Every year, the Ohio State football program sets three goals for the season. They want to beat Michigan, win the Big Ten Championship, and win the national championship. In years past, the Buckeyes had to go undefeated in order to accomplish all three.
That is no longer the case. Last year, the Buckeyes were able to win the national championship without accomplishing the first two goals. Obviously, all three goals are extremely important to the team. But, as evidenced by the 2024 season, going undefeated is not a prerequisite for doing those things.
Now that the Big Ten has 18 teams, it is highly unlikely that any team will be able to get through the entire season unscathed. Oregon was undefeated until getting demolished by the Ohio State Buckeyes in the Rose Bowl. Ohio State fans need to realize that winning every game every year isn't realistic anymore.
The Ohio State football team doesn't need to go undefeated anymore
At this point, there are two goals that matter more to the program and fans than anything else: beating TTUN and winning a national championship. Ohio State can lose two games in the regular season and still accomplish those goals with the expanded College Football Playoff.
It will only get harder to go undefeated once the CFP eventually expands to 16 teams. Ohio State wants to win every single game, but Ryan Day and his staff understand that they no longer need to focus solely on that in order to achieve the goals they set out for themselves.
The sooner that Ohio State football fans recognize this, the better they will feel every single season. Losses still sting, but they no longer end the chance to capture the ultimate prize. As long as the Buckeyes win ten games and beat TTUN, winning the national title is still in sight.