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By Matt Audilet
Contributing Sports Writer
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The reigning national champion Ohio State Buckeyes held No. 1 position in the College Football Playoff rankings throughout the 2025 season.
But after Saturday's 13-10 Big Ten championship loss to the No. 2 Indiana Hoosiers, the Buckeyes saw their position change for the first time in the selection committee's final CFP rankings.
Ohio State and Indiana ultimately swapped spots, with Ryan Day's Buckeyes falling into the No. 2 spot.
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Day completely agrees with the committee's decision, which gives Ohio State a first-round bye as the 12-team field's second-highest ranked seed.
No. 2 Ohio State will matchup against the winner of No. 10 seed Miami vs. No. 7 seed Texas A&M in the Cotton Bowl.
"Well, I think the committee recognized the body of work that we had this year and found ourselves in the fourth quarter, fighting it out and against a good team last night. And so, we're excited about where we are and going down to Dallas again and playing against a really good opponent, either A&M or Miami, two really good teams," Day said, via Bucknuts.
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Day is not concerned about losing top position in the final College Football Playoff rankings.
"When you look at the teams that are in the playoffs, I mean, some really good teams out there. So it doesn't matter really, if you're the one, two, three or four. I mean, you got to play from here on out. That's just how it goes... Now we have to be at our best," he said.
Ohio State did not have a first-round bye to start its run to a national championship title last year. Day recognized the advantages and challenges of having a first-round bye before this year's playoff campaign.
“It's a significant layoff,” he added. “So the first thing we want to do is the guys who have played a significant amount of football, let them get their legs underneath them, but also, as we get into next week, make sure that they're keeping their edge.”
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Saturday's Big Ten championship loss to Indiana marked the Buckeyes' first defeat since their regular season finale loss to the Michigan Wolverines in 2024. Despite falling in the conference championship, Day and his team are still confident they can repeat as national champions.
“I think there's still a bunch of guys in this room that know we can play with anybody in the country and beat anybody in the country when we're on our game,” Day said.
Ohio State's Cotton Bowl matchup against either Miami or Texas A&M will take place on Dec. 31.
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