12-1 Ohio State not a CFB Playoff lock according to Ryen Russillo

Nothing is a guarantee for Ohio State at this point, even if the Buckeyes win out.

Ohio State will enter The Game in an unusual position as an underdog. Urban Meyer’s squad has won six straight over the Wolverines, but Jim Harbaugh’s squad is No. 4 in the nation and on a mean streak.

Anything can happen in a rivalry showdown, and the Buckeyes certainly have talent on both sides of the ball. However, they enter Saturday’s game ranked No. 10 after UCF jumped into the No. 9 spot on the latest CFB Playoff rankings.

Ohio State is ranked in such a way that even a win over Michigan and a win over No. 19 Northwestern in the B1G Championship Game may not be enough to make the final four. According to Ryen Russillo, he believes the Committee has made it clear that a 12-1 Ohio State team likely would be left out of the Playoff regardless of the action of the higher ranked teams.

Here are his comments from his podcast:

“If Ohio State beats Michigan and beats Northwestern,” said Russillo, “Ohio State at 12-1 — I think the committee is telling you — I don’t know if there’s an Armageddon scenario where 12-1 Ohio State is playing in the Playoff.”

Getting left out of the Playoff as the B1G champion for a second straight year would certainly hurt. However, the first step towards anything is taking down the Wolverines on Saturday. Kickoff for The Game is set for 12 pm EST on FOX.

Paul Harvey

Paul is a lifelong fan and student of all things college football. He has been covering college football since 2017 and the B1G since 2018.