Ohio State: No. 1 Or No. 2 In Preseason
Here is a look at the previous instances where Ohio State was No. 1 or No. 2 in the preseason AP poll:
* 1958, No. 1 – Ohio State was coming off a 9-1 national championship season in 1957. But coach Woody Hayes' team went 6-1-2 in 1958 with ties vs. Wisconsin and Purdue and a loss at Northwestern. OSU was eighth in the final AP poll.
* 1962, No. 2 – Again, OSU was highly rated after going 8-0-1 and snagging a "splinter" national championship in 1961. OSU went just 6-3, however, and was unranked in the final poll in 1962
* 1969, No. 1 – Ohio State had many of the key players back from its 10-0 national championship team from 1968. The Buckeyes had reeled off 22 straight wins from late 1967 until dropping the 1969 season finale at Michigan, 24-12. That bitter defeat came in Michigan coach Bo Schembechler's first taste as a head coach in the rivalry and likely denied OSU a second straight national title. The Buckeyes finished 8-1 overall and fourth in the final AP poll.
* 1970, No. 1 – OSU came back the following year as the preseason No. 1 again. The Buckeyes completed a perfect 9-0 regular season with a 20-9 win over Michigan. They received a "splinter" national championship from the National Football Foundation based on the regular season. But they were upset by No. 12 Stanford (and QB Jim Plunkett) 27-17 in the Rose Bowl. The team finished 9-1 and was ranked fifth in the final AP poll.
* 1980, No. 1 – OSU had reached the No. 1 spot during a perfect 11-0 regular season in 1979 before losing to USC in a heartbreaker in the Rose Bowl and finishing fourth in the final 1979 poll. With quarterback Art Schlichter back for his junior year, OSU was installed at No. 1 to start 1980. But the Buckeyes lost at home to UCLA and Michigan and also fell to Penn State in the Fiesta Bowl. Ending up 9-3, the 1980 Buckeyes were 15th in the final AP poll.
* 1998, No. 1 – Ohio State had a loaded roster with QB Joe Germaine, WR David Boston, LB Andy Katzenmoyer and CB Antoine Winfield, among others. The team reeled off eight straight wins to open the season. But, playing at home as a four-touchdown favorite, OSU was upset by Michigan State 28-24. The loss knocked OSU out of the running for the first-ever BCS National Championship Game. OSU rebounded and defeated Michigan and then Texas A&M in the Sugar Bowl to finish 11-1 and ranked No. 2 behind unbeaten Tennessee in the final AP poll.
* 2003, No. 2 – Coming off the national championship season in 2002, the Buckeyes had many of those players returning and were pegged at No. 2 in the preseason. But the 2003 team lost road games at Wisconsin and Michigan. The team finished 11-2 overall and ranked fourth in the final AP poll.
* 2006, No. 1 – Led by eventual Heisman Trophy winner Troy Smith at quarterback, the Buckeyes won their first 12 games – including a 42-39 win over Michigan in a one-versus-two game – as part of a larger 19-game winning streak. But the dream of a national championship was dashed as No. 2 Florida blasted OSU 41-14 in the BCS National Championship Game in Arizona. The team finished 12-1 and ranked No. 2 in the final poll.
* 2008, No. 2 – This season went sideways in Week 3 with a 35-3 loss at No. 1 USC. Terrelle Pryor stepped in for Todd Boeckman at quarterback. There were also losses at home to Penn State and to Texas in the Fiesta Bowl as this team ended up 10-3 and ranked ninth in the final AP poll.
* 2010, No. 2 – OSU actually rose to No. 1 in the AP poll just in time for an Oct. 16 game at Wisconsin. But the 18th-ranked Badgers pulled off the 31-18 upset. The Buckeyes won out from there, including a Sugar Bowl win over Arkansas to finish 12-1 overall and fifth in the final AP poll. This season was vacated later due to NCAA sanctions.
* 2013, No. 2 – Coming off a perfect 12-0 season in 2012 when OSU was serving a postseason ban, Urban Meyer's second team won its first 12 games to push its winning streak to 24 straight. But the Buckeyes fell to Michigan State 34-24 in the Big Ten championship game and also lost to Clemson 40-35 in the Orange Bowl to end up 12-2 overall and 12th in the final AP poll.
* 2015, No. 1 – Following the national championship season in 2024, the Buckeyes had a ton of top returning players including QB J.T. Barrett, QB Cardale Jones, RB Ezekiel Elliott, WR Michael Thomas, DE Joey Bosa, DB Vonn Bell and many others. This team opened with an impressive win at Virginia Tech and won its first 10 games and 23 overall dating to 2014 before losing at home to No. 9 Michigan State 17-14. OSU rebounded with wins over Michigan at home and over Notre Dame in the Fiesta Bowl to finish 12-1 overall and fourth in the final AP poll.
* 2017, No. 2 – OSU had made the College Football Playoff in 2016 despite not winning the Big Ten title. The 2017 season went off the rails in Week 2 with a 31-16 home loss to No. 5 Oklahoma. Another loss at Iowa (55-24) helped keep OSU out of the playoff despite a Big Ten title game win over an unbeaten Wisconsin team. OSU defeated USC 24-7 in the Cotton Bowl to finish 12-2 overall and fifth in the final AP poll.
* 2022, No. 2 – Ryan Day was now at the helm and he had a star-studded team led by QB C.J. Stroud and WR Marvin Harrison Jr. The Buckeyes opened with a 21-10 win over No. 5 Notre Dame and reached 11-0 before a loss to Michigan (45-23) at home. OSU still made the CFB Playoff, but the Buckeyes fell to Georgia 42-41 in the Peach Bowl to end up 11-2 overall and fourth in the final AP poll.
