How the Ohio State Buckeyes are building a college football dynasty in Columbus

The Ohio State Buckeyes are building a dynasty in Columbus.

In an era of college football where the transfer portal and name, image and likeness (NIL) dominate the scene, head coach Ryan Day and the Buckeyes' football program have weathered the storm. But it hasn't just been a season of being right on par with everyone else.

They've been on their own level.

The Buckeyes are currently No. 1 in the nation and undefeated through nine weeks of play, sporting a 7-0 record.

Leading the charge is a mix of experienced veterans and unsung freshmen and sophomore heroes who have risen to the occasion. Most notably of the bunch is sophomore signal caller Julian Sayin, who is one of the top quarterbacks in the nation and has been nearly unstoppable.

The program has the things needed to make this last longer than a few seasons. They have the money, the reputation, the coaching staff and the track record of developing college kids into professional athletes.

Just look at the NFL a few weeks ago. The headlines were dominated by former Buckeye wideouts who were tearing it up against pro teams, including most recently drafted standout Emeka Egbuka who's now with the Tampa Bay Bucaneers.

If you can sell a program as not only one where you will find collegiate success, but also one where you can learn the tools to go on and play at the next level, you can become a dynasty.

And that is what Ohio State is becoming.

Day currently has a winning percentage of 88.5% across his eight years at Ohio State, marking 77 wins and just 10 losses. He's led the program to two trips to the national championship, with one win, coming last season.

Since he took over for legendary head coach Urban Meyer, the Buckeyes have also dominated the AP poll. Under his guidance and leadership, the team has mustered its way to an AP high of 2 or 1 in each season Day has been at the helm. He also has led them to AP pre's of 5 or higher and AP post's of 10 or higher.

That's pure dominance.

Now, the team is looking poised to march to another title appearance this season, especially with how easily they've walked by opposing squads.

Dating back to last season, the Buckeyes have won 11 straight games en route to outscoring opponents 400 to 116 in that spell. That's an average of 36.6 points scored and 10.5 points allowed per game. An incredible feat for any team to accomplish.

They have a really young team that is only going to continue to grow over the next few seasons and if they can keep this roster intact, they may be able to contend for a national championship for many seasons to come.

Freshman running back Bo Jackson is leading the charge for the rushing room with a team-high 433 yards, sophomore wideout Jeremiah Smith currently has over 600 receiving yards and seven touchdowns, all while the defense is being anchored by countless standard-raising seniors.

In a world where the world "dynasty" is being over used, it isn't being used enough on Ohio State.

They now turn their focus to the Penn State Nittany Lions, with kickoff slated for a noon start on Saturday, Nov. 1.

While Penn State hasn't had the best season, it certainly won't be any easy pushover for the Buckeyes.

“They really have a nothing-to-lose mentality,” Day said of facing Penn State. “We have to be at high alert.”

The Nittany Lions enter Saturday with a 3-4 overall record and 3-2 conference record.