photo credit: Carter Shilling
It’s a late August Saturday in Columbus, Ohio. There is a chill in the air as fall begins to replace summer, and the smell of leaves is pungent as crowds of people in scarlet and gray fill the streets, making their way to ‘The Shoe’. The energy is electric, as the time of year every Buckeye fan anxiously waits for has finally come. Ohio State Football is back.
Last season, the Buckeyes had a record of 10-2 in the regular season and went undefeated in the post season. Stand-out players such as wide-receiver Jeremiah Smith, linebacker Jack Sawyer and quarter-back Will Howard led the team through the playoffs to eventually win the coveted national championship.
Ohio State supporters were thrilled by the title win, and lifelong fan Mike Brucato is no exception. This 1972 Ohio State alumnus has seen his fair share of Buckeye teams, and was impressed with last season.
“We beat 5 of the top ten teams in the nation,” Brucato said. “That has never been done before, and we deserve to be National Champions.”
Despite losses to Oregon and Michigan, most refer to the 2024-25 Buckeyes as a successful and dominant team. Unfortunately for the Buckeyes though, being on top means all eyes are on them, and not everyone thinks OSU can stay there.
The Buckeyes were only ranked third in the AP top 25 at the beginning of the 2025-26 season, behind both Texas and Penn State. As for the AFCA coaches poll, they were ranked second behind Texas.
Despite being defending national title champs, both the media and people in the college football world were generally not confident in the Buckeyes’ dominance prior to the start of the season. However, many OSU fans strongly disagree with these individuals, one being senior football player Dane Barcalow.
“OSU, just like every year, is hyped up but still doubted,” Barcalow said. “Putting OSU at No. 3 after winning a natty just for them to beat No. 1 seed Texas in the first game of the year shows how much they’re doubted.”
The main warrant many sports analysts have made against Ohio State’s ability to stay on top this year is that they lost too many players and coaches.
Ohio State gave up 14 men to the 2025 NFL Draft including notable players such as Jack Sawyer, Will Howard, Emeka Egbuka, TreVeyon Henderson and Josh Fryar. However, Ohio State has a history of good recruitment and the funding the program receives makes it easier to attain the best players.
“We have enough returning players to help the newer players get a good start,” Brucato said. “Coach Day has been a great recruiter and has a team culture that will live with the men he coaches forever!”
In addition to losing players, defensive coordinator Jim Knowles left the Buckeye coaching staff, followed by offensive coordinator Chip Kelly only a week later.
“The changes at the coordinators’ spots could change how our team plays, especially with the new schemes, and it being the players’ first time playing under new staff,” Barcalow said. “Orange had a recent change within the past couple years, and we went through the same change. A new football identity was born under Coach Schroeder, and we are just getting better every day as are the guys at OSU.”
After such a triumphant season, Ohio State has a lot to prove this year, both to their doubters and their die-hard fans who expect nothing short of a perfect season.
Despite a few setbacks in the Buckeyes’ path ahead of the season, things are looking great, and Ohio State is off to a spectacular start
“It’s always been OSU against the world, and we’re going to show them again this year why we need the respect we deserve,” Barcalow said.
