The Ohio State offense is operating at a historically slow pace in 2025. This is not by accident; it is very intentional, and it is exactly what they need to be doing.

Ohio State Buckeyes' head coach Ryan Day and his offenses have followed one very consistent trend throughout his tenure in Columbus. Unfortunately for the prestige coach, every year his offensive attack becomes slower than the year before. 

Day is midway through his seventh year at the helm of the Buckeyes, and each year, he tends to slow his offensive game plan down. In 2019, the Buckeyes ran on average 78 offensive plays per game, which at the time, ranked seventh in the country. His highly-flying offense became a standard in college football, while quickly became one of the teams that set the pace for the rest of the FBS landscape.

Fast forward to the presence day, the Buckeyes now average just 60 plays per game, which ranks 126th in the country. This is off of their National Championship season, where they averaged 62.8 plays, good for 123rd in the country.

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Common sense would indicate that something is wrong with this approach, but it is a very, very intentional strategy. 

There are two ways to view this new offensive approach from Day. The first is from the rules and personality perspective, as game of college football has dramatically changed since the 2019 season. In the past, the clock used to stop after every first down, which led to teams focusing on running the no-huddle and maximizing their plays. This allowed for a majority of plays to be signaled in from the sideline. 

All of those factors played a role on an emphasis on speed, pace, and points. In 2025, the game has changed and has become more like the NFL style of play. No longer does the clock stop after a first down, coaches have direct communication to the quarterback. In addition to those changes,  teams are beginning to huddle and call plays, causing the game to run at a slower pace.

The other view of this change in philosophy from Day is from a practical standpoint. Ohio State has nailed the transition from a four-team college football playoff to the 12-team playoff. Now, to win the National Championship, teams need to play in either 15 or 16 games, depending on the bye week. This requires programs to play three or four more games than a player would typically play in a season.

Staying healthy is the number one priority for these teams and one way to accomplish this is by playing less plays. Ohio State has mastered this and it was on display during last year's run to the title game. 

The negatives to this new approach from Day is that there are less plays to be made and it is tougher to spread the ball around to everyone who needs a touch. This continues to put the emphasis on being efficient on offense and limiting the mistakes.

Through four games in 2025, the tempo, discipline and execution has been on display for Ohio State.