The Ohio State Buckeyes sit two wins away from completing an undefeated regular season and clinching a berth in the Big Ten title game. It also held onto the College Football Playoff's No. 1 ranking Tuesday night as it enters its Senior Day game against the Rutgers Scarlet Knights with a lot at stake.
Not only is it the final home game of the season for the Buckeyes (10-0, 7-0 Big Ten), but coach Ryan Day recently told reporters what a win against the Scarlet Knights (5-5, 2-5 Big Ten) would mean from a bigger picture perspective.
"That's the way it is here right now. I mean, we want to get to Indy, and we haven't got to Indy here," Day said Tuesday. "There's nobody on this team that's been to Indy right now, and they know it."
Day said the Buckeyes couldn't be in a better position to finish the first part of the season strong.
"You're just always trying to figure out what's next and try to predict and forecast the best you can," Day said. "But I love our guys. I love the edginess. I love the competitiveness. And, you know, here we are. I mean, you look at that schedule right there. We only got two more in that schedule. And so if you said we're 10-0 rocking right now, I'd say let's go play. And so we're here. And so we've got to be at our best, everybody in the building."
Validating Day's points, the Buckeyes have past history to inspire them toward a deep playoff run.
In a tweet from Big Ten Football on 'X', it uncovered a massive upside for the Buckeyes: if a team is No. 1, it's likely from the Big Ten in the playoff era. Just ask the 2023 Michigan Wolverines or last year's Oregon Ducks.
That's 10 weeks of a Big Ten team leading the nation. This may not be foreshadowing who this year's national champion will be, but if anything, it shows that the Buckeyes are moving in the right direction in terms of momentum and continued conference dominance for at least the next few weeks.
For now, though, the Buckeyes must handle business to keep the trend alive.
We'll find out Saturday (noon ET, Fox) if they can.