The Ohio State football team took the step forward it needed against Western Kentucky ahead of its Top-10 showdown vs. Notre Dame.

Dear fellow Buckeyes,

The first two articles took a crowd-control approach to address the growing pains. While improvements still need to be made, the Ohio State football team clearly found its rhythm Saturday against Western Kentucky. Ryan Day’s team beat the Hilltoppers 63-10 in a dazzling complimentary offensive and defensive effort. 

Heading into Notre Dame Week, the feeling is certainly more upbeat and confident than a week ago. Ohio State is coming and will be ready for war on Saturday night in South Bend. Let’s look at the critical areas heading into the showdown against the Irish:

1. Ryan Day’s energy 

This will be one of the debatably hyperbolic points, but there are certain games when Ryan Day gets animated pregame. The Ohio State head coach was juiced up in the Skull Session and pregame huddle, preparing his guys to play at a high level. Anytime Day shows the emotion before kickoff, expect the Buckeyes to play really well and score points. 

That’s exactly what we got on Saturday; his team took their level of play up a notch. The win was the most complete effort from Ohio State this season, and it was done in a complementary fashion. The offense scored 49 points behind a big day from its stars led by QB Kyle McCord. Then the defense added two scores as well. 

The Silver Bullets played outstanding from start to finish. JT Tuimoloau and Jack Sawyer both took up residency in the backfield. Saturday’s performance by the DL was the missing piece to Jim Knowles’ defensive puzzle. Now that all units are firing, watch out. 

The Buckeyes are No. 2 in scoring defense and No. 3 in total defense. That’s the unit that must show up this weekend in South Bend, and all signs point to the Silver Bullets doing so, though facing Sam Hartman will be a difficult test. 

2. The Silver Bullets are back.

As I explained in the above section, Ohio State’s defense is one of the best in the country. The Buckeyes have only surrendered 20 points through three games, the fewest since the 1970s. 

On Saturday, the defense recorded seven TFLs, forced and recovered a pair of fumbles, and intercepted two of Austin Reed’s passes. One of the picks was returned for a touchdown, the second defensive score on the day for Ohio State. 

Tommy Eichenberg and Steele Chambers were also flying to the ball all afternoon. The veteran LBs anchor the stout defensive unit. On the back end, Denzel Burke has taken a massive leap forward. Josh Cassinger, co-host of the Bunch of Nuts Podcast, brought to my attention that transfer DB Davison Igbinosun has elevated Burke’s play. Both players continue to grow into tremendous assets for the defense. 

While the DBs are locking down the secondary, I’m not quite ready to dust off the BIA nickname just yet. If they continue creating a “no-fly zone” against Notre Dame QB Sam Hartman, I’ll get out the duster when the clock says 0:00 in South Bend. Either way, the Buckeye defense is real, and this team is as balanced as there is in the country. That’s a scary thought for the rest of college football.

3. Momentum 

Ohio State has real momentum as a football team for the first time all season. The first two weeks were spent sorting out a quarterback battle and figuring out the offense. There wasn’t much of a rhythm until Saturday. 

Last week, Ryan Day made the distinction to solidify McCord as QB1, which lifted a proverbial weight off the team’s shoulders. The Buckeyes played loose on Saturday, and it felt they opened it up on offense, which is what the fanbase has been desiring. The potential of this team knows no ceiling if and when it begins operating at maximum capacity. Day said it in his post-game interview: Saturday’s 63-10 result is the first step in that direction. 

4. Football games are at least 60 minutes, and football seasons are at least 12 games.

I have a message for those of you who are quick to hop on Twitter/X early in the game or season. In the words of Aaron Rodgers, “r-e-l-a-x.” Take a deep breath. This Ohio State team is excellent, like National Championship-caliber good. I have been saying since the preseason to have patience with this team in the early going because the QB situation had to sort itself out, and the offensive line had to get live snaps under its belt. 

Now that those are happening, the exponential growth is coming, and like Day said, Saturday was the first step. Ohio State’s entire season is in front of it on the schedule, starting this weekend against Notre Dame. 

If the Buckeyes win, that is the best-case scenario because they remain undefeated and will move up in the rankings. It also provides one mulligan in conference play if Ohio State slips up during this challenging final nine-game stretch. A College Football Playoff spot would be essentially wrapped up for the Buckeyes if they win in South Bend and finish with one loss or fewer. 

On the other hand, if Ohio State does lose on the road, the world isn’t going to end like it usually does following a loss. As I just mentioned, the entire season is in front of the Buckeyes. A loss just means they have to run the table in the Big Ten, which includes beating Maryland and Penn State at home and Wisconsin and Michigan on the road. It’s doable, but the margin for error closes. A 1-loss Ohio State is still in the CFP. 

This Saturday’s matchup is one of the premier of the college football season and the headliner for the weekend. Ohio State is prepared and improving each week. Ryan Day’s team will be ready, and the Buckeyes’ HC will bring the juice.