OSU’s last West Coast trip sucked. They fell to Oregon at Autzen in what was a final-possession game. 32-31, read the scoreline before the whistle was heard. On that last play, Will Howard wanted to move the ball a bit into the striking field goal distance in order to make it easier for the kicker. But amidst that, the last scramble ended as time bled out and the upset slipped away. The environment, the noise, the late game management, everything mattered in that heartbreak. And that’s exactly what OSU is changing this time around.
OSU is altering the script this season, and Dan Hope reported it. “Ohio State will travel to Washington on Thursday. The Buckeyes traveled on Friday for their regular-season trip to Oregon last year,” Hope’s X post relayed. Ryan Day’s rationale? This “gives the Buckeyes the best chance to play at our maximum level.” Leaving a day sooner buys time for the body clock to adjust, and there is no travel fog clouding the decisions of the players on the field. It will also give the staff a full day at the site to practice communication, count mechanics, and just make them familiar with the environment they’ll face on game day.
If OSU wants to defend the natty, this is exactly the type of preparation they should be doing. The devil is in the details, and stealing back a couple of beats that went missing in Eugene makes a tangible difference. An earlier departure, an earlier practice window, and a full day to settle can make communication sharper and execution crispier. Last year’s lesson in Eugene was that every second matters, and this year’s answer is to buy back every last second they can get to win.