The Ohio State Buckeyes are one of the most storied programs in college football history, but that simply means that expectations are always high in Columbus.

Head coach Ryan Day can win 10 games per season until the end of time, but it won’t matter if he doesn’t win a national championship at the end.

Ohio State has the opportunity to raise the trophy at the end of the 2024 College Football Playoff. They dominated Tennessee and Oregon in the first round and quarterfinals. If they can win two more games, they will sit atop the CFB mountaintop.

It would mark their first championship in a decade.

The Buckeyes last won a championship in 2014. Urban Meyer’s team defeated the Alabama Crimson Tide and the Oregon Ducks in the inaugural College Football Playoff.

Cardale Jones and Ezekiel Elliott led the offense, with Joey Bosa leading a star-studded defense.

Since its 42-20 title game victory, Ohio State has only competed for the championship once. That occurred in 2020, Ryan Day’s second season in charge. After winning the Sugar Bowl, they were thoroughly beaten by Alabama 52-24.

List of Ohio State’s claimed national championships

Ohio State claims eight national titles.

In addition to their claimed titles, the Buckeyes were named national champions by other selectors in 1933, 1944, 1969, 1973, 1974, 1975, and 2006.

Ohio State has a 4-4 record in the College Football Playoffs. A win over Oregon in the Rose Bowl would put them at 5-4.

The Buckeyes won the first two playoff games in 2014, but then lost the next two. They lost to Clemson in 2016 and 2019, first as a No. 3 seed and then as a No. 2.

They exacted their revenge on the Tigers in 2020. A narrow loss to Georgia in 2022 eliminated them from contention. They began the 2024 playoffs with a first-round victory over Tennessee.

SOURCE