November 8th
Ohio State has firmly excised the demons of the 2018 upset loss at Purdue. They have taken down the Boilermakers multiple other times in Ross-Ade Stadium since then. Purdue is not very good this year, and the Buckeyes should be able to run through them without too many issues.
To underscore the talent gap between these two teams, Purdue finished just 1-11, only winning their opening game against Indiana State. Ohio State might score 70 points on them in this game. It's essentially getting a week off after a battle against Penn State for the Buckeyes.
2. Vs. UCLA November 15th
The following week offers an equally easy test for the Ohio State football team. UCLA takes its first visit to Columbus as a member of the Big Ten. While this matchup becomes a bit more intriguing because Nico Iamaleava is now the quarterback of the Bruins, these two teams still aren't close in talent.
The last time Iamaleava was in The Shoe, he got crushed as a member of Tennessee. Now that he has worse players around him on offense, the beatdown should only be worse. At this point in the season, Ohio State's defense should be firmly playing its best, as well.
3. Vs. Rutgers November 22nd
Ending an easy three-game stretch for the Buckeyes is a home game against Rutgers. While Greg Schiano is getting his team to play better football, they still aren't anywhere near the same caliber of team as Ohio State.
The Scarlet Knights have never beaten the Buckeyes in Columbus. They were at least bowl eligible last season, but they still shouldn't be anywhere close to pulling an upset this year.