Will Buckeyes remain No. 1 in CFP rankings?

Editor’s note: After each Ohio State football game, beat reporters Joey Kaufman and Bill Rabinowitz discuss the lasting storylines and other key developments.

Ohio State debuted at No. 1 in the College Football Playoff rankings last week.

When the rankings are updated on Tuesday night, it will provide a glimpse of the Buckeyes’ hold on the top spot. Will Georgia, which was No. 2 in the reveal, overtake them?

There is the potential for movement after the Bulldogs boosted their resume with a 30-21 win over Missouri, which had been at No. 12, giving them their first win over a ranked team.

The Buckeyes have an additional win over a ranked opponent, but the strength of their victory at Notre Dame took a hit when the Irish fell at Clemson on Saturday and figure to fall toward the bottom of the rankings. Stay tuned.

Nov 4, 2023; Piscataway, New Jersey, USA; Ohio State Buckeyes offensive lineman Carson Hinzman (75) hoists wide receiver Marvin Harrison Jr. (18) after he made a touchdown catch during the NCAA football game against the Rutgers Scarlet Knights at SHI Stadium. Ohio State won 35-16.

Kaufman: Though the Buckeyes needed to overcome a deficit at halftime to prevail at Rutgers over the weekend, they should not be penalized for a less emphatic win. The Scarlet Knights are one of the better teams in the Big Ten and tough on defense. And yet Ohio State won by nearly three touchdowns. But if the committee was looking for a reason to put Georgia at No. 1, it might have gotten one.

Rabinowitz: I wouldn’t get worked up about whether Ohio State is No. 1 or not. For the record, I think Georgia will overtake them this week. What matters, though, is how the Buckeyes play the rest of the year, specifically against Michigan. The fact you said that Rutgers is one of the better teams in the Big Ten, which is true, is more an indictment of the conference than anything else, no disrespect to the Fighting Schianos.

Kaufman: It’s ironic the four schools from the Pac-12 are defecting for the Big Ten next year. They are leaving the better conference! At least on the field this fall. There is a dearth of quality of teams outside the top three in the East Division. It looked like the Buckeyes added a quality win last week at Wisconsin. Then the Badgers laid an egg in a loss at Indiana and moved within a game of .500.

Rabinowitz: Outside of the Big Three of Ohio State, Michigan and Penn State, the Big Ten is awful. Every time you think there’s a worthy fourth team, it loses. Look, there are still questions about just how good the Big Three are. Penn State lost to OSU, which really hasn’t dominated the way it has in recent years. Michigan looks great but is getting tested for the first time this Saturday at Penn State.

Kaufman: If the Wolverines are tripped up in Happy Valley, it could help the Buckeyes in the race in the East. That at least opens up the possibility of Ohio State capturing the division with a loss at Michigan later this month. All three teams would have a conference loss, inviting tiebreaker scenarios. A win by the Wolverines increases the chances of the matchup in Ann Arbor holding all-or-nothing stakes.

Rabinowitz: Let’s move on to this week’s game. Not long ago, Michigan State was the Buckeyes’ toughest competition in the Big Ten. This year has been a disaster for the Spartans. Mel Tucker was fired in September and Michigan State didn’t win a game in the Big Ten until upsetting Nebraska last week. Tucker found instant gratification with the transfer portal early at MSU, but instant gratification usually doesn’t pay off in the end. Sparty is looking at a long climb back.

Kaufman: The portal can both giveth and taketh. The Spartans were on the wrong side of the dynamic at the end of April when starting quarterback Payton Thorne and star wide receiver Keon Coleman left. Thorne is now at Auburn and Coleman is at Florida State and one of the reasons the Seminoles are unbeaten and in playoff contention. To grasp how fast can things in the portal era, remember that Michigan State came to Columbus only two years ago as a top-10 team.

Rabinowitz: Ohio State crushed the Spartans that year and as a result was feeling great going into Ann Arbor the next week. We know what happened next. This Spartans team doesn’t really pose much of a threat to the Buckeyes, who are a 31-point favorite. It’s been a loooong time since OSU has been this prohibitive a favorite over Michigan State.

Kaufman: This is an opportunity for the Buckeyes to at least show their might against an overmatched opponent. They’ve been in low-scoring slogs in recent weeks, and by facing one of the worst defenses in the league it’s a chance to tune up before the stretch run. The win at Purdue has been the only emphatic conference win by Ohio State this season. Will they fully capitalize on a get-right game?

Rabinowitz: I wonder how many players Ohio State will be missing against Michigan State. Right after the Rutgers game, coach Ryan Day didn’t sound all that optimistic about getting cornerback Denzel Burke or safety Lathan Ransom back right away. Tight end Cade Stover was held out last week and several other players appear not to be fully healthy, though no player is truly fully healthy this late in the season. The Buckeyes will likely do a balancing act the next two weeks: Do enough to beat Michigan State and Minnesota while minimizing the risk of injury to key players before going to Ann Arbor.

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This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Ohio State football reporters roundtable from Buckeyes win at Rutgers

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