One of the biggest headaches this offseason for Ohio State is navigating arguably the most demanding schedule we have seen in the last couple of years. However, according to a former Dallas Cowboys linebacker, this might be a blessing in disguise for Ryan Day. It comes after he claimed the Big Ten has finally caught up to reclaim the throne and end the SEC’s era of perceived superiority.

On February 15, former Dallas Cowboys LB Bobby Carpenter hopped onto his 97.1 podcast and clarified how the SEC’s benefit of the doubt days are over. He pointed to the Ohio State Buckeyes’ even playing schedule and brutal gauntlet next season as the reasons.

“I think Ohio State, with their schedule next year, could be the first 9–3 team that would get in, should they potentially do that, just with how difficult their schedule is,” Bobby Carpenter said while laying out his case about unexpected SEC turmoil. “The SEC has also kind of lost some of that grace with the scheduling when the Big Ten has won the last three national titles.”

Carpenter believes the SEC has ‘lost some of that grace,’ arguing that the Big Ten’s recent dominance means a 9-3 Ohio State team would have a compelling playoff resume.

For years, SEC teams could lose two or even three games and still get into the title conversation because everyone assumed their schedule was just way more challenging than anyone else’s. Bobby’s point is that those days are over because the Big Ten has bulked up so much that it now has the tough-schedule trump card.

The numbers actually back him up for the upcoming 2026 season. Experts have officially ranked Ohio State as having the nation’s toughest schedule. Not only are they playing their rivals, but the Buckeyes also have five playoff-caliber teams waiting for revenge. They are playing five top-14 preseason-ranked teams next season.

First, they’ve got a daunting road game against preseason No. 4-ranked Texas and also head to Bloomington to face the undisputed national champion Indiana Hoosiers (preseason ranked 6). Then they have to deal with powerhouses like the preseason No. 2 Oregon, No. 12 USC, and No. 14 Michigan. The chances of going 2-2 are more realistic than going 4-0 in this stretch. According to the seven-year NFL veteran, Ryan Day has a chance to turn this crisis into a blessing.

“So that’s the other thing where they can’t champion, ‘Our 9–3 is better than yours.’ Is it when you’ve got Texas, Michigan, USC, Oregon, right, Indiana, and then like Iowa and Illinois, which will probably be ranked in the top 25, too?”

Since we are sticking with the 12-team format for one more year, if the Ohio State Buckeyes finish 3–3 against those six heavy hitters and finish the season 9–3, their strength of schedule will probably keep them ranked high enough to snag one of those at-large bids. The 9–3 record would actually be an incredible achievement rather than a failure.

The playoff committee would give Ohio State a similar benefit of the doubt to the one it gave to 9–3 Alabama last season.

How three straight titles tilted the scales to the Big Ten

One reason for this shift is that the Big Ten has been on an absolute tear for the last 3 years. The conference has won three straight national championships with 3 different teams: Michigan (2023), Ohio State (2024), and, most recently, Indiana (2025). When your conference is consistently bringing home the hardware year in and year out, the playoff committee stops giving the SEC the benefit of the doubt and starts looking at the teams in the North.

At the end of the day, Bobby is calling out the “SEC exceptionalism” that once dominated college football. He’s saying that if the SEC wants to claim its 9-3 teams are better, it has to prove it on the field again in the playoffs or by winning a natty or two.

Right now, Ohio State is a top favorite for the 2026 title (with +600 odds). They statistically landed the best QB in the country in Julian Sayin, the best player in the country in Jeremiah Smith, and the top-5 RB in Bo Jackson. Fortunately, the Buckeyes will set the bar for what a championship-caliber team looks like.