Breaking down Ohio State’s CFP collapse vs. Miami

The Ohio State Buckeyes’ 2025 campaign is officially over after their loss to the Miami Hurricanes in the CFP quarterfinals. After a few days of letting that defeat marinate, it’s time to look back and figure out what went wrong for Ohio State, why they couldn’t get past Miami, and why this team won’t be back-to-back national champions.

The Ohio State offensive line failed again

For the second straight game, the Ohio State offensive line allowed five sacks and played a major role in the Buckeyes’ loss. Miami’s pass rush lived in the backfield all night, with standout edge rushers Akheem Mesidor and Rueben Bain Jr consistently getting to Julian Sayin and making life miserable for the freshman quarterback. The struggles didn’t stop in pass protection. The run game was just as ineffective. Bo Jackson carried the ball 11 times for 55 yards, while CJ Donaldson finished with 31 yards on seven carries, and there were very few clean rushing lanes to be found. It was an all-around lackluster performance up front. After the Indiana game, many believed Ohio State would make protecting Sayin a top priority by using better protections, quicker throws, and cleaner concepts. That never materialized. Heading into the offseason, improving the offensive line has to be one of Ohio State’s biggest focal points.

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Ryan Day taking over as the main playcaller

This may be a bit of a hot take, and hindsight is always 20/20, but Ryan Day taking over playcalling duties from Brian Hartline and Keenan Bailey was not a great decision. For most of the season, Hartline and Bailey were strong as co-offensive coordinators and primary playcallers. Then, just before the biggest game of the year, Day stepped into that role, and it showed. The offense looked predictable and one-dimensional. In theory, the move made sense. Hartline had already accepted the head coaching job at USF, and Day likely felt he was wearing too many hats. Still, Oregon faced a similar situation and made it work. Oregon offensive coordinator Will Stein accepted the head coaching job at Kentucky around the same time Hartline accepted a job at USF, yet Stein continued calling plays during the CFP quarterfinals as Oregon shut out No. 4 Texas Tech 23 to 0. Hartline and Bailey should have remained the playcallers against Miami, as Day’s approach resulted in one of Julian Sayin’s worst performances of the season.

The lack of offensive balance and creativity

Offensively, this game felt eerily similar to the Indiana loss. Sayin took too many sacks, the run game never found a rhythm, and Jeremiah Smith was force-fed targets. Smith is the best player in college football and delivered a massive stat line with seven catches for 157 yards and a touchdown, but it ultimately didn’t matter. No other Ohio State pass catcher topped 38 receiving yards. When the Buckeyes were at their best this season, they were balanced. Look no further than the Michigan game, where Sayin threw for 233 yards and three touchdowns while the rushing attack totaled 186 yards. Against Miami, it was essentially the Jeremiah Smith show. Carnell Tate, a likely top 10 pick in the upcoming NFL Draft, combined for just 82 receiving yards in the two biggest games of the season against Indiana and Miami. That is tough to swallow, and it’s something Ohio State fans will be wondering about for a long time when looking back on the 2025 season.

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The falloff of Ohio State's Arvell Reese

Arvell Reese opened the 2025 season on a dominant note in Matt Patricia’s defensive system. Through the Purdue game, he was viewed as one of the best defenders in the country and a potential top-five NFL Draft pick. Since the Penn State game in early November, however, Reese has been much quieter. Over the first eight games, he recorded 6.5 sacks. From that point on, he finished with zero. His role shifted as the season went on, and Patricia’s staff seemed unsure how best to use him, lining him up at edge, linebacker, and in spy looks. He never rediscovered the same impact he had early in the year. Reese is still likely to be a first-round pick and should thrive at the next level, but it’s frustrating that he couldn’t recapture that early-season magic when Ohio State needed it most.

Ohio State kicker Jayden Fielding’s miscues

Ohio State’s kicking issues have lingered for years, and they once again reared their head at the worst possible time. There is no reason one of the best teams in the country should be missing field goals from under 50 yards. Jayden Fielding struggled throughout the season and missed kicks when Ohio State needed him most. Against Indiana, he missed a 27-yard field goal with under three minutes remaining. Against Miami, he badly missed a 49-yard attempt right before halftime. From Noah Ruggles to Fielding, the Buckeyes have had persistent problems at kicker, and Ryan Day has largely ignored them, winning not because of the kicking game but despite it. That has to change heading into the 2026 season.

This article originally appeared on Buckeyes Wire: What went wrong for Ohio State football in the CFP loss to Miami