Ohio State's Ryan Day says Indiana game isn't about Big Ten title game revenge

Ryan Day wants Ohio State to treat Saturday's trip to Indiana as a game of its own, not a chance to settle last season's Big Ten Championship Game.

The No. 4 Buckeyes (5-1) visit the No. 5 Hoosiers (6-0) in Bloomington at noon Eastern on Fox. It is the first meeting since last year's title game, when both teams came in undefeated and Indiana won on its way to a national title run. In his weekly press conference, Day said the past has nothing to do with this week, ClutchPoints reported.

"Nothing that happened in the past has anything to do with what's going on this weekend," Day said, according to ClutchPoints.

Day didn't dismiss the loss completely. He said players who were in that game can learn from what went wrong, but that the team's attention has to stay on the present. That is a familiar line from a head coach in a rivalry week. It still tells you how Ohio State wants to handle a game that a lot of people outside the building will frame as a rematch.

The Buckeyes have reasons to be confident. ClutchPoints notes that the offense has added new wrinkles under first-year coordinator Arthur Smith. Wide receiver Jeremiah Smith is among the leading Heisman Trophy contenders, and quarterback Julian Sayin is also part of that conversation. Ohio State also has a ranking to chase. A win over a top-five team on the road would strengthen its case to move back up toward No. 1 in the polls.

Indiana comes in unbeaten but has looked less dominant lately. The Hoosiers needed to hold on against Nebraska last Saturday to stay perfect. Now they face the most talented roster they have seen this fall, with Memorial Stadium likely to be loud and hostile for the visitors.

The game will shape the Big Ten race well beyond mid-October. A win would make Indiana the clear team to beat in the conference and back up last December's result. A loss would leave the Hoosiers trying to prove that the title game win was more than a one-off. For Ohio State, a win in Bloomington would wipe out much of the memory of last season's loss, whether or not Day calls it revenge.

The market has the visitors in front. Ohio State is favored at -163 on Novig, one of the venues pricing the game, and the best sportsbook price on the Buckeyes is -165 at theScore Bet. Indiana is getting 3.5 points, and the total is 50.5. Full prices are on the Ohio State at Indiana odds page.

That spread reflects how close the teams are rated. On paper, the gap is no wider than it was last December.