The vibes are good again surrounding Ohio State football.

After three weeks of negativity that followed Ohio State’s loss to Oregon and uncomfortably close win over Nebraska, the Buckeyes gave their fans reason to be excited once again as they went on the road and earned a marquee win over Penn State, the No. 3 team in the country at the time. Making the win particularly special for the Buckeyes was how they won the game, as their defense held Penn State without a touchdown while the offensive line carried Ohio State to victory as it ran out the clock in the fourth quarter.

Ohio State’s improvements in both of those areas from its previous two games restored confidence that the Buckeyes remain a national championship contender, and the College Football Playoff selection committee agreed as it ranked Ohio State second in its initial rankings of 2024 on Tuesday night.

With what should be an easy win over Purdue on tap this week, we spend this week’s episode of Real Pod Wednesdays discussing what impressed us most in Happy Valley, where our confidence stands now that Ohio State will achieve its three major goals and how the initial rankings put the Buckeyes in excellent position for the CFP.

The rundown for this week’s show:

• 0:00 The Vibes Are Good Again for Ohio State Football
• 3:03 Ohio State Finds the Right Lineup Up Front with Donovan Jackson at LT, Carson Hinzman at LG
• 9:48 What’s Your Level of Confidence in the Offensive Line Now?
• 12:51 Ohio State’s Defense Looks Like the Elite Unit It’s Supposed to Be Again
• 16:00 Ohio State’s Goal-Line Stand Was Emblematic of What’s Made Its Defense Successful
• 19:18 What Ryan Day and Jim Knowles Mean By Getting “Back to Basics” on Defense
• 24:46 What‘s Your Level of Confidence in the Defense Now?
• 28:38 Cody Simon, TreVeyon Henderson, Quinshon Judkins and Jayden Fielding Deserve Shoutouts
• 33:05 Assessing Our Confidence That OSU Will Beat Michigan, Win Big Ten, Win National Championship
• 39:55 The Buckeyes Deserve to Be Ranked Second, And They’re In Great Position for the CFP Now
• 44:15 Other Takeaways from the Initial College Football Playoff Rankings
• 49:14 Forgive Us, Ryan Day, But We’re Overlooking Purdue
• 54:03 Why Andy Thinks Ohio State Will Cover and Why Dan Thinks OSU Won’t Cover vs. Purdue
• 56:00 The Vibes Are Good for Ohio State Basketball and Men’s Soccer, Too