Ohio State 2026 Preview
The College Football Experience (@TCEonSGPN) on the Sports Gambling Podcast Network continues its 138 college football team preview series with the Ohio State Buckeyes 2026 Season Preview. Pick Dundee aka (@TheColbyD) & Ryan McIntyre (@Moneyline_Mac) break down the 2026 Ohio State Buckeyes roster and what to expect in the Big Ten this season. Can Ryan Day defend the national title after winning it all? And who steps up with so much talent off to the NFL?
Who takes over at quarterback for the Buckeyes in 2026? Can Ohio State reload on both lines the way it always seems to? Is the defense still the standard of the Big Ten? How does Ryan Day handle the pressure of a title defense in Columbus? Is Ohio Stadium and the Horseshoe still the toughest road trip in college football? How does the schedule break with Texas early, the Michigan rivalry and a loaded Big Ten slate? And where’s the betting value on the Ohio State Buckeyes win total, Big Ten odds and College Football Playoff chances? We talk it all and more on this episode of The College Football Experience.
Defending The National Title
The guys open where every Ohio State season now starts: at the top. Ryan Day sits at 82 wins and 12 losses as head coach, and last year he went 12-2 and finally won it all. First they cover what that title actually proved about his program. Then they weigh the pressure of defending it, because the Buckeyes never get a rebuilding year. So the bar is a championship, full stop. The one blemish is Michigan, where Day is just 2-4, and the guys do not let that slide.
Day has earned some grace, and the guys make that case. He beat Texas twice, he has gone 56-6 in Big Ten play, and he answered the biggest question by finishing the job. From there the crew gets into the Michigan problem, because that rivalry is the one thing standing between Day and total peace in Columbus. The roster reloads rather than rebuilds. The guys explain why the how, not the if, is the real story of this season. Everyone expects a playoff run.
Julian Sayin And A Loaded Offense
The offense returns the guy, and that changes everything. Julian Sayin, the reigning Big Ten Freshman of the Year, is back at quarterback with the job locked down. First the guys break down how high his ceiling is after a strong first run. Then they get into a unit that returns 71 percent of its production, one of the highest marks in the country, headlined by star receiver Jeremiah Smith and running back Bo Jackson. Coordinator Arthur Smith has a loaded room to work with.
Here is why the guys are so high on it. Ohio State ranked 21st in scoring last year, good but not elite, and now the whole thing comes back a year older. So the crew handicaps just how big a jump this offense makes with Sayin in year two. The line returns bodies too, which helps everything. The talent says this should be one of the best offenses in the country from the opening week. The bar is that high.
Matt Patricia And The Nation’s Best Defense
The defense was the best in the country, and now it has a new voice. Ohio State finished number one in total defense in 2025, and Matt Patricia takes over the unit this fall. First the guys dig into what Patricia inherits up front and in the back end. Then they get into the 50 percent returning production, because a pile of NFL defenders walked out the door. So the talent is elite, but the continuity resets to zero.
That gap is the whole conversation. Repeating as the nation’s best defense is a tall order with new coordinators and new starters, and the guys are honest about the regression risk. From there they weigh the returning core against everything Ohio State lost. The recruiting keeps the cupboard full. But the guys stress that a top-ten defense, not a number-one defense, is the fair bet while Patricia installs his system. That is still elite.
The Horseshoe And The Standard
It would not be a College Experience preview without the gameday talk, and Ohio Stadium delivers. The Horseshoe gets the full love, from the sheer scale of it to the sea of scarlet on a fall Saturday in Columbus. First the guys make the case that it belongs near the very top of any road-trip list. Then they get into the program history, rattling off the legends and traditions that make this a crown jewel of the sport. The atmosphere segment alone is worth the listen.
Then the identity talk takes over. Ohio State football is a way of life in that state, and the guys break down why the fan base carries itself the way it does. From there they hit the old-school Big Ten pride and the sense that this is college football’s castle. They stack the Buckeyes against the rest of the sport on pure gravity. And they explain why a night game in the Horseshoe hits different than almost anywhere else. It is a bucket-list stop.
The 2026 Schedule And Win Total
The slate does the Buckeyes no favors. A revenge date with Texas lands in week two, and Day is 2-0 against the Longhorns, so the guys map how that rematch sets the tone. First they walk through the road tests, including a trip to Iowa’s Kinnick and a swing out to face USC. Then they get into the back half, where Indiana and the Michigan finale loom. So the middle of this schedule decides whether Ohio State cruises or sweats. Every week brings a real test.
Then they close it out where it counts. The guys weigh a loaded roster against one of the toughest schedules in the country and lock in their lean on the Ohio State win total. From there they map the ceiling of another title run against the floor of two or three losses in a brutal league. They tell you where the betting value sits on the Big Ten odds this season. And they hand you the number they trust heading into the fall in Columbus. That lean ships before week one.
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Podcast Chapters
00:00 Download the SGPN App Today!
02:07 Hosts And Buckeye Hype
06:22 Ohio State Is Football
09:22 Helmets And Stadium Talk
11:37 2024 Title Run Recap
13:07 Ryan Day Hot Seat Debate
16:07 Day Versus The Legends
21:22 Offense And Arthur Smith
26:37 QB Question And Next Step
31:52 Defense And Matt Patricia
35:37 Columbus And Gameday
41:37 Buckeye Legends Roll Call
46:07 Schedule And The Texas Test
53:37 Big Ten Road Gauntlet
59:37 Win Total And Playoff Picks
1:07:52 Wrap Up And Outro
