​AUSTIN, TX – SEPTEMBER 12: Running back Bo Jackson #25 of the Ohio State Buckeyes runs with the ball during the college football game the Texas Longhorns and the Ohio State Buckeyes on September 12, 2026, at Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium in Austin, TX. (Photo by David Buono/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) | Icon Sportswire via Getty Images First of all, I’m chalking up Ohio State’s loss to Texas Saturday as inexcusable. It never should have happened. Forget that the Buckeyes conceded 21 unanswered points in the fourth quarter to wipe out a 20-3 lead; Ohio State had two chances to recover a fumble that could have effectively ended the game. Those two fumbles came when Ohio State up 23-3 — have to close the deal.That said, I’ve thought a lot over the last few days about the human element with the Buckeyes and what happened on Saturday. I know we hear coaches preach all the time about playing to win and not playing not to lose. Fans want to see their teams play to win. Here’s the thing: it’s easier said than done.Put yourselves in Ryan Day’s shoes. Your team is playing great and in firm control, leading 23-3 going into the fourth quarter. Texas scores to make it 23-10. Not a huge deal. You’re still up 13. It’s the fourth quarter. What do you ultimately want to do? Bleed clock, right? That way Texas doesn’t have time to cut further into the deficit. How do you do that? You keep the ball on the ground. On the Buckeyes’ ensuing possession, they did that. They ran the ball on their first two plays, and then Sayin threw to Jeremiah Smith to try and convert a third-and-4. The pass was incomplete, though. If it had been complete, that would have been three straight plays that kept the clock running. That’s where the human element comes in. You’re just trying to get to the finish line.When you’re playing on the road, you deal with crowd noise the entire game. One way to silence a crowd is by running the football. Along with that, Texas’s crowd was back into the game after cutting the deficit to 23-10. After working so hard to build a 23-3 lead, it can be human nature to not want to lose the lead in general. On the road, it’s easier to think like that when your offense takes the field.Again, I’m not excusing Day here. I’m just saying there is a human element to consider when it comes to getting conservative. No matter how many times it’s preached, players and coaches will still do it at some point. Unfortunately, Day and his staff did just that on Saturday. He has done it before, yes. But he also had Will Howard throw to Jeremiah Smith on third-and-11 to clinch the National Championship.On another note, while this loss is disappointing, it’s not completely damaging. There’s the safety net of a 12-team Playoff. In the four-team CFP era, this loss could have kept the Buckeyes on the outside looking in. But with 12 teams making the Playoff, Ohio State will absolutely be in if they run the table. They’ll pr