COLUMBUS, Ohio — The path to a national championship has never been more grueling in college football.
With the expanded playoff format, a Big Ten team must now win 16 games to go undefeated. As we watch Ohio State systematically dismantle opponents while maintaining a ruthless internal standard, a tantalizing question emerges: Could the Buckeyes become college football’s first-ever undefeated team in the 12-team playoff era?
“I looked up every undefeated team since the BCS started in 1998,” Stephen Means explained on a recent Buckeye Talk podcast. “Ohio State in 2002 is the first ever 14-0 team in college football history… In 2018, we have a new most wins in a single season: Clemson goes 15-0… Do we think we ever see 16-0?”
The historical progression is clear: from 13-0 champions in the early BCS era to 14-0 with the additional championship game, then to 15-0 in the four-team playoff era. The 16-0 mark represents the next frontier — one that no team in the modern era has conquered.
What makes Ohio State’s candidacy particularly compelling is the program’s culture. This isn’t just about having elite talent (though they certainly do). It’s about a mindset that refuses to accept complacency, even after dominant performances.
This mindset helps eliminate the random upset losses that typically derail seasons. When a team points out flaws in a 39-point win, they’re mentally prepared for any scenario, any opponent.
The obstacles are formidable, of course. There’s a physical toll of potentially playing 16 high-stakes games. The Michigan game looms as a psychological barrier coach Ryan Day must overcome. And the expanded playoff format means facing multiple top-tier opponents in succession to close the season.
Yet when analyzing potential pitfalls, one conclusion becomes increasingly clear:
“It is the cop-out answer, but the only way Ohio State doesn’t go undefeated is if it gets in its own way,” co-host Stefan Krajisnik noted. “It kind of feels that way, right? Like a game where Ohio State’s turning the ball over and not playing clean and a few things go this way or that way and now we’re talking about, ‘Oh, it’s a tie game in the fourth quarter.’”
Only a handful of programs have ever repeated as national champions in the modern era. None have done it while going undefeated in both seasons. And no team has ever faced the 16-game gauntlet that stands between Ohio State and immortality.
The question isn’t really whether a 16-0 season is possible in college football — it obviously is, mathematically. The real question is whether this particular Ohio State team, with its rare combination of talent, depth, coaching and psychological edge, is positioned to be the first to climb this next mountain in the sport’s landscape.
History awaits, and the Buckeyes appear uniquely equipped to make it.
Here’s the podcast for this week: