The Ohio State Buckeyes are the 2025 National Champions, defeating Notre Dame 34-23. The team completed a dominant run on the College Football Playoff capped off with a title. It was such an impressive run that many forget about the blunders the Buckeyes endured this season on their path to glory. They suffered a bad loss to Michigan and many fans wanted Ryan Day gone. However, Ohio State quickly swayed the negative opinions by finally embracing the best aspects of their team. This realization of identity helped them run through the College Football Playoff and win a championship.
Ryan Day’s Criticism

Ohio State’s biggest problem in losing to Oregon, Michigan, and other big games over the years is that they have not realized their greatest weapons. Before this playoff run, Ryan Day was regarded as a disappointment among Buckeye fans because he could not win the big games when it mattered despite always having a talented roster. Other than the yearly win over Penn State, Ohio State rarely beat the college football blue bloods like Michigan, Oregon, Alabama, or Georgia. The big reason for that was Day and the team not embracing their identity. Many times, they would play not to lose rather than to win.
Losing to Michigan

This year’s upset versus Michigan was a prime example of the Buckeyes’ identity crisis. The Wolverines have a very typical Big 10 archetype. They rely on a stout defense and an offense built on toughness on the ground. While the team underperformed this season, that was still their identity. They were not winning like years prior, but they knew how they would win. Through tough, gritty football and controlling the tempo of the game. That was how Michigan defeated Ohio State. Instead of playing their own game, the Buckeyes tried to match the Wolverines in a slow, gritty slugfest and it led to an awful loss.
Against Michigan, Ohio State played a very conservative game. Instead of pushing the ball through the air to the best receiving unit in the country, the Buckeyes focused on running the ball. But the problem was, they were not successful on the ground. Quinshon Judkins rushed for only 46 yards and TreVeyon Henderson had 21. On top of that, Will Howard did not have a good game, throwing two interceptions and his lowest number of passing yards all season. Instead of trusting their playmakers, Ohio State played down to their competition, and it cost them.
Ohio State’s Dominant Playoff Run

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After the Michigan loss, Ohio State entered the College Football Playoff with nothing to lose. So, they finally embraced their identity. Jeremiah Smith and Emeka Egbuka make up the best receiving duo in the nation and the Buckeyes finally realized that their best option was to just throw it to them. Ohio State is often referred to as Wide Receiver University. Every year, there are multiple elite wideouts in the red and silver that go on to remain elite in the NFL. The Buckeyes learned in these playoffs that if they lean on these elite receivers and other weapons, there are no teams that can beat them.
Every year, Ohio State has one of the greatest top-to-bottom rosters in college football. Their defense was great all season, and the offense was great when they leaned on their best players. They blew out Tennessee 42-17 in the first round. In the Rose Bowl, they dominated the #1 ranked Oregon 41-21. They beat Texas by multiple touchdowns in the semifinal. And, finally, they won the National Championship convincingly over Notre Dame. The Buckeyes finished the season 14-2, and proved that in this new playoff era, if a team has the talent, all they need to do is get in.