Ohio State's Disastrous Michigan Loss was Always Brewing

The Ohio State Buckeyes really did it. They lost to the Michigan Wolverines for the fourth straight time on Saturday afternoon, falling 13-10 to their archrivals.

I mean, there really aren't many words to say here other than that this seemed to be a long time coming for Ohio State.

The Buckeyes entered the 2024 college football season widely considered the most talented team in the country, and at times, they certainly looked like it.

There have been moments where Ohio State has seemed absolutely dominant on both sides of the ball. Those were the moments where you wondered, "Who can beat this team?"

But then, the Buckeyes lost to the Oregon Ducks—who now appear to be the better team—in Week 7. They struggled to beat the Nebraska Cornhuskers. They looked out of sorts for stints against largely inferior out-of-conference opponents earlier in the season.

All year, many felt that Ohio State would turn it on when it counted. That its sloppy play against lesser teams would not matter in the end. But maybe, just maybe, the Buckeyes have had deeper issues all along?

There is absolutely zero excuse for losing to this Michigan team. None. Keep in mind, the Wolverines were missing two of their top defenders in Will Johnson and Colston Loveland. And they still managed to hold a supposedly high-octane Ohio State offense to 10 points.

Will Howard looked miserable. The two-pronged rushing attack of Quinshon Judkins and TreVeyon Henderson was relatively non-existent. Jeremiah Smith had the Buckeyes' lone touchdown, but he logged just five catches for 35 yards. His weekly explosive play wasn't there.

It might be time to admit that this Ohio State squad was simply not as good, not as talented as we all thought at the beginning of the season. It may also be time to seriously question Ryan Day's coaching acumen, as this is just the latest example of him failing in a big game.

Buckeyes fans will be reeling from this one for quite some time. Heck, even if Ohio State goes on to win the national championship (which is still a possibility), the loss to Michigan will still sting.

But perhaps expectations should have been tempered for the Buckeyes right from the beginning, and maybe their narrow win over Nebraska last month should have served as an ominous sign of things to come.