Is Ohio State still the country’s best team after Saturday night’s loss to Texas on the road?

Josh Pate thinks so.

The ESPN college football analyst says that he came away from Saturday night’s Texas vs. Ohio State thinking that the Buckeyes are still the country’s best team. Ohio State was leading Texas, 23-3, before blowing a 20-point lead. Texas won in thrilling fashion, 24-23.

“I actually watched last night and came away thinking Ohio State is the best team in the country,” Josh Pate said on the Josh Pate’s College Football Show,. “I think that missed field goal and the two fumble recoveries and the fourth-down conversions — full credit to Texas, by the way — all happening in their building, all that being necessary to lose by one point on the road?”

He added: “I would have loved to have won the game. But man, I learned I got a heck of a team. Now, I got my own issues to deal with. …I know you’re mad. I know you think it was a meltdown and implosion; the other guy is allowed to try too. The other team is pretty good too.”

Ohio State Buckeyes head coach Ryan Day watches warm ups prior to the NCAA football game against the Texas Longhorns at Darrell K Royal–Texas Memorial Stadium in Austin, Texas on Sept. 12, 2026.Adam Cairns/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images.
Ohio State Buckeyes head coach Ryan Day watches warm ups prior to the NCAA football game against the Texas Longhorns at Darrell K Royal–Texas Memorial Stadium in Austin, Texas on Sept. 12, 2026.Adam Cairns/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images.

ESPN’s computer model, the Football Power Index, agrees.

The Buckeyes remained at No. 1 overall in the new Top 25 rankings released on Sunday morning, September 13.

  1. Ohio State
  2. Texas
  3. Notre Dame
  4. Georgia
  5. Miami
  6. Indiana
  7. Alabama
  8. Texas A&M
  9. LSU
  10. USC
  11. Tennessee
  12. Oklahoma
  13. Oregon
  14. Penn State
  15. Florida
  16. Texas Tech
  17. Ole Miss
  18. BYU
  19. Utah
  20. Nebraska
  21. South Carolina
  22. Michigan
  23. Auburn
  24. SMU
  25. Virginia

Ryan Day reacts to loss to Texas

Day remains confident, too.

“I think today we played well for three quarters and didn’t play well enough in the fourth quarter,” Day said postgame. That’s the bottom line. We stalled on some offensive drives, and I felt that we had them on the ropes and didn’t finish.

“So, we’ve got to go back and figure out why that was. I think once that happened, they sustained some drives, converted those fourth downs, and kept us on the field on defense. And then, certainly, we had a chance to kick the field goal to make it a two-score game, and we didn’t do that. So, this one hurts. I think that was the message to the guys in the locker room.”

This story was originally published by The Spun on Sep 14, 2026, where it first appeared in the College Football section. Add The Spun as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

Source: Yahoo Sports