No. 13 Oregon delivered a decisive 41-28 victory over Ohio State on Saturday, a result that has likely pushed the Buckeyes out of the College Football Playoff race. This defeat marks a significant shift for the program, as it followed their 30-18 road loss to No. 20 USC the previous week. Consequently, Ohio State has lost two straight regular season games for the first time since November 2011, entering uncharted territory after a long period of consistent performance.
Prior to this stretch, the Buckeyes had a reputation for bouncing back quickly from setbacks. For instance, earlier in the season after a 24-23 loss at Texas in Week 2, they responded with a dominant 59-3 win over Kent State. However, that pattern was broken against the Ducks. The loss ended a streak of 14 straight seasons in which Ohio State finished with two or fewer losses, a run that was tied with Florida State and Notre Dame for the longest such streak in the AP poll era dating back to 1936.
The magnitude of these defeats is evident in the scoring margins. Both losses came by double digit margins, a first for the program in consecutive games since 2004, which occurred 8,057 days ago. Ohio State has only lost three straight games by at least 10 points twice in its entire history. The team now prepares to host Northwestern next week.
The gap between this current slump and the last time the Buckeyes dropped two straight regular season games is substantial. They went 5,467 days and 169 games without such a result. The previous instance occurred in the 2011 campaign, when the team lost its final three games before a bowl defeat. That era ended when Urban Meyer became head coach the following season, ushering in a new period of dominance.
Head coach Ryan Day, who succeeded Meyer in December 2018, entered the game against Oregon with a 5-3 record following a defeat. Notably, all three of those previous losses occurred in bowl games. Since the last time the Buckeyes fell in back to back fashion, the team compiled a 171-24 record. That is the second most wins of any college football program since the start of the 2012 season, with an 87.7% win percentage that is the best among all programs.
This period of success included two national championships and four bowl victories. A key turning point in Saturday's game arrived late in the second quarter when Oregon executed a successful fake punt. Facing a fourth and nine situation at their own 31 yard line, the Ducks brought out their punt team. Linebacker Teitum Tuioti caught the snap and threw a jump pass to Matayo Uiagalelei, who ran the ball 30 yards for a first down.
Following that play, Oregon outgained Ohio State 288 to 47 until 12:51 remained in the fourth quarter, at which point the Ducks led 38-14. If viewers had tuned out after the first quarter, they might have assumed an Ohio State victory was certain. The Buckeyes held a 14-0 lead at that time and had won 140 consecutive home games when leading by at least 14 points. Their last home loss with such a lead occurred against Wisconsin in 2001.
Ohio State also snapped a streak of 137 consecutive home games won when leading by double digits, which was previously the longest such streak by any team since 2004. The defensive struggles were further highlighted by the 41 points allowed at home. This marked the second most points surrendered by a Day coached team at home and the third most allowed overall. It was only the second home game since 2000 in which Ohio State has given up 40 points.
The defensive performance was particularly stark given the previous game. Oregon's 41 points followed a 30 point performance by USC. This is the first time the Buckeyes have allowed 30 points in back to back games after a streak of 31 games in which they held opponents to fewer than 30. The Ducks scored 38 unanswered points, which stands as the fifth most consecutive points allowed at Ohio Stadium by the Buckeyes since the venue opened in 1922.
