The Ohio State Buckeyes have suffered their first loss of the season, which to some was major, while others have continued to remain positive.
The Ohio State Buckeyes football team traveled to Oregon this past weekend to take on the Ducks in quite the memorable affair. The Buckeyes managed to score over 30-points against the Ducks, a rather impressive accomplishment that was largely due to the play of quarterback Will Howard. However, Howard will likely be remember for the last play he made in the game rather than his overall performance.
Howard recorded 326-yards through the air along with two touchdowns on 28-of-35 passing for the Ohio State Buckeyes. The quarterback ended the game in controversy after sliding down in field goal range as the clock ticked down to nothing. While many fans believe Howard managed to slide before time expired and called the final timeout, the officials and many others believe the call was appropriate.
While there are plenty of other plays and factors that led to the loss against the Oregon Ducks for the Ohio State Buckeyes, the final play will likely continue to be the one people remember.
Some Ohio State Buckeyes fans felt the loss meant that the Buckeyes may no longer be able to win the Big Ten Conference. The Buckeyes must still play Nebraska, Penn State, Indiana, and Michigan this season before the postseason begins. With the loss occurring, many fans have begun to point the finger towards Howard and coach Ryan Day for potential clouding the plans they had for the team this season.
As some more positive Ohio State Buckeyes fans have pointed out, the Buckeyes may still be in the correct hands.
I’m probably gonna get flamed for this, but Ryan Day and Kirby Smart aren’t all that different.
Smart was viewed EXACTLY how Day is until his 6th year when he finally got Georgia over the hump: “Georgia can never win the big one.”
It’s year 6 for Ryan Day. In year 6 for Kirby,…
— Buckeyes Network (@BuckeyesNetwork) October 14, 2024
Can Ryan Day Take the Ohio State Buckeyes to the National Championship?
While the Ohio State Buckeyes might have some minor issues they need to address after the loss, the lone loss does not mean the team cannot make the National Championship.
Coach Day has an opportunity to take the team to the promised land this year, and still very well could barring any other tough losses. As some fans have pointed out, the Ohio State Buckeyes are still in a much better position than most programs. The Buckeyes are projected to win the remainder of their scheduled games this season.
Thank you for making sense. How many programs would love to be in OSU’s shoes?
— crazyosufan60 (@crazyosufan60) October 15, 2024
Let’s hope they find the secret sauce and get over the hump.
— Mr BuckNut (@BorN2BaBuck) October 15, 2024
I’ve been saying this for a while.
Ryan is in that same spot.
This Oregon loss is the same moment in 2021 when UGA got blown out by Bama. UGA beat them in the rematch and won the natty.
Let’s see if Ryan can do the same.— Uncle Krunkle (@Tkrunkle_uncle) October 14, 2024
Other Ohio State Buckeyes fans have pointed out the fact that Day has had plenty more talent on his roster early in his tenure than other coaches.
This isn’t an apples to apples comparison. Kirby Smart coaches in a substantially tougher conference and he wasn’t handed the best roster in CFB that was LOADED w/ NFL talent on both sides of the ball. Ohio had 26 players drafted in Day’s first 3 yrs at Ohio. Smart had 1/2 that
— High Handicapper (@GP1800SVHO) October 15, 2024
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