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Nebraska vs tOSU, Noon ET, Oct. 24, FOX

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THE START OF SOMETHING SPECIAL?

Day doesn't want his team to be thinking about winning a national championship or anything else it could accomplish later this season right now. All he's wanted everyone inside the Woody Hayes Athletic Center to be focused on this week is playing the best possible game against Nebraska on Saturday to get to 1-0.

Outside the Woody, however, Ohio State's championship hopes are going to be a constant topic of conversation whether Day likes it or not. Just about everyone expects Ohio State to be one of the three best teams in college football this year, along with Clemson and Alabama, so every game the Buckeyes play this season will be viewed through the prism of whether they're good enough to win their fourth straight Big Ten title, get back to the playoff and beat those two teams in January.

For all the belief that Ohio State will be a top-three team in college football this season, that's all just unproven hype as of now. But when the Buckeyes play the Cornhuskers on Saturday, we'll finally get our first actual look at how good this year's team might be – and conversely, where improvement might be needed for Ohio State to actually make a title run.
 
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1) After the longest wait between seasons in Ohio State football history, the Buckeyes are primed for kickoff. How do you think the delay to the season will impact the Buckeyes, if at all?

Biddle: I think if anything, they are even hungrier than they were if the season would have started on time. And we all know this team is plenty hungry and has a chip on its shoulder based on how the 2019 season ended. They felt like they were the best team in the nation, or at the very least should have been playing LSU for all the marbles. Fundamentals won't be where the Buckeyes want them to be in game one, but that will be the case for Nebraska too. However, overall, I think this will be an Ohio State team that is frothing at the mouth to play a real football game.

Rubin: I am sure we will see a little bit of rust at the beginning, but I don't think it's anything to worry about. I have faith the Ohio State players and coaching staff have dealt with the time off at least as well as their opponents.

Helwagen: Well, they should be prepared. They’ve practiced 40 times since early August. They should have left no stone unturned. Now, having that said that, we have seen some ragged football played in the first month or so of college football. Offenses seem way ahead of defenses. Can Ohio State’s revamped defense buck that trend? Hmmm.

Murphy: For one, I think it helped the team get healthy. Guys like Master Teague and Thayer Munford, who both needed an offseason to recover from various injuries, got an extra nearly two months to get to 100 percent. That's only good news for the Buckeyes. I also think it just made this team more motivated. These players and coaches sat around the last several weeks and watched other teams play. All they could do was practice. Now they get to get back on the field and show what they can do. This was already a team on a mission but that was ramped up in the last couple of months having to fight to play and then waiting to actually do it.

Bax: I think if anything, they’ll have had the opportunity to essentially plug in the lost time for spring football so we’re going to see a more prepared team that doesn’t make anywhere resembling the volume of mistakes we’ve seen in the first month and a half of the year elsewhere. I think they’re going to be utterly locked and loaded, perhaps more than anyone else in America outside of Clemson. Those are the two programs that are already staring each other down……

2) Obviously the Nebraska game is up in short order, but let's talk about the Big Ten this year. What games on the OSU schedule concern you the most? Which teams in the Big Ten are likely to be the biggest challengers to OSU's throne?

Biddle: There will certainly be a game that ends up being closer than any of us anticipated. But analyzing it right now, the only two games that should give the Buckeyes any reason to worry are at Penn State, and perhaps the Michigan game at home. I will never take The Game lightly, especially with Jim Harbaugh knowing he might need to finally beat OSU to save his job. (Harbaugh is in the final year of his contract and has still not signed an extension.) Penn State is the toughest team on the schedule, but playing the Nittany Lions in non-white-out conditions will help the Buckeyes. Plus, PSU will be without their best player on offense (RB Journey Brown) and their best player on defense (Micah Parsons who opted out to get ready for the NFL).

Rubin: Penn State is a much more threatening road opponent with real fans instead of white cardboard cutouts and Micah Parsons anchoring its defense. Given that and Ohio State knowing just how important that national spotlight, Halloween night game will be, we should see the Buckeyes' best effort and therefore a convincing win. Ask me this again in a month.

Helwagen: It goes without saying, obviously, that Penn State next week and Michigan at the end will be the two toughest games – at least on paper. Could somebody else stun Ohio State? I doubt it would be Illinois, Maryland or Rutgers. That leaves Nebraska, Indiana or Michigan State who could give OSU an unexpected tough game. Those games will all have their own special intrigue when those weeks arrive, I would think.

Murphy: I think Nebraska could be interesting in the West, but that's a team probably still a year or two away from actually challenging. It's easy to say Penn State and Michigan because they've been the two teams in the past, but both have dealt with opt-outs or injuries/medical issues. I think Minnesota could be interesting again, especially if the Gophers can defeat Michigan in Week 1. That's a team that I think would be a bit of a surprise if they make it to Indy and win the conference.

Bax: The most concerning game is next week at Penn State, though honestly I don’t see anyone in America outside of Alabama or Clemson playing within a touchdown of this Ohio State team. If the Nittany Lions can pull off the upset, that’s the one game and opponent that concerns me.



Austin Ward: Trey Sermon scores three times in Buckeyes debut

Ohio State once again made the biggest offseason move in college football. And just like last season, it should have a dramatic impact on the offense and keep the Buckeyes in the thick of the national-title chase. Maybe Trey Sermon won’t be a Heisman Trophy finalist like Justin Fields was in his first year with the program, but the transfer running back from Oklahoma has the tools to be a dangerous weapon alongside the dual-threat quarterback. The expectation here is that Sermon will stake a claim as the lead rusher for the Buckeyes, and he has a chance to make a strong first impression against the Huskers. He’s already scored in the Horseshoe before, and on Saturday he’ll finally do it in an Ohio State uniform — a few times.

Birm: Justin Fields throws seven touchdown passes for Ohio State

Justin Fields will set new Ohio State records a lot this season, and it will begin on Saturday against Nebraska. Three former Buckeyes have thrown for six touchdowns in a game — Kenny Guiton, J.T. Barrett (twice) and Dwayne Haskins (twice). And against the Huskers this weekend, Fields will surpass them all and break the single-game touchdowns record by an Ohio State passer. The biggest question I have is whether or not he’ll do it in one half like Guiton did in 2013.
 
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Almost 12 hours away...I don't even think I was excited as a kid on Christmas Eve as I am for this one with the extremely long offseason and all that went in to even being able to play now. So many amazing storylines on our team that start with Fields, Hilliard, Cooper, Wade's parents, and the list goes on. Not only do we have amazing talent, we have amazing people that care about each other and this university.

So...while I cannot say there won't be some rust and that this game will be a blowout, I do think we are going to win big with all the anticipation for this moment. I think the defense could have some growing pains early on with Martinez, but that we lock it down and end up winning 56-21. You heard it here first from your pal RB07OSU. LET'S FUCKING DO THIS BUCKEYES!
 
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