College Football: 10 Teams who could dethrone Clemson and Alabama
1. Ohio State
Urban Meyer retired, and Dwayne Haskins declared for the draft, providing plenty of adversity for Ohio State to overcome in 2019. Those losses are huge, and it’s enough to cast a shadow of doubt on the Buckeyes’ ability to win the Big Ten for the third straight season and make it back to the playoff after a two-year absence.
There’s plenty of optimism about Ryan Day as he takes over as head coach, drawing comparisons to Oklahoma’s Lincoln Riley as Ohio State hopes they hit a similar home run. Help is on the way at QB as well, with Georgia transfer Justin Fields opting to join the Buckeyes. He is pursuing a hardship waiver for immediate eligibility, and he has a legitimate case for doing so. He’ll battle Tate Martell for the starting job.
Regardless of who is under center, Ohio State will need to replace three starters on their offensive line. They’ll lose some talent at the skill positions with the departures of receivers Parris Campbell and Terry McLaurin as well as RB Mike Weber, but there’s still plenty of talent to go around.
Rising junior J.K. Dobbins is a 1000 yard rusher and one of the best backs in the entire country. Talented receivers K.J. Hill and Binjimen Victor are primed for more featured roles.
The Buckeyes’ recruiting class has slipped from their typical heights, currently ranking 14th in the 247 composites. They still have three five-star prospects headlined by DE Zach Harrison who should fight for immediate playing time.
Ohio State’s non-conference slate is more than manageable with no power-five opponents. Their toughest game out-of-conference is against Cincinnati in Columbus. The Big Ten slate is just as manageable as well, with most of their toughest games coming at the Horseshoe.
They host both Wisconsin and Penn State, but they do have to go to Michigan to finish the regular season in a game that will likely once again decide the Big Ten East. They also face a potentially tricky road game against what is likely to be a much improved Nebraska at the end of September.
dark. Next. Top 5 transfer destinations for Jalen Hurts
It remains to be seen whether Ryan Day will keep Ohio State at the same level Meyer had them at, but the immediate future for the Buckeyes is bright as they figure to seriously challenge Clemson and Alabama for the national title in 2019.