{"id":215257,"date":"2025-09-10T10:28:11","date_gmt":"2025-09-10T10:28:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/215257\/"},"modified":"2025-09-10T10:28:11","modified_gmt":"2025-09-10T10:28:11","slug":"is-ohio-states-next-opponent-a-college-football-playoff-contender-it-could-be-for-now","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/215257\/","title":{"rendered":"Is Ohio State\u2019s next opponent a College Football Playoff contender? It could be \u2014 for now"},"content":{"rendered":"

COLUMBUS, Ohio \u2014 Texas and Indiana pulled off never-before-seen feats in the College Football Playoff<\/a> last season.<\/p>\n

Each state got two teams into the postseason. The former had Texas and SMU get in, while the latter had Notre Dame and Indiana.<\/p>\n

The implementation of the 12-team format opened the door for states to easily get multiple teams in \u2014 something never accomplished during the four-team era (2014-23).<\/p>\n

Ohio got close four years ago, showing it\u2019s possible for the Buckeye State. However, could Ohio shoot even higher?<\/p>\n

Could Ohio get three teams into the CFP, whether it be under the current 12-team format or a future expanded field? <\/p>\n

As Ohio State<\/a> prepares to host Ohio<\/a> for a Week 3 matchup Saturday (7 p.m., Peacock), we explored the possibility. While difficult, there\u2019s a path, for now, for the football-loving state to set a CFP record.<\/p>\n

Have two Ohio teams ever made a single College Football Playoff?<\/b><\/p>\n

Cincinnati football had a magical run to open this decade. After a 9-1 campaign in 2020, the Bearcats went undefeated the following regular season, including a win against a top-10 Notre Dame team, and won the American Conference.<\/p>\n

Under Luke Fickell, who was in his fifth of six seasons coaching the program, Cincinnati became the first non-Power Five team \u2014 with the exception of Notre Dame \u2014 to make the four-team field.<\/p>\n

Ohio State, which made half of the 10 four-team fields, didn\u2019t make the cut. OSU lost an early-season matchup against Oregon, but with a win vs. Michigan to close the season, the Buckeyes still could\u2019ve gotten in.<\/p>\n

Instead, Ohio State lost the rivalry matchup and the Wolverines got into the CFP alongside Alabama, Georgia and Cincinnati. <\/p>\n

Ohio State finished at No. 6 in the final CFP rankings, marking the closest Ohio has ever come to having multiple teams in the bracket.<\/p>\n

\"PlayoffCincinnati made the 2021 College Football Playoff.Getty Images<\/p>\n

The Bearcats and Buckeyes still hold the most likely route to getting multiple Ohio teams into the CFP. Cincinnati could earn an automatic bid by winning the Big 12, or it could earn an at-large spot.<\/p>\n

For a third Ohio team to get in, multiple things would have to align. <\/p>\n

Could a MAC team make the College Football Playoff?<\/b><\/p>\n

Ohio has eight Football Bowl Subdivision programs which could qualify for the CFP. Ohio State represents the Big Ten while Cincinnati is in the Big 12.<\/p>\n

The other six schools \u2014 Ohio, Toledo, Bowling Green<\/a>, Akron, Kent State and Miami \u2014 are in the Mid-American Conference. There is essentially only one route for those programs to get into the CFP.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe most direct path is to win a conference championship and be one of the top five conference champions,\u201d CFP executive director Richard Clark said at a panel in Bowling Green last month.<\/p>\n

\"BowlingBOWLING GREEN, OHIO – AUGUST 28: Executive Director of the College Football Playoff Lieutenant General Richard Clark speaks next to Mid-American Conference Commissioner Dr. Jon Steinbrecherduring the “Significance of College Football in America” panel at Bowling Green State University on August 28, 2025 in Bowling Green, Ohio. (Photo by Isaiah Vazquez\/Getty Images)Getty Images<\/p>\n

The conference champions from the Big Ten, SEC, Big 12 and ACC get an automatic bid into the 12-team field. The same goes for the highest-ranked Group of Five champion, which is made up of the MAC, American, Sun Belt, Mountain West and Conference USA.<\/p>\n

Boise State, with a 12-1 record, was the nation\u2019s ninth-ranked team in the final CFP poll last year. As Mountain West champs and the highest-ranked G5 team, the Broncos got in.<\/p>\n

Western Michigan would have held the position in 2016 had the 12-team format existed, proving it could happen for a MAC school. If Ohio, for example, accomplished the feat while Cincinnati and Ohio State cracked the field, three in-state schools could make the CFP together.<\/p>\n

The chances of that happening this year are slim. Cincinnati, as a rebuilding Big 12 program, has a 1% chance of making the CFP, according to ESPN\u2019s College Football Power Index<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Ohio, thanks to a win against West Virginia, has the best odds (3.5%) of representing the MAC in the CFP. Toledo (2.4%) and Bowling Green (0.1%) are next in line.<\/p>\n

These formulas could change in the near future as expansion discussions toward 14 or 16 teams continue.<\/p>\n

What does the future hold for MAC teams?<\/b><\/p>\n

The power dynamic of college football could eliminate any hope of seeing three Ohio teams together in a single CFP.<\/p>\n

Despite hundreds of millions of dollars in revenue, some major athletic departments operate at a deficit. The start of the revenue sharing era only makes it tougher, even at schools such as Ohio State. <\/p>\n

AD Ross Bjork<\/a> has 36 sports to maintain, and cutting that number isn\u2019t a preferred option. <\/p>\n

\u201cThe alumni base will not let that happen,\u201d Urban Meyer<\/a> said at the BGSU panel.<\/p>\n

\"OhioRoss Bjork is in his second year as Ohio State’s athletic director. Getty Images<\/p>\n

Meyer used Michigan as an example of an athletic department struggling to keep its head \u201cabove water.\u201d <\/p>\n

The Wolverines were projected to face a deficit of nearly $27 million in the 2025-26 fiscal year, and that was before the NCAA came down on UM with financial penalties for the sign-stealing scandal.<\/p>\n

The job for athletic directors at major programs is to generate enough revenue. Those in charge will look out for their programs before they start looking out for those in the MAC. <\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s a proud university (Michigan),\u201d Meyer said. \u201cThey don\u2019t have time to worry about Texas Tech right now or Memphis State.<\/p>\n

\u201c…I just worry about at some point, it\u2019s a business, right? And if businesses lose money, then you either close the business, or you\u2019ve got to adapt.\u201d<\/p>\n

The current CFP structure makes it difficult for three Ohio teams to crack the field. Schools in the Big Ten and SEC won\u2019t make it any easier.<\/p>\n

\u201cOhio State\u2019s a monster,\u201d Meyer said. \u201cYou have 36 sports. You have an alumni base that\u2019s arguably the biggest in the country. Quite honestly, they don\u2019t care about anything else other than Ohio State.\u201d<\/p>\n

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