Let’s not call it “Jekyll and Hyde.” That’s too easy.

The Ohio State team that we saw a week ago in Iowa City was like a struggling Pop Warner club compared to the squad that showed up on Saturday in Columbus. It was like the Buckeyes went from the Cleveland Browns to the 1985 Chicago Bears.

The Buckeyes we saw against Iowa were like the Cleveland Cavaliers without LeBron James. The Buckeyes we saw against Michigan State were like the Cavs with…well, you get it.

Amazing it was to see Ohio State look so awful one week and so dominant the next. The oddsmakers might’ve expected the latter to happen — Mark Dantonio didn’t — but they were the ones who made the Buckeyes 17-point favorites at Iowa.

Before the Iowa game, Urban Meyer was convinced that there would be no signs of a letdown. After the Iowa game, he was left searching for answers. After the Michigan State game, many are searching for a different answer.

Who are the 2017 Buckeyes?

Are they more like the team that kicked MSU in the teeth? Or are they more like the group that had no answers against Oklahoma and Iowa?

They’re both. They’re frustratingly inconsistent. They have tremendous upside. They have tremendous downside. They look mediocre one week and immortal the next.

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And for a coach who’s been almost as consistent as any in the 21st century (besides Nick Saban), that has to be maddening.

Credit: Joe Maiorana-USA TODAY Sports

The answer is no.

Oh, I thought you were asking if Ohio State could still make the College Football Playoff if it finished the season like it played on Saturday. Contrary to what the Fox broadcast crew said, that’s not happening. Playoff teams don’t lose two games, much less suffer two blowout losses.

The hay is in the barn. Ohio State sealed it’s Playoff fate in Iowa City. Did that mean we could predict such an ’85 Bears-like showing on Saturday? No.

After all, Michigan State came into Saturday ranked No. 3 in FBS against the run. The Spartans hadn’t allowed anyone to gain 80 rushing yards all season. As a team, the Buckeyes had 253 rushing yards. At halftime.

Mike Weber and J.K. Dobbins ran wild against an MSU team that was completely overmatched at the line of scrimmage. Compare that to a week ago when the Buckeyes lost that battle to an Iowa team that ranks 46th against the run.

Go figure.

And go figure that OSU’s effort on Saturday came without starting linebackers Jerome Baker and Dante Booker. Oh, and Damon Arnette went down in the first half. The way the Buckeyes were rolling on Saturday, Greg Schiano could’ve put OSU’s 2018 recruiting class out there and it would’ve found a way to pick off a few passes and shut down the MSU offense.

On the flip side, though, I’m not convinced that the 2014 Buckeyes would’ve had a shot last week in Iowa City.

That’s because part of the inconsistency is coaching. Ohio State offensive coordinator Kevin Wilson admitted after the Oklahoma game that he was awful. He wasn’t much better against Iowa, either. Still, though, that’s not incredibly surprising for a coordinator in his first year with a new team.

Credit: Joe Maiorana-USA TODAY Sports

Perhaps most befuddling about OSU’s inconsistency is J.T. Barrett. You know, the guy who threw swing passes to Archie Griffin back in the day.

Against Iowa and Oklahoma, OSU fans probably believed Barrett was the third-best quarterback on the roster. Against MSU and Penn State, Barrett reminded us why he was OSU’s most productive quarterback in program history. He probably could’ve thrown four interceptions on Saturday and the Buckeyes still would’ve won by four touchdowns. It was that kind of dominant.

The odd thing is, you can’t really say “OSU played like a team with nothing to lose.” If you believed Sam Hubbard earlier in the week when he said that the Buckeyes “still had everything in front of them,” then there was plenty at stake on Saturday. The Buckeyes could indeed beat MSU, humiliate Michigan another time, win the B1G Championship and make a New Year’s Six bowl.

But OSU doesn’t have everything in front of it as the season winds down. The Buckeyes’ inconsistency cost them a chance at another Playoff spot. Beating up on Michigan State and whoever is left on the schedule might save some face, but ultimately, OSU didn’t accomplish what it set out to do in 2017.

The Buckeyes are who they are. They are not an Alabama. Can they look like Alabama at times? Absolutely. They did on Saturday. That team could’ve competed for a Playoff spot. That November 4 Iowa team that OSU faced could’ve done so, as well.

That’s what will frustrate Buckeye fans when they look back at this 2017 season. Upside or talent doesn’t win national titles. Great teams don’t take weeks off. OSU didn’t do that on Saturday.

Unfortunately, that realization came a week too late.