Ohio State's path to the national championship ranked one of the hardest

It's hard to imagine that a team with just one loss to the undefeated BIG10 champions can have a hard schedule in the postseason.

Ohio State was probably the best eighth seed in sports history last year. They won all their games by more than 11 points. Their closest victory was against Notre Dame in the national championship. The Buckeyes beat No. 7 Notre Dame 34 to 23.

The landscape of this year's College Football Playoff is very different than last year. There's a bit more parity across the field minus No. 20 Tulane and No. 25 James Madison's inclusion.

Ohio State has been dominant all season, but no one should expect their road to the 2025 national championship to be easy.

Ohio State Buckeyes quarterback Julian Sayin (10) motions during the Big Ten Conference championship game against the Indiana Hoosiers at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis on Dec. 6, 2025. Ohio State lost 13-10. | Adam Cairns/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Ohio State waits for No. 10 Miami vs. No. 7 Texas A&M

AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas will be the home of the Cotton Bowl December 31. The Miami Hurricanes play the Texas A&M Aggies Saturday December 20 at 12:00 p.m. Eastern. Miami's entry into the College Football Playoff was dramatic, but not surprising when you consider their talent. The Hurricanes have two losses to Louisville and SMU, but won a head-to-head tiebreaker with two-loss Notre Dame.

Texas A&M has 11 wins and just one loss in final week of the regular season to the Texas Longhorns. Both teams pose teams are bigger threats than No. 9 Tennessee was in the first round of last year's College Football Playoff.

"Ohio State's first game will be against either an 11-win SEC team or a 10-2 Miami team that won its last four regular season games by an average of 27.5 points. The Hurricanes are also one of a handful of teams that might match up well against Ohio State in the trenches. Miami is littered with future NFL talent along its lines of scrimmage."
CBS Sports' Will Backus

Ohio State was considered to have one of the three hardest paths to the national championship across the entire 12-team field. They were categorized with the No. 10 Miami Hurricanes and No. 12 James Madison.

Ohio State expected to meet with Georgia Bulldogs

No scenario has the Ohio State Buckeyes as underdogs going into the Cotton Bowl in a few weeks. Whether the Hurricanes or the Aggies win in the first round, the Buckeyes will open as the favorites to win the game. The same goes for the Georgia Bulldogs on the opposite side of the bracket.

If Ohio State gets past the winner of Miami and Texas A&M, they're expected to face the No. 3 Georgia Bulldogs in the semifinals. The Bulldogs play against the winner of No. 6 Ole Miss and No. 11 Tulane. Ole Miss loss to the Bulldogs this regular season 43 to 35.

Watch the Buckeyes play in the College Football Playoff against Miami or Texas A&M Saturday December 31 at 7:30 p.m. Eastern on ESPN.