Ohio State has entered a crucial offseason. Head coach Ryan Day is in the middle of an offensive coordinator search, trying to add more transfer portal commitments to replace the 29 who have left and working to do everything he can to maximize one last year with star receiver Jeremiah Smith.
You have a lot of questions surrounding Ohio State this offseason following a College Football Playoff exit in the Cotton Bowl. Let’s get to them.
Note: Submitted questions have been edited for clarity and length.
Can Day 1) find an OC he trusts and 2) keep his fingers off the play sheet? — Michael C.
First, I think finding a play caller he trusts is the main objective. He’s taking his time and trying to see how the NFL coaching cycle plays out, because it’s likely he goes back to that well to find the offensive coordinator after doing so with Matt Patricia on defense last year.
Second, I don’t think Day will have a problem keeping his fingers off the play sheet. Contrary to popular belief, Day understands the benefits of somebody else leading the offense. I don’t think there’s a world in which Day wants to go back to dealing with everything he has to as the head coach on top of calling plays. He will do it if he has to, but he’d rather hire the right person to be the head coach of the offense if he can.
“The Ryan Day Offense” seems to have become a quest for unattainable perfection … and it seems to crumble whenever there is a breakdown anywhere — especially in the O-line. Instead of hiring an elite play caller, wouldn’t they be better served hiring an elite offensive line developer? — Dave P.
No, they wouldn’t.
Hiring a new offensive line coach would set development and recruiting back, especially after just one year of Tyler Bowen. He needs time. He also must get the most out of this group this offseason before he loses all four of this year’s returning starters to the NFL this time next year.
On the same note, that hiring change would divide Day’s responsibilities between play calling, being the CEO and then helping the offensive line coach. Day wants an offensive coordinator who can be the head coach of the offense, somebody who can take care of everything on that side of the ball.
Ohio State could do both and replace Bowen with a coordinator and offensive line coach, but that’s not going to happen. Bowen isn’t going anywhere.
Countless reasons for the loss to Miami. I would be curious about your rank of the reasons why they lost, with No. 1 being the most impactful. — Tom G.
For the sake of time, I’ll just rank three.
1. Offensive line play
2. Lack of versatility on offense
3. Special teams
As you look at current roster turnover, portal transfers in and the incoming 2026 class, what are the biggest needs for the Buckeyes to compete for a championship next year? — Jeff M.
Cornerback is the biggest issue on the defense. Ohio State brings back two good corners in Devin Sanchez and Jermaine Mathews Jr., but that’s it after losing Bryce West and Aaron Scott to the portal. The fact that Scott has not committed anywhere yet perhaps opens up the possibility that he could withdraw his name from the portal and return next season. Regardless, Ohio State needs to add somebody.
Ohio State could also benefit from adding an explosive running back to go along with Bo Jackson and Isaiah West.
The biggest concern overall is special teams. Ohio State returns its punter, but it doesn’t have a kicker on the roster. The Buckeyes have had special teams issues for years, and they need to get that sorted out this offseason. It starts with adding a consistent kicker.
How much of the transfers is being driven by the greedy agents representing these players? 100 percent? 80? 50? — Mark D.
I’d say 50-60 percent. I think it’s an exaggeration that every player in the country is transferring because they are led by selfish agents.
On one hand, it’s the agent’s job to get their client the most money, but every player in the portal isn’t demanding a $1 million or even a $700,000 offer. I think what we saw this year in the portal with Ohio State losing 29 players — and teams like Oregon, Texas and Alabama losing nearly as many — is a change in how top college football programs that recruit the best players operate. It can be broken down into a few groups.
• There’s the first group of players who are entering their third year who haven’t seen significant time and want to go somewhere so they can find a way to get on the field.
• The second group is the elite players who have a reason for leaving, like a fired head coach or position coach, and are often being persuaded to go get a big check at a big school. This group has agents who do a good job of getting their players a big deal.
• Then there’s the third group that features elite high school recruits who were paid a decent amount of money but still have to wait another year to get on the field. They are a mix of both groups, because on one hand, they want to get on the field immediately, but they also feel like they are deserving of what the market says a player of their talents should get. That leaves schools like Ohio State in a position where they have to decide: Do I pay this young prospect to be a rotational player, again, or go pay an older, more experienced player instead? Sometimes the latter wins out, sometimes it’s the former.
Ohio State makes a trip to Texas in September after beating the Longhorns in Columbus to open the 2025 season. (Gregory Shamus / Getty Images)
OSU’s schedule next season has to be among the toughest out there: road games at Texas, Indiana, Iowa, Nebraska and USC. Home tilts with Oregon, Michigan and Illinois. Let’s hear your way-too-early prediction without knowing what rosters will look like. — Michael L.
Let’s take a shot in the dark, although I do reserve the right to change this over the course of the offseason.
I’d predict a loss at Texas. No rhyme or reason, I just think they split the home and home.
Ohio State wins at Iowa, Nebraska and USC, although USC interests me because it’s the West Coast trip and the Trojans have been recruiting well.
I also think Ohio State beats Illinois handedly, again, and Michigan at home with new coach Kyle Whittingham.
Now, for Indiana and Oregon, I think Ohio State splits them. I’m leaning toward Ohio State beating Indiana on the road and losing to Oregon at home because I expect there to be a lot of revenge emotions against Indiana.
The Big Ten should be releasing the schedule any day, so timing will play a factor, too, but for now, I’ll go 10-2, at worst 9-3, with a Playoff berth. With that schedule, I think the Buckeyes would get in at 9-3.
I’d be surprised if Ohio State is 11-1 or 12-0 and gets a quarterfinal bye, not because of a lack of talent, but because of the difficulty of the schedule. I think things will set up for a first-round home game.
Outside of “they’ve always been good and always will,” what leads you to think next year will be better than this year? A worse roster (right now, on paper) with a new OC and a harder schedule seems pretty daunting. — Scott Q.
I agree that Ohio State has a harder schedule and worse roster, most likely, but if you look at this team position by position, you’ll see another loaded group.
Julian Sayin returns as one of the best quarterbacks in college football with a skill position group that includes Smith, Jackson, Chris Henry and Brandon Inniss. If the offensive line improves, and the offensive coordinator adjusts to the new personnel well, that is an elite offense. I don’t worry about the offensive coordinator hire because it’s unlikely to be a first-time play caller, so I see that as an upgrade.
There are questions on defense, but Ohio State brought in three defensive line transfers: Alabama’s Qua Russaw on the edge and UCF’s John Walker and Alabama’s James Smith at tackle.
Linebacker is set with Riley Pettijohn, Payton Pierce and Christian Alliegro. Losing Caleb Downs hurts the secondary, but Ohio State did about as well as it could in the portal by adding Earl Little Jr. from Florida State and Terry Moore from Duke (both of whom have been All-ACC performers) to team with returning starter Jaylen McClain. That will be one of the best safety groups in the country.
Do you believe Ohio State needs to utilize the portal more? — Terry G.
Yes, I do.
Gone are the days when teams brought in 25-plus-freshman recruiting classes and kept them together. I think Ohio State is realizing that.
The Buckeyes will still heavily recruit high school players, but recruiting elite players to sit on the bench for a year or two just isn’t going to happen. It’s a waste of money and time. I’d expect smaller freshman classes, with the ones that do come in getting on the field earlier in their careers alongside more experienced transfer portal additions.
The last two championship teams (Michigan and Ohio State) were older, and Indiana is on the way to making it three in a row. That’s the recipe that Ohio State wants to follow.
What would you like to see next year as growth out of Sayin? — Larry W.
I would like to see him slow down, especially when under pressure.
Sayin is sound in his mechanics, and he processes defenses quickly. The latter, I think, can get him in trouble in high-pressure situations.
There were times this season when he looked at a coverage, saw an option covered and moved away to his second or third option just a tad too fast. I think that’s why he missed Max Klare in the end zone against Miami, and I think it’s why he’s missed Inniss wide open down the field at times.
If he can fix that and continue to improve on his pocket movement (which I think is already good), he can be the best quarterback in college football next season.
I know people want a mobile quarterback, and it’s a fair criticism, but I think Sayin can be what C.J. Stroud was against Georgia in 2022 all season long. He can be a quarterback who picks apart defenses with his arm and mind and who runs when needed.