There are a number of contests where the Buckeyes will have to be at the top of their game this season or they could be upended.
Now that the 2025 Ohio State spring game has come and gone, we can start taking a harder look at the 2025 regular season for the Buckeyes.
Since Ohio State are the defending national champs, they’ll have an even bigger target on them this year. Everyone the Buckeyes play this year will want to be able to say that they were able to knock off last year’s champs, and possibly keep them from repeating this year.
Today we are going to look at the toughest games on Ohio State’s schedule this year. Unlike last year, which started with a cupcake season opener against Akron, the Buckeyes will be tested early when they host Texas.
At least Ohio State will get a reprieve in their next two games when they welcome Grambling and Ohio to Ohio Stadium. Sorry to any Bobcat fans or alums reading this, but you’ll have to wait even longer to experience your first win over the Buckeyes.
There are five other games on Ohio State’s 2025 regular season schedule that I feel like could be tricky for the Buckeyes.
5) @ Washington – 9/27
No matter who starts at quarterback for the Buckeyes this year, their first road start is going to be a tough one. Even though Husky Stadium doesn’t hold 100,000 fans like Michigan or Penn State, it’s still not an easy place to play. Ohio State will have to travel across the country in one of the most scenic stadiums in college football.
Washington finished 6-6 in Jedd Fisch’s first year as head coach in Seattle. Last year the Huskies beat Michigan and USC at Husky Stadium, while falling just short of taking down Louisville in the Sun Bowl.
Washington has starting quarterback Demond Williams Jr. and starting running back Jonah Coleman back this year, which could cause trouble for a Buckeye defense that will have to replace a lot of starters from last year’s title team.
Will the Buckeyes lose this game? Probably not. It could be a lot closer than many are expecting it to be, though.
4) @ Wisconsin 10/18
If you’re looking at the results from Luke Fickell’s first two seasons in Madison, it might seem a little crazy to be worried about this game if you’re an Ohio State fan. What worries me about this game is it is the second of back-to-back road games for the Buckeyes, with the first being a road contest against Illinois.
After failing going just 12-13 in his first two seasons with the Badgers, Fickell is definitely going to have something to prove this year.
Leaving Madison with a victory is never an easy task. Last year Oregon came to Camp Randall Stadium as the top-ranked team in the country and barely escaped with a 16-13 victory. Even two years ago, the Buckeyes and Badgers were tied 10-10 in the third quarter before Ohio State scored a couple touchdowns to earn a 24-10 victory.
A lot is going to depend on how Wisconsin enters the mid-October game against the Buckeyes. Fickell’s team will be tested early on with road games against Alabama and Michigan before a home game against Iowa the week prior to the Ohio State game.
If Wisconsin could gel early on, they could be tougher than some might be expecting them to be in the Big Ten this year.
3) Texas 8/30
Is the season a failure if Ohio State loses their season opener against Texas? Not at all.
The Buckeyes survived a loss in the second game of the year back in 2014 when the CFP field was only four teams. Ohio State lost two games last year and still went on to win it all.
Still, a loss to the Longhorns is not how Ryan Day and company will want to open up their 2025 campaign.
Photo by Todd Kirkland/Getty Images
Both teams will come into this game breaking in new starting quarterbacks. The difference is Arch Manning at least has a little bit of experience in the spotlight since he saw some action last year when Quinn Ewers was injured. The atmosphere at Ohio Stadium will undoubtedly be unlike any he has seen before in his short time as starter, though.
Despite this being the season opener for both teams, the Longhorns and Buckeyes will be desperate to earn a win like this before the calendar turns to September to set the tone for a possible return trip to the College Football Playoff for both teams.
A loss to Texas will add to Ohio State’s questions for the 2025 season, especially if Julian Sayin or Lincoln Kienholz fail to live up to the moment.
2) @ Michigan 11/29
Most people probably figured that the Michigan game would take the top spot on this list after the Buckeyes have lost four straight to the Wolverines. While it’s the No. 1 game I want Ohio State to win on their regular season schedule this year, I don’t think it is going to be their toughest or trickiest contest.
Even though Ohio State has questions about who will be their starting quarterback this year, Michigan has even more uncertainty. The Wolverines did bring in Fresno State quarterback Mikey Keene in the transfer portal, but that is only a short-term solution in Ann Arbor.
The long-term answer is Bryce Underwood, who Michigan gave a big sack of NIL cash to so he would spurn LSU and join the Wolverines. Michigan fans may think Underwood is their next great quarterback, even though he still has yet to take a snap in a college game.
Much like Ohio State, Michigan has a lot of key personnel to replace on defense this year. The reason I’m not as worried about the Wolverines as I am another game on Ohio State’s 2025 schedule is coaching. After winning the national title last year, I feel like Ryan Day is going to have a little different philosophy heading into this year’s game, which will have his team playing a little more relaxed.
On the other side, I don’t think Sherrone Moore is all that good of a head coach and as Jim Harbaugh’s influence on the team fades with each recruiting class, you’ll see Moore’s seat start to get hotter.
1) Penn State 11/1
If there ever was a year for James Franklin to finally win a big game, this feels like it. The Nittany Lions return Drew Allar, Nicholas Singleton, and Kaytron Allen on offense.
The spice to this game was kicked up a couple notches when former Ohio State defensive coordinator Jim Knowles decided to leave Columbus for State College after winning a national title with the Buckeyes. While I can understand returning to your home state of Pennsylvania, there’s not a check big enough that could make me willingly move to State College.
Penn State always plays Ohio State tough. About once a decade the Nittany Lions find a way to pull one over on the Buckeyes. With the talent Franklin has returning to State College, this feels like a year that could see Penn State beat Ohio State. I would love to be wrong and see the Buckeyes beat Franklin and the Nittany Lions again and make the Penn State faithful doubt Franklin even more in big games.
It doesn’t help the Buckeyes that Knowles is now the enemy. Day could be hurt by now having to go up against someone he worked with for a few years, who knows his tendencies and habits. That’s probably why Franklin and Penn State threw a big bag at Knowles.
Even though the Nittany Lions will still have to win on the field, they certainly are exploring every avenue to try and upend Ohio State.