COLUMBUS — Ohio State is putting together one of the best, on-paper, defensive line recruiting hauls it's ever had in the Class of 2027. That continued on Monday with the commitment of high-four-star tackle/edge Marcus Fakatou.

Fakatou, who will play …

Read more

COLUMBUS — Ohio State vs. Michigan is a maximum rivalry. Create whatever scale you want, use any categories, the Buckeyes vs. the Wolverines gives you everything you could ask for.

As we discussed on a recent Wednesday episode of The Bill and Doug Show, can Ohio State have a second rival? A rotating rival? An opponent that over a period of time — five years, 10, 20 — plays enough interesting, competitive, meaningful, antagonistic games against the Buckeyes that the matchups become about more than just that game?

Can Ohio State have another opponent that the Buckeyes and their fans don’t just want to beat because it’s part of the season, but also beat because they just don’t like those guys?

I think the answer is yes. Over my time covering the Buckeyes, especially when Ohio State was drubbing Michigan and going 15-1 against the Wolverines between 2004 and 2019, I was always on the lookout for a second rival.

I asked Urban Meyer about banning green in the Woody Hayes Athletic Center when Michigan State beat the Buckeyes three times in five years in 2011, 2013 and 2015. There was the dual-sport Wisconsin rivalry when Bret Bielema and Bo Ryan annoyed Ohio State in the early 2000s. There was Dabo Swinney being Dabo Swinney when Clemson faced the Buckeyes in postseason games after the 2013, 2016, 2019 and 2020 seasons.

The rivalries didn’t last, didn’t embed themselves in the consciousness of Ohio State fans. But during those eras, I’d argue the matchups went beyond individual games and leaned toward something that invoked some proximity, history, familiarity, stakes and/or personality — the five categories we used to break down possible rivals.

As we said on the show, Indiana and Oregon could be burgeoning rivals for Ohio State. The Buckeyes have dominated the Hoosiers forever, but they’ve split with Curt Cignetti the last two years, they have a massive game in October, and Cignetti is the type of guy that could annoy the opposition. This could become a rivalry for the Cignetti era if the stakes remain high.

With Oregon, the Buckeyes are 4-2 against the Ducks over the last 17 years. That started with a Rose Bowl win to conclude the 2009 season and continued with the national title victory to end the 2014 season. Then Oregon won in Columbus in 2021 and in Eugene in 2024, and the Buckeyes embarrassed Oregon in a Rose Bowl quarterfinal on their way to the 2024 title.

Now they’ll play again in Columbus in November.

We’ll check on those rivalry possibilities after the Buckeyes get through the Hoosiers and Ducks this season.

For now, I present a more detailed look at five other rivals this century that I mentioned on the show. I created a score of Rival Points to judge them. Think of this as Michigan setting the maximum standard in each category.

• Proximity (5 points) — Are you near each other geographically or intimately linked in another way?

• History (5 points) — Is there something from the wayback machine that adds to modern-day feelings?

• Familiarity (10 points) — How often are you playing now and how well do you know these guys?

• Stakes (10 points) — How much do the games matter in the big picture? Are they affecting the national championship race?

• Personality (10 points) — Are there people on the other side (primarily coaches) that get under the skin of Ohio State fans and add to the rivalry through annoyance?

I didn’t necessarily includ every game the Buckeyes have played against some of these rivals. I only used the era when the rivalry was really thriving. Some eras have ended. Some haven’t. But the list of games I used shows you the time period in which the rivalry was really popping.

The max Rival Points is 40. Here are my Top 5 candidates for second Ohio State rival in the modern era. There’s a question at the bottom to vote for the team you think should be No. 1.

Read more

COLUMBUS — We have two Whatcha discussions coming up where we need your help. It’s fast food and it’s movies.

First, Bill and I are going to have a fast food discussion based on the 2026 American Customer Satisfaction Index. It rated the most popular chains in fast food and sit-down restaurants.

We have two things to ask along those lines.

First, what chain restaurant is your ride or die? Which place do you really love? In the comments, give us your one chain restaurant and why you love it — fast food, fast casual or sit-down.

Second, here are a few survey questions based on the ACSI chain rankings.

Read more

Those include:

• The commitment of Caden Moss

• Chaz Coleman leaving Tennessee

• Is there anyone we would trade Jeremiah Smith for?

• What’s our perfect 4th of July?

• If Ryan Day was abducted by aliens, who would coach Ohio State this season?

• Did the college football video game get the OSU ratings right?

• Pros and cons of being independent media

• Would we have taken Dusty May at Ohio State?

• When would we let our kids play football?

• Can fans use “we”?

• What we like and don’t like about Big Ten Media Days

Read more

COLUMBUS — It was beginning to look like Ohio State may never land an offensive line prospect like Caden Moss again. OK, that’s dramatic. But his profile, a top-100 prospect in the offensive trenches from outside of Ohio/the Buckeyes’ Midwest footprint, had been frustratingly elusive going on six recruiting cycles.

No more.

Moss, the No. 43 overall player in the 2027 recruiting class and the No. 1 player in Mississippi, committed to Ohio State on Friday night. He chose the Buckeyes over the home-state school, Ole Miss, as well as Kentucky, Oregon, Tennessee, and LSU. He’s the sixth player in a massive offensive line haul this cycle for position coach Tyler Bowen. It was a quality class before Moss’ commitment, but this one signals something different.

Ohio State has not signed a top-100 offensive lineman from outside of Ohio since landing Donovan Jackson in 2021. It’s taken big swings on top-flight prospects from far-flung places since then, and missed every time. That was the biggest red flag on the resume of the previous offensive line coach, Justin Frye, and Bowen was hired to change that. In his second year recruiting for OSU, Bowen got the job done.

Read more

COLUMBUS — This is for posterity, so that you can tell me how wrong my offseason opinions were when everyone in Ohio State’s 2026 transfer class is thriving in the fall.

In case you missed it earlier this week, we talked about transfers on our Wednesday subscriber show: What we think of OSU’s class, how it compares to the classes of some other national title contenders, and, ultimately, what kind of impact we expect this group to have. Doug and I then drafted the class based on who we think will perform best and who we’re most confident will play meaningful roles.

You can listen to that whole show here.

Consider this a companion piece, because I wanted to get down in writing my full 1-18 projections for this class. You’ll notice that it doesn’t entirely reflect the outcome of our draft, but that’s because my mind was changed by some of our discussion.

At any rate, here are my rankings for you to bookmark and throw back in my face sometime this fall.

18. Brady Young, P, Houston Christian

Young isn’t a real threat to challenge Joe McGuire for the starting punting job, which means he’s a backup punter, which means he’s last on this list.

17. Vasean Washington, OL, Dartmouth

He wasn’t a multi-year starter at Dartmouth. He’s going to be a depth piece here.

16. Justyn Martin, QB, Maryland

It’s nice to have an old QB3, and Martin is in his fifth year. But he doesn’t have much game experience. He’s appeared in six games with one start over three years at UCLA and one at Maryland.

15. Dalton Riggs, LS, Central Florida

He’s a good long snapper. He’ll be the starter. That’s why he’s not last.

Read more

COLUMBUS — Ohio State athletic director Ross Bjork met with reporters (I counted 27 media members in the room) for more than an hour Thursday morning. The impetus was a summer state-of-the-department address on Ohio State athletics and everything happening in college sports.

It was held in the Jack Nicklaus Museum, a place on campus that once upon a time hosted our regular weekly coach news conferences. For those of us who have covered this team for 15 years or more, the last time we could remember being in there for a media event was the infamous March 2011 news conference with Gordon Gee, Gene Smith and Jim Tressel, in the midst of Tattoogate, when Gee, as university president, said he just hoped Tressel wouldn’t fire him.

That was not a harbinger of things to come Thursday. The building isn’t cursed. There were two major paths of Bjork topics — those specific to what’s happening at Ohio State, and those addressing the broader context of how Ohio State views the changing college landscape.

Bill and I talked about both (big-picture first) on this episode of The Bill and Doug Show. But I wanted distill the most salient Ohio State bits of information for you here. Away we go.

Read more

How does Ohio State’s transfer group compare to other national title contenders like Notre Dame, Texas, Indiana, Oregon, Georgia and Miami?

How many transfers should wind up among Ohio State’s most important players compared to past years?

And then, which OSU transfers will make the biggest impact this season? Bill and Doug draft the 17 portal Buckeyes.

Plus Whatcha on chicken finger subs, Toy Story 5, World Cup replay, chips vs. fries, insect collections and more.

Read more

COLUMBUS — Ohio State’s last regular-season win over USC occurred on Oct. 17, 1964, when Woody Hayes and the No. 2 Buckeyes hosted the Trojans in Ohio Stadium and shut them out 17-0.

Since then, the Buckeyes are 3-8 against USC, with the three wins in bowl games. That’s not usually how these things work for the Buckeyes.

Overall, Ohio State is 10-13-1 all-time against the Trojans, their worst record against any opponent they’ve played at least five times.

The only other program the Buckeyes have played at least five times and have a losing record against? Michigan.

That make you a little mad? A little fired up for Ohio State’s trip to Los Angeles on Oct. 31? How about the fact that the last time the Buckeyes visited the Trojans, they got blown off the field 35-3 in 2008?

USC hasn’t finished in the Top 10 of the final AP rankings since 2016. Ohio State has been in the Top 10 every one of those seasons. But if you’d like to get a little ticked off at the Trojans before this one kicks off, there’s enough there for you to do it.

Previous schedule breakdowns

Week 1: Ball State

Week 2: Texas

Week 3: Kent State

Week 4: Illinois

Week 5: Iowa

Week 6: Maryland

Week 7: Indiana

Week 8: Off

USC Trojans

Ohio State opponent No. 8

Oct. 31, time TBA, at Los Angeles Coliseum

2025 stats

• 16 out of 136 teams in final SP+ ratings (No. 9 offense, No. 36 defense)

• 13 in FEI ratings (No. 3 offense, No. 50 defense)

• 5 in adjusted EPA/play (No. 3 offense, No. 63 defense)

• Scored 35.8 ppg (No. 13), allowed 23.0 ppg (51)

History vs. Buckeyes

What would Woody Hayes think?

Read more

We’re talking transfers on this week’s Wednesday subscriber-only podcast, and we want your input. The plan is for Doug and me to draft Ohio State’s 2026 incoming transfer class according to who we think will make the biggest impact this fall. I’ll plan to rank all …

Read more

You shared stories of your fathers and father figures, and stories of passing your Ohio State fandom to your kids, and Doug grabbed them, read them, and tried not to cry.

(There’s also just one football question, because you knew this was going to be a feelings show.)

Read more

COLUBMBUS — We did it for Mother’s Day, so now let’s do it for Father’s Day.

I’m handling a Solo Sessions pod this weekend, and I would love for you to share any Ohio State memories, or other sports memories, that you have about your father, grandfather, uncle or any other father figure in your life.

Did he help make you a Buckeye fan? Take you to games? Throw a football in the yard?

And, by the way, there’s still time to get the gift of BAD for your dad. You can give a year’s subscription to The Bill and Doug Show for 25 percent off the usual price. That special will run through Father’s Day.

Annual Gift Subscriptions are now 25% off

Get 25% off for 1 year

Read more

COLUMBUS — Brady Edmunds the student, Brady Edmunds the kid, Brady Edmunds the fan — he just wants to go to Ohio State.

If only it was that easy.

If Edmunds was eight inches shorter, or if he poured himself into pickleball instead of football, he might be preparing to apply to Ohio State as a senior in high school, maybe thinking about playing some club football or intramurals in Columbus if he got accepted.

“This is a place I’ve always kind of wanted to be at throughout my whole entire life, whether it was football or not,” Edmunds said Thursday after a recruiting camp at Ohio State. “Before I even started taking football seriously, I wanted to just be a student here, when I was like in fourth grade or whatever.

“There’s definitely an emotional aspect there.”

Read more

COLUMBUS — The 32-team bracket after morning pool play at Ohio State’s 7-on-7 camp Wednesday had two teams on the top lines on opposite sides. A chance for a championship matchup between 2027 Ohio State quarterback commit Brady Edmunds and 5-star 2028 quarterback, and Ohio State target, Christopher Vargas was possible.

How interesting it would be to watch those two share a field, with Ryan Day and every member of the Ohio State coaching staff watching.

It didn’t happen.

But it was almost as interesting to see Vargas square off in the final against a Columbus DeSales team quarterbacked by RJ Day, the son of the Ohio State coach, with Edmunds watching beside those OSU coaches.

On an outdoor field at the Woody Hayes Athletic Center, Day threw two touchdown passes in the 20-minute final, but Vargas threw three, including one to OSU 2027 receiver commit Jamier Brown, to lead Team 24K to victory.

If you’d like to watch the two quarterbacks in action, here’s a cutup of their most important throws. You’ll see Ryan Day and other coaches looking on behind them — and the big blond kid with them is Edmunds.

You’ll also see the comparison between a Class of 2027 quarterback committed to Northwestern in RJ Day, and a 5-star quarterback who is viewed as either the No. 1 or No. 2 QB in the Class of 2028 in Vargas.

Read more

Does that mean we could be looking at a burgeoning rivalry in the Big Ten?

On this big Wednesday episode of The Bill and Doug Show, Bill Landis and Doug Lesmerises run through your answers to our survey on what you think of Indiana head coach Curt Cignetti and Indiana football.

The discussion then turns to Ohio State’s history of second rivals, where Penn State has fit in that mix, and which team is best positioned now to serve as rival No. 2 for Ohio State over the next several years.

If there can even be a second rival. Does the intensity and history of the Michigan rivalry make that impossible?

Read more

COLUMBUS — Ohio State held its third of four one-day recruiting camps on Tuesday, with the fourth coming Thursday. I was there with a pen.

1. Ohio State continues to pour a lot into defensive line recruiting, with DJ Jacobs, the Buckeyes’ five-star headliner in the Class of 2027, taking his official visit over the weekend. The No. 4 overall recruit in the 247sports composite rankings for 2027 posted photos from his Columbus photo shoot on Instagram with a caption labeled “home.”

Tuesday, another five-star defensive lineman was on campus in 2028 prospect Tyzon Swann, the No. 5 overall recruit in that class according to the 247sports composite.

Swann also recently visited USC and Michigan, and told reporters good things about those schools. But after working out at Ohio State’s camp on Tuesday, when asked for teams on his list, he mentioned the Buckeyes, Florida, Alabama and Auburn.

The Buckeyes already have the No. 4 interior defensive lineman in the Class of 2028 committed in Dayton’s Jameer Whyce. They had the No. 2 lineman, Kentucky’s Kellan Hall, at a camp last week.

A Whyce-Hall-Swann trio seems impossible — that would be too many resources at one position. But adding Hall or Swann to a Whyce commit would be a major, but possible, haul. And Swann knows his Buckeyes.

Read more

COLUMBUS — Last season’s Big Ten Championship Game matchup between Ohio State and Indiana was a No. 1 vs. No. 2 showdown. This season’s game in Bloomington on Oct. 17 could be a 1-2 banger as well.

Ohio State at Indiana might be the biggest game of college football’s 2026 regular season.

By virtually every metric, Ohio State will play a Top 5 schedule this season, and this visit to the Hoosiers is the middle game of what should be their three toughest challenges.

There’s at Texas on Sept. 12; at Indiana on Oct. 17; and home vs. Oregon on Nov. 7.

If the Buckeyes beat the Longhorns and Hoosiers, they’ll be the odds-on natty favorites. Lose both, and talk will begin about whether the Buckeyes are in danger of missing the playoff. Split those two, and it’s another typical year of Ohio State football where the Buckeyes great.

The seventh game of the season for Ohio State is when opinions will harden. Texas, Iowa and Indiana will be in the books, and USC, Oregon and Michigan will be ahead.

We’ll have a good idea of what the Buckeyes are, because Curt Cignetti and the defending national champion Hoosiers will tell us.

Previous schedule breakdowns

Week 1: Ball State

Week 2: Texas

Week 3: Kent State

Week 4: Illinois

Week 5: Iowa

Week 6: Maryland

Indiana Hoosiers

Ohio State opponent No. 7

Oct. 17, time TBA, at Memorial Stadium

Read more

The usual Sunday Soundoff is dropping on Friday, as Doug and Bill answer a fun variety of questions on:

• Ohio State’s projected offensive line starters for this season

• Whether the 2026 Buckeyes will be motivated after a rough end to the previous season, just like the 2014, 2020 and 2024 Buckeyes were

• What we think of the World Cup

• Thoughts on the Brendan Sorsby saga

• Food to eat on Iowa and Nebraska road trips

• Will any college get sick of paying for a competitive football team in this era?

• What we like and don’t like about baseball

Read more

So, you are trying to figure out what to give your dad for Father’s Day. The Bill and Doug Show is here to help. If your dad is the one who taught you to be an Ohio State fan, he will love getting year-round Buckeye coverage delivered straight into his inbox.

Annual Gift Subscriptions are now 25% off

Get 25% off for 1 year

Bill Landis and Doug Lesmerises are two of the most trusted and experienced writers covering Ohio State. Together, Bill and Doug have been covering Buckeye football for over 30 years.

An annual subscription is typically $100, but from now through Father’s Day (June 21 in case you forgot), you can send it as a gift for $75.

A subscription gives your dad access to daily articles and exclusive ad-free podcasts twice a week. He will also be able to join Bill and Doug for their live pregame preview and postgame reaction shows.

With a subscription, your dad will join a community of educated, dedicated, and loyal Buckeye fans. He can join the subscriber chat, where Bill and Doug interact with subscribers, post Ohio State breaking news, and give fans a space to share their questions and opinions.

Some of Bill and Doug’s recent work includes looking ahead to the 2026 season by previewing each game on the Buckeyes’ schedule and continuously updating a 2027 recruiting class tracker, so your dad can stay up to date with all new commits and recruiting visits.

This Father’s Day, give your dad a gift he’ll actually use: smarter Ohio State coverage.

Get 25% off for 1 year

Subscriber Testimonials

Robert: You guys are the best in the business at providing fair and unbiased information on Ohio St football.

Matt: I love the work you both do on Ohio State Football. You, hands down, have the best commentary and dialogue of any Buckeyes podcast.

Mike: I listen to about a half dozen Buckeye-football-related podcasts and about as many national college football podcasts, too. You guys are by far the best.

Kade: Never bought a podcast subscription before, but you two genuinely made me a better, more informed fan, and I love listening to/reading your stuff. Thanks for all you do and for being the best informers for fans.

James: Your content is knowledgeable, thorough, and fair; very well-balanced. I learn a lot about the team and feel well-informed by the material you provide each week. You are two of the best journalists out there. Thank you for all that you do!

COLUMBUS — Firing off a couple of June Ohio State football thoughts on summer workouts, recruiting, and prospect camps.

1. I showed up at the Woody Hayes Athletic Center an hour early for Thursday’s prospect camp, hoping to get a glimpse of some current players going through summer workouts. I was rewarded with a 30-minute viewing window of a group of players (probably 30 or so) going through the paces under new full-time assistant strength coach Anthony Schlegel.

To be clear, these guys weren’t playing football. They were throwing sandbags and medicine balls and running sprints. It wasn’t the most enlightening 30 minutes, but it was noteworthy to me that two offensive linemen, Austin Siereveld and Josh Padilla, were full participants.

Read more