Turnovers and penalties. Bad throws and blown assignments. Third-down dysfunction and red-zone malfunctions. Ohio State is making life very difficult on itself.
The Buckeyes (5-0) are still undefeated and still No. 1, but the way they are playing is not conducive to staying on top.
Ohio State is 101st in the country in turnover margin at minus-4 after three giveaways and no takeaways in its 34-27 victory at Indiana on Saturday. No other ranked team has a turnover margin that bad.
The Buckeyes are also 101st in FBS in penalties per game at 7.8. Several ranked teams are just as bad or worse in that category, including TCU, LSU, Oklahoma and Baylor, but the timing of those penalties was a big problem for Ohio State against the Hoosiers.