Joel Klatt believes Ohio State should start 2024 season as No. 1

Joel Klatt of Fox Sports has a bold choice for who ought to open the college football season as the No. 1 football team in the country — and a hint: they wear red.

Klatt was interviewed by some reporters at the NFL Draft this week in Detroit, where he may have ruffled the feathers of nearby Michigan fans when he declared that the Wolverines’ rival should begin the season at No. 1.

“I think they probably should be the No. 1 team in the country to start the season,” Klatt shared of Ohio State. “The fact that they have questions at the quarterback position will prevent them from probably being the No. 1 team in the country to start the season, and they’ll start number two with legitimate National Title hopes for sure.”

Klatt believes OSU can get back to the College Football Playoff and possibly win the whole thing using a similar template as Jim Harbaugh and Michigan in 2023.

“That’s the comparison because that’s what Michigan did. They brought back a ton of guys that were older which provided an enormous amount of depth on both sides of the ball,” he explained.

“They were very good at the line of scrimmage and then that depth, maturity, culture all of it paid off and they won a national championship. That’s the type of run that I see out of Ohio State.”

Michigan had to knock on the door a couple of times before they got let into the champion’s ball, so to speak. With a core that did evolve yet remained intact from year to year, the Wolverines made two straight CFPs, lost in the semifinal rounds, and then finally broke through on their third try to go undefeated and win the whole thing.

Ohio State has already been to the playoff a couple of times under Ryan Day, even as recent as 2022, plus a national title game appearance in 2020. However, they haven’t won it all under him yet.

With a loaded roster of transfers and elite returners, Joel Klatt believes 2024 could be the year Ohio State finally goes for all the glory.