Reading · Bill on the Buckeyes Substack

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Ryan Day knows that his team’s 2026 schedule will put the Buckeyes to the test.

From the first time I looked at Ohio State’s 2026 schedule, I’ve pondered whether this is the toughest in the Buckeyes’ history.

Today, the preseason coaches poll was released. No. 1 Ohio State will play six ranked teams, including three in the top 6 – No. 2 Oregon, No. 4 Texas and No. 6 Indiana, the latter two on the road.

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The schedule also includes road games against No. 14 USC and No. 22 Iowa, as well as The Game against No. 16 Michigan. In addition, the Buckeyes face Illinois, which got the 28^th-most votes.

Even the Nebraska game, which will be played in Lincoln the week before the Michigan game, shouldn’t be considered a gimme. Two years ago, the Buckeyes barely survived an upset bid in the Horseshoe against a mediocre Cornhuskers team.

“We’ve got bangers every week, so we’ve got to be prepared,” star wide receiver Jeremiah Smith said last week at Big Ten media days.

I scoured Ohio State’s media guide to see if the Buckeyes have ever faced a comparable schedule in the regular season. Two years ago, Ohio State played seven teams ranked in the top 7 at the time it played them, but four came during the Buckeyes’ dominant College Football Playoff run.

Three times, Ohio State has played seven ranked teams in the regular season. The first came in 1995, but most of those games came against opponents toward the bottom of the rankings. The highest-ranked teams were Penn State and Michigan, which were both ranked No. 12 in the Associated Press poll at the time OSU played them. Ohio State beat Penn State but lost to Michigan in the infamous Tim Biakabutuka game that spoiled the Buckeyes’ national championship hopes.

Is this the hardest schedule Ohio State has ever played?

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