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What Must Happen For Ohio State Buckeyes To Make 2023 College Football Playoff

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What Must Happen For Ohio State Buckeyes To Make 2023 College Football Playoff


As the Ohio State Buckeyes football team gear up for the 2023 college football season, expectations for making the College Football Playoff and winning a national championship run are reaching a crescendo. Head coach Ryan Day finds himself under immense pressure entering year five, with the ultimate goal of reclaiming what has eluded the program since 2014. During Day’s tenure, the Buckeyes have reached the College Football Playoff three times, making the National Championship game once, but were beaten by a tough Alabama team.

Just as of last year, the Buckeyes were on the verge of returning to the National Championship game, where they most likely would have been heavy favorites against TCU. They lost by one point to the eventual National Champion Georgia Bulldogs after missing a last ditch effort field goal. They’ll need to put these and other memories from the previous season behind them if they’re wanting to return to the College Football Playoff.

Finding a quarterback

One of the main issues a lot of the usual favorites for the playoff are facing is that there’s a big question mark at their quarterback position. Georgia, Clemson, Alabama and Ohio State all have quarterbacks that will either be first time starters or who have limited starts under them.

With that being said, one of the key focal points for the Ohio State football team in their pursuit of a playoff berth this season is the search for a new quarterback. Following the departure of C.J. Stroud, the team must identify a signal-caller who can effectively lead what has been a potent Ohio State offense over the last several seasons. Right now, that battle is between junior Kyle McCord and sophomore Devin Brown.

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Whether it be McCord or Brown, the eventual quarterback will not only be following Stroud, but Dwayne Haskins and Justin Fields as well, who were all Heisman Trophy finalists. The three of them, on average, completed 70% of their passes, threw for over 4,000 yards and 45 touchdowns, per Nathan Baird at Cleveland.com.

The quarterback position has been one of the strongest under Day. So, finding a quarterback who can step into the role with confidence, poise, and the ability to make critical plays will be crucial for the Buckeyes’ playoff aspirations. At least whoever is behind center will probably have the most talented wide receiver corp in the country, with the likes of Marvin Harrison Jr., Emeka Egbuka and others.

Shoring up the defense

Ohio State’s recent defensive struggles have been well-documented, particularly in their pivotal matchups against Michigan and Georgia. The Buckeyes’ defense faltered big time in those two games, allowing a combined 87 points. What is so concerning about those games is not just that they lost but that they were the most important games of the entire season, and the final two games at that.

The whole intention of hiring defensive coordinator Jim Knowles from Oklahoma State was to address these sort of defensive deficiencies. Knowles must prove his value as a play-caller and tactician to solidify the Buckeyes’ defense as a formidable asset in 2023.

Beat Michigan

No discussion about Ohio State football contending for the College Football Playoff would be complete without addressing their arch rival, the Michigan Wolverines. Michigan’s resurgence under Jim Harbaugh has resulted in consecutive, albeit, surprising losses for the Buckeyes over the last two seasons, which shattered their Big Ten title hopes and playoff dreams. If it wasn’t for USC losing in the Pac-12 Championship to Utah, Ohio State would have missed the playoff again last season thanks to Michigan.

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Day and his coaching staff recognize the significance of beating Michigan to maintain their championship trajectory — and better yet, keeping their jobs. With Michigan winning the last two meetings, the narrative has completely changed in this rivalry, where now, the favorites are the Wolverines. If the Buckeyes want to get back into the College Football Playoff, it’s really simple: Beat Michigan.

Beating the schedule, not looking ahead

Well, okay, beating Michigan isn’t the only victory they’ll need.

The formidable part of their schedule begins with a road test against Notre Dame in the fourth week of the season. The Buckeyes must prepare to face a new-and-improved Notre Dame offense with Wake Forest transfer Sam Hartman at quarterback. But unless they were to stumble along the way and get upset by someone, they’ll only have to worry about Penn State at home a month later, and of course, Michigan at the end the year.

Ultimately, securing victories against Notre Dame, Penn State, and Michigan will significantly bolster Ohio State’s playoff hopes. These matchups serve as critical stepping stones on their path back to the College Football Playoff. There’s no reason why Ohio State football won’t be back in the playoff if they can accomplish this. The real question is — can they get back to the title game?



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Where 8 Ohio universities rank among best engineering schools in America, per US News

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Where 8 Ohio universities rank among best engineering schools in America, per US News


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U.S. News & World Report recently released a ranking of America’s best engineering schools, and a handful of Ohio universities received some love.

The outlet individually ranked the top 90% of schools. The remaining 10% only received a ranking range, rather than a specific number. Ohio has eight schools in the top 90%.

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Factors that include research expenditures, faculty resources and ratings from other engineering schools and employers were taken into account for the ranking, which was curated from fall 2023 to early 2024.

Overall, the ranking carries an emphasis on research rather than reputation or selectivity, as it’s meant to encompass both undergraduate, graduate and doctorate programs.

Here’s which Ohio schools received top honors, along with where they fell in the national ranking.

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Best engineering schools in Ohio

Here are the top engineering schools in Ohio, according to U.S. News & World Report, along with where they rank nationally.

  • No. 27: Ohio State University.
  • No. 51: Case Western Reserve University.
  • No. 55: University of Dayton.
  • No. 102: University of Cincinnati.
  • No. 153: University of Akron.
  • No. 158: Ohio University.
  • No. 164: University of Toledo.
  • No. 167: Wright State University.



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He’s an Anomaly: How does Ohio State Commit Tavien St. Clair Compare to Dylan Raiola?

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He’s an Anomaly: How does Ohio State Commit Tavien St. Clair Compare to Dylan Raiola?


The Ohio State Buckeyes landed arguably their biggest commitment of the 2025 class almost a year ago last summer, when five-star QB Tavien St. Clair committed in June of 2023.

However, at the time, it was unclear exactly what they Buckeyes had just landed.

Upon his commitment, St. Clair ranked as the No. 25 quarterback and the No. 10 player in the state of Ohio in the class of 2025 per 247Sports. Since then, he has shot up the charts, to the point where he now ranks as the No. 2 overall player in the country, the No. 2 QB, and the No. 1 player in the state.

And after an extremely impressive outing against the best of the best at the Elite 11 Finals in Los Angeles, it is clear that he deserves that rankings.

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But what caused such a rise in St. Clair’s stock? According to various Elite 11 coaches in a recent interview with The Athletic, he seems to be unlike anything they have ever seen before at the position.

Tavien St. Clair

Tavien St. Clair / Photo Credit: Brooks Austin

“He is an anomaly,” Elite 11 coach Yogi Roth said to the Athletic “He’s from an hour away from Ohio State, one of the greatest schools in the history of the game, and he’s never had a personal QB coach. He’s done it in a way I haven’t heard about in, like, 20 years.”

However, the Elite 11 coaches didn’t stop there.

They also gave The Athletic a comparison between St. Clair and former Ohio State commit (and now Nebraska QB) Dylan Raiola.

Raiola, of course, was arguably the biggest piece of the Buckeyes 2024 class before his sudden and surprising de-commitment in favor of the Georgia Bulldogs. He then de-committed from Georgia just before the early signing period in favor of the Cornhuskers.

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“I think he’s a more gifted passer than Raiola by a little bit,” another coach said about St. Clair. “Dylan was more casual and cool. He looked like a grown man who you could tell had watched hours and hours of (Patrick) Mahomes and was like this big middle infielder slinging it around. Tavien looked more intentional.”

Another coach agreed with that sentiment, going as far to say that not only is St. Clair’s arm more talented than that of Raiola, but he is also coming to Columbus in a much better situation in terms of pressure and expectations than that of Raiola.

In other words, St. Clair is going to have more time to develop himself. Meanwhile, Raiola is about to be thrown straight into the deep end in Lincoln, where he is being counted on as the savior of the Cornhuskers program.

“I think Tavien had the best arm here,” another coach told the Athletic. “I think (his arm’s) a little better than Raiola’s, and he’ll be under less of a microscope in his situation. He can make some mistakes without everyone looking for him to be the savior of the program without a lot of good players around him.”

At the end of the day, only time will tell if St. Clair will be able to live up to the lofty expectations that come with being the starting quarterback for the Ohio State Buckeyes.

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In fact, the same holds true for Raiola in Lincoln.

Based on the current talent situation in Columbus, and the fact that he has thrown for over 8,000 yards and has 83 total touchdowns in three seasons at Bellefontaine, however, St. Clair will have as good a chance as any QB in the past to succeed at Ohio State.



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Patricia A. Walker, Cortland, Ohio

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Patricia A. Walker, Cortland, Ohio


CORTLAND, Ohio (MyValleyTributes) – Patricia A. Walker, 78, of Cortland, Ohio passed away Friday, June 21, 2024, at Warren Health and Rehab.  

She was born March 17, 1946, in Ravenna, Ohio, a daughter of the late Leland R. Walker and the late Gertrude Newcomb Walker.

Patricia graduated from Garfield High School in Garresttsville and was employed as a sales clerk with Giant Eagle Grocery for over 20 years.

Surviving are her son, Glen (Rachel) Walker of Cortland, Ohio; eight grandchildren and numerous great-grandchildren. Also surviving is a sister, Kay Synder of Lordstown, Ohio.

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In addition to her parents, she was preceded in death by her son, Keoni L. Walker; a sister, Virginia Fackler; and a brother, Robert Mason.

Per her wishes, there will be no calling hours or service.  

The arrangements have been entrusted to the Carl W. Hall Funeral Home.

A television tribute will air Wednesday, June 26 at the following approximate times: 7:10 a.m. on FOX, 12:22 p.m. on WKBN, 5:08 p.m. on MyYTV and 7:27 p.m. on WYTV. Video will be posted here the day of airing.

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