Ohio State announces complete 2023-24 non-conference schedule

IMG_7408by:Andy Backstrom•06/20/23•

andybackstrom

COLUMBUS — Ohio State announced its complete 2023-24 non-conference schedule Tuesday, an 11-game slate that could include as many as five Power Five opponents.

Last year, the Buckeyes didn’t host a single Power Five non-conference opponent. This time around, they’ll welcome Texas A&M — expected to be an AP-ranked team on the heels of its NCAA Tournament appearance in 2022-23 — to the Schottenstein Center the second game of the season. Then, close to two months later, Ohio State will square off against West Virginia in a neutral site game in Cleveland.

That’s not to mention a pair of early-season events, the Emerald Coast Classic and the CBS Sports Classic, which will feature marquee matchups as well. Ohio State will kick off the former over Thanksgiving Weekend in Niceville, Florida, with a bout against a new-look Alabama squad before playing either Oregon or Santa Clara the following day. Then, in mid December, Ohio State will make the trip to Atlanta for another year of the CBS Sports Classic — the Buckeyes will play either UCLA, Kentucky or UNC.

“This is the best and most challenging overall schedule we have put together in a few years,” Buckeeys head coach Chris Holtmann, now in his seventh year, said in an Ohio State Athletics statement.

“We have a preseason top-15 opponent coming to the Schottenstein Center in the early part of the year, a couple of preseason top-25 teams away from home and several good regional mid-major programs in the non-conference. This is all in addition to our tremendous home slate of Big Ten opponents.” 

Here’s the complete breakdown of Ohio State’s non-conference schedule for the upcoming season.

Note: * denotes neutral site games

November

Nov. 6 vs. Oakland

  • Ohio State will open the season against Oakland on Nov. 6. The Buckeyes and Grizzlies have squared off three times before, with Ohio State winning each game by double digits. Interestingly enough, the teams first met in 1998, the night Value City Arena opened. MORE DETAILS

Nov. 10 vs. Texas A&M

  • Ohio State is kicking off a home-and-home with Texas A&M four days into the season. The Buckeyes will host the Aggies on Nov. 10. Ohio State will head to College Station to complete the series during the 2024-25 season. The Buckeyes have faced Texas A&M on three separate occasions, the most recent coming in a neutral site game in New York City on Nov. 23, 2007. It was part of the NIT Preseason Tip-Off Championship in Madison Square Garden, where the Aggies handed Ohio State a 70-47 loss. MORE DETAILS

Nov. 15 vs. Merrimack

Nov. 19 vs. Western Michigan (also part of Emerald Coast Classic)

*Nov. 24-25 vs. Alabama, Oregon/Santa Clara in Emerald Coast Classic

  • Ohio State will play in the Emerald Coast Classic this season, an early-season tournament in Niceville, Florida, that takes place over Thanksgiving weekend. The event consists of a four-team field: Alabama, Oregon, Santa Clara and, of course, Ohio State. Alabama is the lone member of the group that made the NCAA Tournament last season. The Crimson Tide — now, once again, experiencing significant roster turnover — were the No. 1 overall seed but got ousted in the Sweet Sixteen by Final Four-bound San Diego State.

Nov. 29 vs. Central Michigan

December

Dec. 5/6 vs. Miami (Ohio)

  • Whether this game is played on Dec. 5 or 6 depends on when Ohio State plays its first Big Ten game, which will also be the first week of December.

*Dec. 16 vs. TBD (UNC, Kentucky, UCLA) in CBS Sports Classic

  • The CBS Sports Classic — a four-team non-conference event that has included Ohio State, Kentucky, North Carolina and UCLA since its inception in 2014 — is back again. It will take place on Dec. 16 in Atlanta. This year’s matchups haven’t been officially announced. Kentucky head coach John Calipari tweeted last year that the Wildcats would be playing UNC this time around. That would pit Ohio State against UCLA on the other end of the doubleheader. It’s important to note, though, that opponents can change during the scheduling process. Ohio State is 4-4 all-time in the CBS Sports Classic. MORE DETAILS

Dec. 21 vs. New Orleans

*Dec. 30 vs. West Virginia

  • As was the case in 2019, Ohio State is headed to Cleveland to play West Virginia. A venue hasn’t been announced for the event yet, but the last time the Buckeyes and Mountaineers met, it was at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse, the home of the Cleveland Cavaliers. This year’s showdown will be the 18th all-time meeting between the programs. Ohio State has lost eight of its last nine games against WVU. That said, the Buckeyes still lead the series, 9-8. The teams have played only three times since 2000, and just once since WVU joined the Big 12 in 2012. MORE DETAILS

Big Ten Schedule

Back in April, the Big Ten announced every team’s home and away conference opponents for the 2023-24 season. Ohio State will play 14 league foes both at and away from the Schottenstein Center, three Big Ten opponents only at home and three more only on the road.

Here’s the breakdown:

Home Only

  • Illinois
  • Maryland
  • Purdue

Away Only

  • Iowa
  • Michigan State
  • Northwestern

Home and Away

  • Indiana
  • Michigan
  • Minnesota
  • Nebraska
  • Penn State
  • Rutgers
  • Wisconsin

Tip-times, TV assignments and the completed Big Ten schedule will be revealed toward the end of the summer.

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