The Ohio State Buckeyes may not have played a murderers' row of opponents thus far during the 2025 college football season, but they have earned the designation of being a murderers' row caliber to opponents in wins against the Illinois Fighting Illini, Minnesota Golden Gophers, Washington Huskies, and Texas Longhorns.
As USA Today's Blake Toppmeyer noted, OSU is getting the job done as expected every weekend, unlike schools of similar stature like the Penn State Nittany Lions, who just fell to 0-3 in Big Ten play with a loss to the Northwestern Wildcats, or the Alabama Crimson Tide, or the Texas Longhorns.
"We can add all the tried and true caveats," Toppmeyer prefaced before saying, "Some Southerner is probably already on hold for Monday’s 'Paul Finebaum Show,' waiting to exclaim that, Pawwwllllll, Ohio State ain’t played nobody!
"Fine, but Ohio State’s also avoided flops like Penn State experienced at UCLA or Alabama endured at Florida State or the Texas debacle at Florida."
After a 34-16 win over Illinois that was never in question, the Buckeyes look nearly unbeatable. It's unfair to say they're in a class of their own, with the Indiana Hoosiers knocking off the Oregon Ducks in Eugene and proving they're right there with them, but this is a two-horse race in the B1G.
And it all starts with Ryan Day.
Ryan Day nailed personnel decisions that's creating stars for Ohio State
Day has maximized talent in a way many head coaches across the nation have not. Julian Sayin and Jeremiah Smith are great examples of that. Both are having nationally recognized seasons, with the latter being a strong Heisman contender. That comes from Brian Hartline's decision-making, since simultaneously, the run game is a relative disaster. Hartline is covering that up masterfully.
Day is the one who empowered him.
On the flip side, Day's defensive coordinator, Matt Patricia, has gotten the most out of the linebacker room, namely Sonny Styles and Arvell Reese, and it's contributed to a defense that's No. 3 in stop rate and No. 8 in total yards allowed per game.
Another Day decision paying off in spades.
Day has proven capable of running a winning machine, something the sport was feared to no longer be capable of in the NIL era. The Ohio State University will continue to support him financially, and the early returns indicate he'll make the right personnel decisions to continue boosting players into the NFL ranks in droves.
It's a sustainable model that will survive any questions about strength of schedule, year in and year out.