Watch the trailer for the Ohio State football game against Utah at the Rose Bowl

COLUMBUS, Ohio – The Ohio State soccer playoffs won’t be about competing for a national title for the first time in the Ryan Day era.

It takes some of the shine out of facing Utah at the Rose Bowl and that’s why four of its players pulled out of the game. Instead, the 2021 Buckeyes’ final will be about looking to the future.

A new era for the wide catcher begins on Saturday as the results of Brian Hartline’s work on the scouting track over the past two years mature. Quarterback CJ Stroud may make a first statement on the Heisman Trophy as he will return alongside Bryce Young of Alabama as the preseason favorites. Defensively, OSU has the opportunity to set the tone.

The last time this team was on the field, they were pushed around the line of scrimmage by Michigan. That lack of thrust was also the reason Ohio State lost to a Pac-12 team in Week 2 when Oregon came to Columbus. This season, the Utes have dominated the Ducks in two meetings, with an approach similar to that used by the Wolverines to make their first college football playoff appearance.

The tenacity of the team has spent the last month in question. These questions won’t go away just because OSU wins a bowl game. But it’s a chance to give fans a reason to be optimistic about the better days ahead.

When the Buckeyes were in Pasadena after the 2018 season, it allowed them to hit the reset button while Day took over Urban Meyer’s schedule. Three years later, they are back. Only this time it won’t come with new leadership.

“We have a moment,” tight end Mitch Rossi said in the trailer. “A moment to change the narrative of what this season is like for the 2021 Buckeyes. Everyone here has their name this season.

Watch the full trailer above as you prepare to watch Ohio State take on the Utes in Saturday’s Rose Bowl.

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