Hartman: Will Ohio State live up to great expectations?

Every season has the chance to be historic for the Buckeyes, but there is undeniably something different about this one.

A few things, actually.

Yes, expectations are high, but that is almost always true.

Yes, Ohio State appears loaded on paper, but that is also pretty common.

This will be one of the most experienced Ohio State teams in recent memory, and it might even be the most talented when all is said and done (Just ask Urban Meyer or Jim Tressel).

The 2024 Buckeyes could also face the hardest path to immortality with the ever-evolving Big Ten and College Football Playoff.

After an unusually busy January full of major player retentions and acquisitions, spring ball was interesting because of the mix of familiar faces and newcomers.

Not much has changed since the spring game, but we will go over position groups again for those who missed it or might have simply forgotten during those warm months of May and June.

We will also take a look the familiar faces and the newcomers, the schedule, the schemes and what to know about the new Big Ten as we count down to Big Ten Media Days in Indianapolis the last full week of July.

From there, the start of preseason practice won’t be far behind (Aug. 1), and before you know it toe will meet leather in the season-opener against Akron on Aug. 31.

I will try to answer all your questions between now and then, but feel free to send any you might have to marcus.hartman@coxinc.com.

Oh, where are we beginning?

The curious case of the past Ohio State teams with expectations similar to this one.

Long story short: They tend to not live up to them.

The Buckeyes have begun the season in the top two of the Associated Press preseason poll 18 times since it began in 1950 and finished there in exactly none of those seasons.

Two of their eight claimed national titles came from one of those seasons, but they are the two with the least authority (1961 from the Football Writers Association of America and 1970 from the National Football Foundation) for what that is worth.

Does that mean anything for 2024? Well, not really, but I still find it fascinating so I thought you might as well.

Of course, every season is unique, and that is especially true this year because it will end with a 12-team playoff.

That means that winning it all likely will require beating three top-10-type teams (maybe four) after navigating a 12-game regular season and possibly a Big Ten Championship Game (that could be a rematch with Michigan or Oregon).

With that in mind, could Ohio State have a successful season even if the Buckeyes don’t win their ninth national title?

That is likely to be one of many questions to be asked between now and late January thanks to the ongoing NFL-ization of college football.

The good news is one fluke loss in the regular season won’t submarine the season as it did many times in the past, including 1974, ‘98, 2015 and ‘18 (to say nothing of upsets by Michigan that didn’t seem all that fluky in the ‘90s).

On the other hand, the Buckeyes could be 15-0 while still needing to beat Georgia in its backyard to complete the mission.

For now, though, just sit back and enjoy the rest of the summer.

College football will be back before we know it!