It’s peak off-season time. It’s time to both look forward to the 2025 season and look back to make “who was the greatest?” lists. Since there’s very little to talk about, outlets are doing everything they can to generate content and revenue. Completely aware of the irony of that statement, let’s take a look at Stewart Mandel’s ranking of the top 25 teams in college football since 2000. The Athletic is taking a look at a number of things over the past 25 seasons, and Mandel elected to rank the greatest teams since Y2K.
When it comes to Ohio State, the Buckeyes have been one of the premier programs in history, let alone since 2000. Over the last 25 seasons, the Buckeyes have a 263-52 record with 11 Big Ten championships, three national championships, and an 18-7 record over Michigan. Of course, those marks include the vacated 2010 season. In that time, Ohio State has had two undefeated seasons and seven with just one loss.
Three Ohio State Teams Among the Best Since 2000
On a number of occasions, the Buckeyes were one game away from winning titles. Ohio State fell in the BCS National Championship game in back-to-back seasons in 2006 and 2007. In the CFP era, the Buckeyes fell in the semifinals three times and in the National Championship once. Two of those losses were winnable, whereas the other two were not, to put it lightly.
When considering all of college football over the last 25 seasons, according to Mandel, Ohio State has three of the greatest teams.
Mandel’s criteria for ranking the top teams since 2000 include season-long dominance, big wins (according to the final AP Poll), strength of schedule, elite talent (ie, players drafted), and no bad losses. Of the 25 selections, 20 were crowned champions and five fell just short.
Big Teams, Big Games
There were some great teams from Columbus that were derailed by at least one of those criteria and thus left out.
Among the greatest since 2000 were three Ohio State teams, two of which ended up as champions. Unsurprisingly, the 2014 team (24th) and the 2002 team (19th) made the cut. Both won it all and did so with massive odds against them. One took down Goliath and ended a dynasty, while the other ran through the Big Ten Championship and the first CFP with a third-string quarterback.
Also included, and ranked the highest of the three, was the 2019 squad, whose season ended in a heartbreaker to Clemson in the CFP Semifinals. The incredulous look from Justin Fields as he threw a game-ending interception will forever stick in the minds of Buckeye fans. Could they have taken down LSU? We will never know.
Of course, there were a few great teams left off this list who could have been considered.
The Reigning Champs
Perhaps the largest omission would have to be last year’s. In 14 wins, Ohio State notched 12 wins by at least 11 points. Its average margin of victory was 26.4. It finished with wins over six of the top 10 in the final AP Poll. The defense was the best in the nation and shut down opposing offenses with ease. So Mandel’s first box is checked.
Big wins? Again, six of the team’s 14 wins came over teams that finished in the top 10. The only team in the final top five in the AP Poll that Ohio State did not beat…was Ohio State. You could argue that Ohio State beat itself on November 30, but we digress. So, yes, that box is checked.
When the dust settled, Ohio State finished with the third-strongest strength of schedule in all of college football. Only Michigan and UCLA had tougher roads through 2024. Box: checked.
Elite talent? In the 2025 NFL Draft, 14 Buckeyes were selected. All 14 were taken with the first 185 picks. Half of those came between picks 14 and 45. In just one draft, this team produced four first-round picks. In 2026, at least two are expected (Caleb Downs and Carnell Tate). 2027 is going to be a beast in its own right with at least Jeremiah Smith. Needless to say, this box will be checked once the 2024 team is completely gone.
Finally, the most complicated box to check. The 13-10 loss to Michigan was a “bad loss.” The loss at Oregon wouldn’t be because the Ducks were highly-rated, it was in Eugene, and the Buckeyes got their payback with a 20-point beatdown in the Rose Bowl. The Game will forever be anomalous. Many great Ohio State teams have been derailed by Michigan. 2024 was no different.
What Could Have Been
The 2022 team was, arguably, a point away from winning another title. After going toe-to-toe with the eventual champion, 2022 will forever be a massive “What if?”
The C.J. Stroud-led Buckeyes were one of the best teams in the country throughout the season. Jim Knowles’ defense might’ve been a glass cannon, looking back. In the first 10 games, the Buckeyes allowed 15.6 points per game. The final three? 39. Up until the Maryland game, the Buckeyes did dominate. The closest game was the Notre Dame win, which was by 11.
The big wins category was lacking, however. The wins over Notre Dame and Penn State were great, but Ohio State faltered against Michigan and Georgia. Given that those two losses were by one point to the eventual champs and by allegedly unscrupulous means to Michigan, so who knows? At least, at this point, by the letter of the law, that box remains unchecked. As does the strength of schedule, considering the Buckeyes finished with the 17th-best.
The Michigan loss can be categorized as a bad loss as well, considering it was a 22-point loss at home. Sure, Michigan was ranked third at the time and made it to the CFP, but getting run out of Ohio Stadium is never good.
However, that team did have 25 NFL Draft picks with seven first-round picks. A few players are still on the team for 2025, so this number could increase, but it’s obvious that this was a talented team.
If that Georgia game had swung the other way. If Marvin Harrison Jr. hadn’t been concussed with a borderline hit. Would Ohio State have blown multiple two-score leads? The 2022 team would be remembered in a very different light if Stroud had hoisted the CFP trophy.
Tresselball Era and the Urban Revival
Before Jim Tressel makes an official decision on whether or not he will seek the Ohio Governorship, there are a few Tressel-era teams worth remembering. The word “dominant” was not often mentioned during the Tressel seasons. The 2006 team was dominant. In the team’s first 11 wins, Ohio State beat three ranked teams by an average of 28 points. Then, the Buckeyes beat second-ranked Michigan as the number-one team in a 42-39 classic. Despite public lobbying for a rematch, Florida was granted a shot at the Buckeyes in the BCS National Championship. The Gators trounced the Buckeyes, 41-14. If Tressel’s team had kept it close, it would be remembered for more than that.
Tressel’s final season was also one to remember. Officially, Ohio State was 0-1 in 2010. On the field, it went 12-1 with a Sugar Bowl win over Arkansas. Again, the Terrelle Pryor-led Buckeyes were dominant. Only two wins came by one score. However, that one loss to Wisconsin stands out. The Badgers’ defense, led by J.J. Watt, smothered the 11th-best offense to 18 points.
Despite not having teams as dominant as Meyer’s or Day’s, he won a title, dominated the Big Ten, and produced a Heisman winner.
Urban
Meyer’s teams put the Buckeyes back on the map. His 12-0 2012 team probably would have beaten Notre Dame in the National Championship, but it was ineligible due to a self-imposed sanction that continues to age like week-old cottage cheese each and every day.
The 2015 team was loaded. It had 42 NFL Draft picks on it, including 12 first-round picks. Its Achilles’ Heel was the fact that the offense couldn’t get much going due to the indecision at quarterback.
2018? It had a record-setting offense ruined by an inept defense (and a 29-point loss to Purdue).
Main Image: Neal C. Lauron/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK
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