UW AD Jennifer Cohen Releases Statement On Ohio State Vs. Washington Cancelation

Ohio State was expected to go toe-to-toe with Pac-12 riser Washington in the coming years, but that plan is out the window due to the changing tides of college football.

The Buckeyes called off their home-and-home series with the Huskies on Wednesday afternoon. Ohio State was expected to travel to Seattle on Sept. 14, 2024, while Washington was to make the trip to Columbus on Sept. 13, 2025.

The series had been agreed to back in 2017 by both parties. However, with USC and UCLA jumping to the Big Ten in 2024, conversations were pushed toward adding one of the two to the schedule for the upcoming season.

"We are very disappointed that our student-athletes, staff and Husky Nation won't get to experience these two games with Ohio State," Washington athletic director Jennifer Cohen said in a statement. "Everyone has had these dates circled for a number of years and we were looking forward to these opportunities to compete against the Buckeyes. We are in the process of finding new opponents for the 2024 and 2025 seasons and will provide an update as soon as we have one."

Ohio State athletic director Gene Smith said his school initiated the cancelation and would be responsible for a $500,000 penalty under terms of the contract that must be paid in full by Feb. 28, 2025.

"As a result of the cancellation, we will add an eighth home game for the 2024 season, affording us the opportunity to have the funding to pay the penalty and guarantee for that eighth opponent," Smith said.

According to CBS Sports, the cancelation was nothing more than a reaction to a tougher conference schedule with the addition of USC and UCLA. The 2024 season will mark the first time the Trojans and Bruins will be members of the Big Ten, meaning that both programs could be on Ohio State's schedule that season.

The Big Ten's 2024 schedule won’t be revealed until October.

Smith said the Buckeyes will now look for a non-conference opponent at home in 2024, on either Sept. 7 or Sept. 14, as well as a non-conference game in 2025, also at home, on either Sept. 6 or Sept. 13.

Ohio State is scheduled to play Southern Mississippi and Western Michigan on Aug. 31 and Sept. 21, 2024, respectively. In 2025, the Buckeyes will face Texas and Connecticut on Aug. 30 and Oct. 18, respectively. All four games will be held at Ohio Stadium.