"It’s extremely difficult" - Paul Finebaum pours cold water on Ryan Day and Ohio State's chance to win back-to-back National Championship

The Ohio State Buckeyes are coming into this season as the defending national champions. However, their journey to win the championship was not perfect, with the Buckeyes losing to both Oregon and arch-rivals Michigan during the Big Ten regular season.

Despite the setbacks from last season, the Buckeyes are still labelled as one of the favorites to win the national championship this season, albeit having a slightly weaker roster.

Veteran college football analyst Paul Finebaum does not believe that Ohio State can repeat the feat this year. He said on Friday's edition of The Paul Finebaum Show:

"There are so many things to like about Ohio State, but right now, I don’t think they will (win the national championship). I think it’s extremely difficult to do that. The weight of the previous season is almost insurmountable… I think they’ll get back to the playoffs, but my sense is they won’t make it to the national championship game.”

Ohio State will likely be one of the stronger teams in the Big Ten this season. The Buckeyes feature a roster of future stars, such as running back James Peoples and quarterback Julian Sayin, alongside players who were pivotal to their national championship win last season.

Caleb Downs and Jeremiah Smith are just two of these players who are expected to build on what they did in 2024.

However, as coach Ryan Day found out last year, Ohio State is still beatable. Their defeat to rivals Michigan in week 14, who struggled for most of the season, kept them out of the Conference championship game, something that Ohio State will want to reach this year.

Luckily for Day and the Buckeyes, the defeat to Michigan turned into motivation for the College Football Playoff. Despite winning the national championship, an improvement is a must if Ohio State is to defend its title.

Has Ryan Day confirmed who will be Ohio State's Quarterback?

Ohio State's quest for back-to-back titles may be dealt a massive blow after week one. They face the number one-ranked Texas Longhorns in what will be Arch Manning's first games as the long-term starter for Texas.

However, the Longhorns are not the only program with a new quarterback.

The Buckeyes have had a contest for most of the off-season between Julian Sayin and Lincoln Kienholz. Ryan Day has not announced who will be leading the Buckeyes in this game, and the comments he made this week to the Big Ten Network do not reveal a specific name.

"I'd like to see them continue to compete throughout this week, maybe into next week. But you'd like to have an idea of who that guy's going to be for at least a couple of weeks heading into the first game."

While Day has not officially announced anything, many fans and analysts see Julian Sayin as the starting quarterback for Ohio State this year.

Sayin is a top-rated prospect who spent a year as the backup to Will Howard last year. He is the strongest quarterback on the roster, and Day not officially naming him as their quarterback may not help them in their preparations to beat Texas.