INDIANAPOLIS -- Once again, Ohio State will enter the College Football Playoff coming off a 13-10 loss.
Last season, the Buckeyes bounced back from a crushing defeat to Michigan to capture the national championship.
After Saturday's loss to Indiana in the Big Ten championship, Ohio State coach Ryan Day said he believes his team will be "hungry" again heading into the playoff.
"This is not going to sit well with anybody," Day said. "But we can use it as an opportunity to get better and grow. ... To walk off that field without a championship is going to hurt. There's a lot of guys in our locker room that are pissed off right now."
In a battle of unbeatens, featuring the top two-ranked teams in the country, the Buckeyes had two opportunities deep in Indiana territory to tie or take the lead in the second half.
Late in the third quarter, the Buckeyes faced third-and-1 from the Indiana 5-yard line. After an incomplete pass, Ohio State went for the first down on Julian Sayin's quarterback sneak. After initially giving the Buckeyes the first down, officials ruled that Sayin's knee was down short of the line, as Ohio State turned the ball over on downs.
On their ensuing possession, the Buckeyes once again put together a long drive to set up third-and-1 from the Indiana 9. After another incompletion, Day went for the tie on a 27-yard field goal attempt with 2:48 remaining. But Jayden Fielding missed the chip shot -- the first miss of his career from inside 30 yards after 13 makes, according to ESPN Research.
Ohio State didn't get the ball again until 13 seconds remained, as Indiana all but salted away the clock for its first victory over the Buckeyes since 1988.
"We went down there two times and ended up with zero points," said Day, whose Buckeyes haven't won the Big Ten title since 2020. "That's how you lose the game."
Despite the loss, the Buckeyes will likely still earn a first-round bye in the playoff as they aim to win back-to-back national titles for the first time in program history.
Ohio State didn't get a bye last year after the loss to Michigan -- yet reeled off four straight victories to win the national championship. Sayin, who was a freshman behind starting quarterback Will Howard, noted that last year's team -- and its response after a tough loss -- provides a blueprint of what these Buckeyes can still achieve in the postseason.
"I just saw that group stick together," Sayin said. "That's going to be a big part for us."
