Ohio State opens with Indiana, and they must start their conference schedule off right. They have every opportunity to set the tone in the Big 10, and I believe that they can do that against a better Indiana squad. There are many people who believe Ohio State will rush right through the Big 10, but I want to see them beat Indiana as handily as they should.
The Hoosiers are alright
The Indiana Hoosiers are an okay club, but they are not good enough to give Ohio State a real challenge. Schedules once started with bad teams from lesser conferences, and they now start with big games against opponents that are more than capable of beating even the best teams in the country.
Ohio State is starting with a conference game, and they must show the Hoosiers who is the boss.
They must win handily
The Buckeyes must win this game handily so that there is no question who is the best team in their conference. They must beat Indiana by several touchdowns, and they must give Indiana no chance of coming back. There is no playing around with a team such as Indiana, and they cannot provide us with any hint that they could lose their lead or lose the game.
Ohio State has only one test
They must beat Michigan at the end of the season to cap off a successful year, and I believe that their schedule leads up to that point alone. They may have many games that will be good, but they will only have a challenge in a Michigan team that must beat them to prove themselves.
The two teams are playing for bragging rights, and they are playing for supremacy in the Big 10. Ohio State can set the tone if they beat Indiana so badly that no one believes they can compete with them.
JT Barrett needs to play well
We need to see JT Barrett play well, and we must be given every indication that he will lead the Ohio State offense properly.
He must have total command of the team, and he must make few mistakes. An outing for Barrett that shows he is a Heisman candidate is a good one for Ohio State. Anything less gives the college football world a reason to drop their ranking, and the end of the season could get interesting. An Ohio State team that has faltered a few times on the way to an undefeated season may end up ranked lower than a SEC team with one loss that looked better over the course of the season.
I believe Ohio State will crush Indiana, and they must keep that up for the balance of the season. Every move they make sets them up to enter the College Football Playoff in the best position possible.
