Ohio State Buckeyes quarterback Will Howard (18) runs toward Michigan Wolverines linebacker Ernest Hausmann (15) during the NCAA football game at Ohio Stadium in Columbus on Tuesday, Dec. 3, 2024. Michigan won 13-10. / Adam Cairns/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Ohio State tumbled down the fifth College Football Playoff rankings of 2024, but some fans didn’t think it was as long enough a fall as deserved. The Buckeyes’ Saturday loss to archrival Michigan sent the program from second to sixth in the rankings behind schools like Oregon, Texas, Penn State, Notre Dame and Georgia.

It positions the Buckeyes well and in a spot to most likely host a home game in Ohio Stadium. If OSU remains in the same spot (there’s a good chance it does) after the last CFP Rankings are released Sunday, post conference championship games, there’s a decent change the opponent could be SEC foe, Tennessee.