Ohio State Ranks High In Way-Too-Early Pre-Spring Top 25
The Ohio State Buckeyes had an unprecedented amount of players spurn the NFL Draft to come back for one more season.
As a result, most believe the Buckeyes will be right in the thick of the College Football Playoff conversation.
In the recent release of their way-to-early pre-spring Top 25, On3 Sports has high hopes for the Bucks, bringing them in at No. 1 in the Big Ten, and No. 2 in the nation behind only Georgia.
Among the reasons for the high optimism surrounding coach Ryan and his program? The returning talent, and their new offensive coordinator.
Said On3:
The Buckeyes have had a fascinating offseason, with Ryan Day pushing his chip into the pot for the 2024 season. No program has been more aggressive retaining their own roster (TreVeyon Henderson, Denzel Burke, JT Tuimoloau, Emeka Egbuka, Jack Sawyer and Tyleik Williams) talent and bringing in blue-chip players from the transfer portal (Caleb Downs, Quinshon Judkins, Will Howard).
Then over the weekend, Day replaced Bill O’Brien, who was the OC for less than a month, with UCLA head coach Chip Kelly. It’s a stunning move for a sitting Big Ten coach to take an OC job with a conference foe, but it’s an upgrade for Ohio State, as Kelly could do wonders with the two-headed tandem of Henderson and Judkins at tailback.
Then of course, there is also the fact that the Buckeyes are returning arguably the best defense in the country.
Not to mention, the elite recruiting class that Day was able to land in the 2024 cycle, which comes complete with multiple players who should see the field early and often next season.
Among those players, are five-star freshmen Jeremiah Smith, Eddrick Houston, and Mylan Graham - each of whom can help bolster positions of need from last season.
Combine that with the experienced talent on the roster, as well as the number of elite transfers coming in, and it is no wonder the Bucks are one of the favorites to make the Big Ten Championship game and the CFP.
You can see On3's full top-25 below (Big Ten teams in bold):
1. Georgia
2. Ohio State
3. Oregon
4. Texas
5. Alabama
6. Ole Miss
7. Notre Dame
8. Michigan
9. Penn State
10. Missouri
11. LSU
12. Utah
13. Oklahoma
14. Kansas State
15. Tennessee
16. Florida State
17. Clemson
18. Miami
19. Oklahoma State
20. Kansas
21. Louisville
22. NC State
23. Texas A&M
24. Arizona
25. SMU
