The Ohio State Buckeyes debuted at No. 3 in the initial College Football Playoff rankings that were released on Tuesday, but if Urban Meyer's squad takes care of business in November, it'll have a great shot at landing the No. 1 overall seed in this year's playoff.
The schedule is absolutely back-loaded this season as the Buckeyes have their two toughest games—home against No. 7 Michigan State and on the road versus No. 17 Michigan—to close out the regular season. When games against a feisty Minnesota team and the improved Illinois Fighting Illini are thrown in, Ohio State's path to the Big Ten title game and a potential berth in the playoff looks daunting.