Ohio State enters the new college football season with a familiar storyline: eighth‑year head coach Ryan Day is once again chasing an AP top‑10 finish, a goal he has pursued since his first year in Columbus.
Offensive line outlook
Four of the Buckeyes' five starting linemen return, but the unit still feels the sting of last season’s Big Ten Championship loss and the playoff quarterfinal defeat. Early practices have seen Austin Siereveld work with freshman Ian Moore at right guard, a pairing that could reshape the interior of the line.
The coaching staff has been candid about the need for fresh blood, with Day acknowledging that new faces will likely surface before the first game. The hope is that experience combined with fresh talent can restore the dominance that carried Ohio State to a No. 5 ranking a year ago.
Meanwhile, across the country, the Southern California Trojans face a setback that could affect their own line depth. Kilian O'Connor, the team's starting center and a redshirt junior who started seven games last season, will miss the entire campaign after a non‑contact injury that required surgery. Coach Lincoln Riley has said the program possesses more depth at the position than at any point in his five‑year tenure, but the loss of O'Connor still leaves a noticeable gap.
Tobias Raymond, who saw action at center during spring practice, is being evaluated as a potential replacement, adding another layer of competition for the Trojans as they look to maintain their offensive rhythm.
The broader picture ties both programs to a shared ambition: to translate early‑season adjustments into a sustained push for a national championship berth. For Ohio State, the stakes are heightened by the desire to finally break through the playoff barrier, while USC aims to preserve its momentum after a strong finish in the Pac‑12.