Ohio State's path to take down Indiana with head-to-head win, Big Ten title in 2026

The Ohio State Buckeyes had to watch the College Football Playoff national title game from the couch Monday night, as they saw the Big Ten hoist another trophy in the form of coach Curt Cignetti's Indiana Hoosiers – the same team that ruined the Buckeyes' Big Ten title dreams a little over a month earlier.

The Buckeyes now enter the off-season with a fresh start, with some experience returning, including their two key offensive anchor pieces. Whether it's enough to exact revenge against the Hoosiers, though, is easier said than done. Wide receiver Jeremiah Smith may beg to differ, however.

“It’s going to be scary," Smith said via The Silver Bulletin. "I’m gonna be on go every game. I feel like this year they took something from me and everybody gotta pay for it. I’m out for everybody.”

Smith's opportunity at payback could come against the Hoosiers in Bloomington Oct. 17.

Assuming both teams are elite once again, the game should live up to the hype even if it's not a rematch between quarterback Julian Sayin and Heisman Trophy winner Fernando Mendoza. Even though Mendoza will be off to the NFL by then, the Buckeyes will still have to deal with former TCU Horned Frogs quarterback Josh Hoover.

Hoover is Mendoza's projected replacement this fall, as he has thrown for 9,629 yards across three full seasons for TCU with 71 touchdown tosses to show for it.

Who Else Does Ohio State Have To Worry About This Fall?

Barring whoever wins the mid-October showdown, it could go a long way in determining who wins the league.

Even though the exact order of games isn't publicly known for another week, the matchups are. Outside of a trip to Bloomington, it will travel to play the likes of the Iowa Hawkeyes and Nebraska Cornhuskers while playing host to the Michigan Wolverines, Illinois Fighting Illini, Northwestern Wildcats and Oregon Ducks, to name a few.

So, the path is quite simple: win every game (especially the opener against the Texas Longhorns) to give the Buckeyes a fair shot at entering the Big Ten title game rematch undefeated. A win there gives the Buckeyes the head-to-head tiebreaker as December approaches and therefore, a rematch may only be possible if both teams end up with one conference loss atop the standings.

Whatever happens next is anyone's guess, but it's clear the Buckeyes will likely need to win the rematch against the defending champs to prove they can still hang in as one of the nation's best.