Where Ohio State Buckeyes Fans Sit Before 2026 CFB Season Is Overwhelmingly Identical

The Ohio State Buckeyes' loyal fanbase was brutally honest in a recent national media survey.

Apr 18, 2026; Columbus, OH, USA; Ohio State head coach Ryan Day coaches during the annual spring game at Ohio Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Joseph Maiorana-Imagn Images | Joseph Maiorana-Imagn Images

Eighty-five days remain until the college football season gets underway. For the Ohio State Buckeyes, redemption remains a top priority after falling short of repeating as national champions.

Buckeyes fans from around the country weighed in on various topics surrounding the football program, including everything from Ryan Day's performance in Columbus thus far to whether wide receiver Jeremiah Smith's chances of winning the Heisman Trophy are justified in survey data from The Athletic.

In a nutshell, Buckeye fans seem confident that Smith's chances to be identified as college football's best player this fall are much less top-heavy than a year ago. Although past history does identify the quarterback as being the most suitable position to win the award.

Just under 24 percent of responders agree that Smith will do enough to win the award. On the contrary, quarterback Julian Sayin was given a 10.9 percent chance, while the other 65.7 percent predict that neither Sayin nor Smith will win the award.

With the speculation surronding an expanded College Football Playoff, there is one aspect of Buckeye football the fanbase wholeheartedly agrees with: the annual November rivalry with the Michigan Wolverines is the biggest game of the year, bar none.

While it's a mix of popular and unpopular views, the increased stakes of the Buckeyes-Wolverines rivalry should the Big Ten do away with the conference title game is a greater benefit than most realize, according to respondents.

Records don’t matter, you enter the game 0-0 every year. It will always have a different level of pressure," one respondent noted.

Another added that the implications of "The Game" over the last few years have been so huge that making it an even greater must-win may enhance the excitement value.

“Last year was a relief, but you always feel anxious before The Game. I grew up in the ’90s, so I know to never take it for granted,," another survey voter wrote.

In summary, the consensus for a successful Ohio State season is nearly identical: going 2-for-2. In other words, a return to the Big Ten title game would be step one while qualifying for its second national title game in three seasons.

Winning another title (in what would be Day's second) would be an added bonus, according to 25.3 percent of voters.

For those who are only worried about the regular-season finale, only 7.3 percent want to see only a head-to-head win forgoing the other scenarios.

All in all, Ohio State fans are already looking ahead to September.