Buckeyes Face Must-Win Stretch After Falling to No. 11

Ohio State dropped from No. 2 to No. 11 in the Associated Press poll after a 30-18 loss at USC, a setback that has turned the remainder of the Buckeyes' season into what players describe as a survive-and-advance stretch. The College Football Playoff committee released its first rankings Tuesday night, placing Ohio State 12th - outside the projected field once an automatic bid for a Group of 5 champion is factored in.

"It's pretty much playoff time now for us cuz we can't lose," junior linebacker Payton Pierce said. "And so there's a sense of urgency, and intensity, and focus." Pierce, a team captain, said head coach Ryan Day has set the tone this week, telling players to "leave it all on the field" with "no stepping back, no regrets." surfing online betting

The Buckeyes, now 6-2 overall and 4-1 in the Big Ten, host Oregon this week before closing the regular season against Northwestern, Nebraska and Michigan. Oregon enters at 5-3 and 3-2 in conference play, ranked No. 23 in the CFP rankings despite sitting outside the AP Top 25, after rallying to beat Northwestern last week. Several Ohio State players, including safety Jaylen McClain and linebacker Christian Alliegro, pointed to effort lapses against USC that surfaced again during Sunday's film review. Running back Isaiah West called the mood inside the building "heavy" but insisted, "We'll be just fine."

Day has guided Ohio State through comparable adversity before. Two years ago, the Buckeyes lost 13-10 to Michigan before rebounding with a lopsided win over Tennessee that launched a four-game run to the CFP National Championship. "If we don't learn our lesson from this game right here, there's gonna be a lot of regret in that locker room," Day said, adding that it falls to both coaches and veteran leaders to keep the urgency high. With little margin left in the playoff race, Saturday's game against Oregon now carries the weight of a postseason elimination contest.