In the CFP era, Ohio State has five Big Ten titles. They last won in 2020, but since the College Football Playoff expanded to 12 teams in 2024, the Buckeyes have not won a conference title. Despite their recent conference drought, Ryan Day’s OSU earned significantly more than the 2025 National Champion, Indiana, according to the Big Ten’s 2024-25 payouts.

For the 2024–25 fiscal year, the Big Ten Conference distributed a record $1.37 billion in total revenue to its 18 members. Among them, OSU received a league-high $91.55 million, and Indiana got $81 million, as reported by The Athletic.

The $10.55 million difference in revenue between OSU and Indiana is primarily due to CFP performance bonuses and internal conference payout structures that reward longevity and postseason advancement over a single conference championship game outcome. While a record four B1G teams (OSU, Indiana, Oregon, and Penn State) were selected for the inaugural 12-team CFP for the 2024-25 season, Indiana’s playoff journey was shorter, resulting in fewer cumulative performance “shares” for the conference pool.

Indiana entered the CFP as the No. 10 seed, making its first-ever playoff appearance. However, Notre Dame eliminated the Hoosiers in the first round. On the flip side, despite failing to qualify for the Big Ten Championship game, OSU entered the expanded 12-team CFP as the No. 8 seed, and the Buckeyes went on a historic run, defeating Notre Dame 34–23 in the National Championship.

On their way to the title, OSU defeated Tennessee in the first round of the CFP, avenged their earlier loss to Oregon in the quarterfinal, and beat Texas in the semifinal. Each advancing round triggers additional millions in conference revenue. The B1G received a base amount of roughly $4 million per playoff participant, plus additional millions for each team that reaches the quarterfinals ($4M), semifinals ($6M), and championship ($6M).

Considering this, Ohio State’s four-game playoff winning streak generated the maximum possible revenue for the conference pool. Then, OSU consistently led the conference in television ratings, which influence certain discretionary distributions and “success” metrics under the Big Ten’s $7 billion media deal with FOX, CBS, and NBC.

While the Big Ten distributed an average of roughly $76–$79 million to most fully vested members, the extra $12–$15 million for OSU came from reaching and winning the national title. Meanwhile, Oregon won the Big Ten title in 2024-25 and entered the CFP as a No. 1 seed and earned a first-round bye, but the Ducks were defeated by OSU in the quarterfinals at the Rose Bowl.

But the lower payouts for Oregon and Washington were part of a seven-year phase-in period established when they joined the conference from the Pac-12. Yet Ryan Day’s OSU conference title history clearly depicts a dry spell.

OSU’s B1G title path looks difficult

Ohio State’s performance in the expanded playoff has proven that the conference title is no longer a prerequisite for the national trophy. However, the Buckeyes hold the record for the most Big Ten Championship Game wins (5) since the game’s inception in 2011. Their most recent victory came during the pandemic-shortened 2020 season, when they defeated Northwestern 22–10.

In 2024, OSU did not qualify for the B1G Championship game. The Oregon Ducks won the title by defeating Penn State 45–37. Last season, the Buckeyes returned to the conference championship as the No. 1-ranked team in the nation. But Indiana upset them, winning 13–10 in a defensive struggle.

This season, the 2025 conference title runner-up has a chance to regain its old glory, but nothing is settled yet, as some analysts project that Ohio State may have the toughest overall conference schedule in 2026, potentially facing up to 6 top-25 opponents.