Throughout the year, we will be asking and answering questions about various Ohio State teams, the players, and anything else on our collective minds of varying degrees of importance.
The college football regular season is officially halfway over for the Ohio State Buckeyes. They completed the first portion with a bumpy 5-1 record. While not a certainty, if they manage the same mark in their remaining games, they are essentially guaranteed a return trip to the College Football Playoff. But there are six quality teams, half of them ranked, waiting to upend the Buckeyes’ postseason plans.
So, in this week’s fan survey, we want to know which of OSU’s remaining six regular-season football games you are most excited for. Then, since the Buckeyes will be back on the field this weekend, we also want you to pick the margin of victory for Saturday’s game.
Take a look at the options below, then vote in the survey at the bottom of the article. On Saturday morning, before the game kicks off, we will share the results, so make sure to check back in with us in a few days. And if you want to explain your rationale or add another option, head down to the comments and break it down.
Question 1: Which game remaining on Ohio State’s schedule are you most excited for?
The Buckeyes head into the back half of the 2026 regular season with arguably the most challenging set of six games in the country. While, admittedly, some of the shine might be off the games against Oregon and Michigan, the November meetings with both Northwestern and Nebraska have taken on extra weight as the traditional Big Ten also-rans have played some relatively impressive football.
Each game left for the Buckeyes comes with some level of intrigue, obviously starting with this weekend’s trip to Bloomington to take on the defending national champion Hoosiers, and ending with The Game on Nov. 28. So, we want to know which one most excites you? Of course, what is considered exciting is going to be different for everyone.
For you, it might be the chance for the biggest possible blowout. For someone else, it might be something more personal, like you want revenge against the team that your high school rooted for. For me, I am on record as being excited about being nervous watching games.
Does the immediacy and recent history of the game versus Indiana have you anxious for Saturday? What about the Halloween night trip to the Coliseum (which, before the season, I argued would be the most chaotic game of the season), the Ducks’ return to The Horseshoe for the first time since that obnoxious game in 2021, Chip Kelly’s (and the Northwestern Wildcats’) return to Columbus, the potential trap game trip to Lincoln to play Nebraska, or the regular-season finale against the Corn and Blue?
So many options, so many reasons to be excited (and anxious) for Ohio State football.
Question 2: What will be the margin of victory in Ohio State vs. Indiana?
The Buckeyes opened as 4.5-point favorites heading into Saturday’s matchup against the Indiana Hoosiers, but that has moved down to just 3.5 points. The gold standard of college football analytics, SP+, projects OSU as practically the slightest winner possible. It has the score at 26-26, but gives the Buckeyes the edge by 0.2 points. If that happens, it would clearly not be a cover!
Historically, this is a series that has belonged overwhelmingly to Ohio State. The Buckeyes lead the all-time series 81-13-5 and had won 30 straight meetings before last season, a streak that dated all the way back to 1988. Of course, that run came to a rather inconvenient end in December, when Indiana beat Ohio State 13-10 in the Big Ten Championship Game. So, unlike most years during many Buckeye fans’ lifetimes, there is at least a little extra emotional baggage packed into this trip to Bloomington.
Before that loss in Indianapolis, Ohio State had handled Indiana pretty comfortably in recent years, including a 38-15 win in Columbus in 2024 and a 23-3 victory the last time the Buckeyes visited Bloomington in 2023. This time, though, No. 4 Ohio State will be facing No. 5 Indiana, the defending national champion and winner of 22 straight games, which makes this feel considerably different from the usual Buckeyes-Hoosiers matchup.
Welcome to SB Nation Reacts, a survey of fans across the NCAA. Throughout the year, we ask questions of the most plugged-in OSU fans and fans across the country. Sign up here to participate in the weekly emailedsurveys.