Ohio State · Big TenOhio State puts its standard on the line against Maryland
The 4-1 Buckeyes host the 2-3 Terrapins at 4:15 p.m. ET Saturday, Oct. 10, before road games at Indiana and USC.
OCT 9, 2026
Ohio State hosts 2-3 Maryland on Saturday, Oct. 10, with the 4-1 Buckeyes trying to turn a heavily tilted Big Ten game into a convincing step toward the national championship they are chasing.
Ryan Day told his team Maryland “is a really good team with good players and good coaches,” then challenged the Buckeyes to meet Ohio State’s high standard. A comfortable win is expected; mistakes and a lack of improvement will draw the coaches’ attention anyway.
Maryland is 0-2 in Big Ten play and has not beaten a ranked conference opponent since joining the league in 2014, carrying an 0-39 record in those games. Josh Pate’s preseason bracket put Ohio State at No. 2 and in the national championship game, so this home date tests that projection before tougher road games at Indiana on Oct. 17 and USC on Oct. 31.
Ohio State beat Iowa 31-14 on Oct. 3 after losing by one point at Texas. The Buckeyes need the result.
01 · The Detail Beneath the HeadlineWhat Most People Are Missing
The mismatch is less about Maryland’s overall record than the direction of its season against Ohio State’s. Maryland opened with wins by 62-0 and 38-14, then lost three straight; the last two were 54-3 to UCLA and 48-23 at Nebraska. Ohio State, meanwhile, has answered its 24-23 loss at Texas with three wins, and the margins have narrowed from 56 against Kent State to 23 against Illinois and 17 at Iowa as the opposition changed.
That makes Oct. 10 the hinge in a compact conference run, not merely a break between marquee dates. The Buckeyes went 9-0 in Big Ten play during a 12-2 season in 2025 and have beaten Illinois and Iowa to begin this league schedule. Maryland comes before the Oct. 17 trip to Indiana, while USC follows Oct. 31. Ohio State can protect that conference continuity before the venue and opposition change together.
02 · The Open QuestionsQuestions to Be Answered
Will Ohio State meet the standard Ryan Day demanded against Maryland?
Ohio State’s three home wins have come by scores of 56-3, 59-3 and 42-19, a useful numerical baseline against a Maryland team coming off a 54-3 loss to UCLA and a 48-23 loss at Nebraska. The margin and quality of Ohio State’s performance on Oct. 10 will provide the immediate measure, and the Oct. 17 trip to Indiana will show whether that form carries into the next conference test.